Staff Training (699A/21)
Request
For the years 2018, 2019, and 2020, please provide me, if possible, with the number of people with developmental disabilities/neurodivergent conditions (which may include but is not limited to autism spectrum disorder, Aspergers, ADHD, Tourette Syndrome, and intellectual disabilities) that have been arrested by West Midlands Police.
For the years 2018, 2019, and 2020, please provide details on staff training in relation to dealing with people who have developmental disabilities/neurodivergent conditions. Please provide information on when each training session occurred and how long for, which person or organisation delivered each training, the form the training was delivered in, how many police officers attended each training, and whether the training was mandatory. Please also provide any training materials received by officers and any other documents pertaining to the training.
Response
Our data are not organised in such a way as to allow us to provide this information within the appropriate (cost) limit within the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act (see ‘Reason for Decision’ below).
Although excess cost removes the force’s obligations under the Freedom of Information Act, as a gesture of goodwill I have supplied information, relative to your request, retrieved before it was realised that the fees limit would be exceeded (see attached). I trust this is helpful, but it does not affect our legal right to rely on the fees regulations for the remainder of the request.
REASON FOR DECISION
Please note that researching each individual case would exceed the appropriate limit (FOIA, s.12). In order to locate and retrieve the information for question 1 we would need to conduct a manual search, which would exceed the FOI time limit. Also in relation to question 2 we have provided data closest to that requested and is the only data we have available in relation to this request.
The cost of compliance with the whole of your request is above the amount to which we are legally required to respond, i.e. the cost of locating and retrieving the information would exceed the appropriate costs limit under section 12(1) of the FOI Act 2000. For West Midlands Police, the appropriate limit is set at £450, as prescribed by the Freedom of Information and Data Protection (Appropriate Limit and Fees) Regulations 2004, S.I. 3244.