East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust has carefully considered this request for information in relation to Prevent. Given the very small number of referrals where public access to such data can potentially make it easier to identify an individual (or indeed for the individual to be able to recognise that the data is about them), therefore compromising their participation in the Prevent/Channel programme and more importantly breaching their legal right to confidentiality, we are applying the following Absolute Exemption to this request;.
Section 41
Information provided in confidence.
(1)Information is exempt information if—
(a)it was obtained by the public authority from any other person (including another public authority), and
(b)the disclosure of the information to the public (otherwise than under this Act) by the public authority holding it would constitute a breach of confidence actionable by that or any other person.
This relates to information obtained from a person if its disclosure would constitute a breach of confidence actionable by that, or another person. This exemption can apply in a Prevent milieu where the degree of information being requested could potentially disclose the identity of the referral i.e. number of referrals (particularly in instances where they are low with an organisation) or where additional information is being sought (e.g. regarding age, gender, ethnicity, religion etc.).