Council-Run Care Home Abuse

Reference number: 
20090122
Request date: 
03/2009
Response date: 
03/04/2009 (All day)
Request details: 

In the past eight years, how many times have South Yorkshire Police been alerted regarding an allegation of abuse by an employee against a resident in a Doncaster Council-run children’s home.
 
Of these, in how many cases were police involved in an investigation? In how many cases did South Yorkshire Police launch an investigation? In how many cases was there evidence of abuse? In how many cases were arrests made? In how many cases were charges brought? Of those charged, how many were convicted of abuse-related offences and what were the offences?
 
In the past eight years, how many times have South Yorkshire Police been alerted regarding an allegation of abuse by an employee against a resident in a Doncaster Council-run residential or nursing home for the elderly?
 
Of these, in how many cases were police involved in an investigation? In how many cases did South Yorkshire Police launch an investigation? In how many cases was there evidence of abuse? In how many cases were arrests made? In how many cases were charges brought? Of those charged, how many were convicted of abuse-related offences and what were the offences

Exemptions Applied: 

 

Section 12 – Exemption where cost of compliance exceeds appropriate limit

SYP response: 

Your request for information has now been considered and I am not obliged to supply the information you have requested. Section 17 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 requires South Yorkshire Police, when refusing to provide such information (because the information is exempt) to provide you the applicant with a notice which:  

(a)        states that fact;

(b)        specifies the exemption in question and;

(c)        states (if that would not otherwise be apparent) why the exemption applies.

 The following exemption applies to the disclosure of the information:

 Section 12 - Exemption where cost of compliance exceeds appropriate limit

 South Yorkshire Police are unable to retrieve the information requested as the only search criteria that could be used is "allegation against professional" but this will include all teachers, volunteers working with children, scout leaders.  This search is also only available for allegations after 2006.  Prior to 2006, a manual search of every record would be required to identify any records matching your request.  This amounts to over 150,000 documents.

 The cost associated with conducting the above searches is above the amount to which we are legally required to respond i.e. the cost of locating and retrieving the information exceeds the ‘appropriate level' as stated in the (ACPO:  Freedom of Information (Fees and Appropriate Limit) Regulations 2004)  (ACPOS:  Freedom of Information (Fees for Required Disclosure)(Scotland) Regulations 2004 and Freedom of Information (Fees for disclosure under section 13)(Scotland) Regulations 2004).