4.1 Outside Jurisdiction with no discretion

These should be closed using one of the following decision reasons:

Not in jurisdiction (OJ) & no discretion
s26(1) Not an admin function of authority
s26(7) all or most
s27(1) not by member of the public
sch 5.1 court proceedings
sch 5.2 police authority & crime
sch 5.3 commercial & contractual
sch 5.4 personnel *
sch 5.5 internal man schools
sch 5.5A/5.5B Social housing landlord
sch 5.6 New Town not housing
sch 5.7/5.8 UDC/HCA not planning

Part 3A decisions:

Not in jurisdiction (OJ) & no discretion
function OJ (not a regulated social care activity)
provider OJ (not adult social care provider under s34A(3) definition)
s5A.2 Could be investigated by PHSO
s5A.3 Court proceedings
s5A.4 Personnel*

* For whistle-blower (see 5.1 beow) and other Schedule 5.4 and 5A.4 closures:

• Write the final decision and send it only to the complainant – there is a template in ECHO;  
• Mark the publication screen as ‘not for publication’ (AM approval is not required);
• Tell the complainant we will not publish the final decision, and that we have not sent our decision, details of the complaint, or the complainant’s personal details to the BinJ;
• Send a decision letter to the BinJ telling it 1) we received a complaint about a personnel matter; 2) we are not investigating it; 3) we do not disclose details of these complaints; and 4) we are telling them so their complaint numbers tally with ours. There is a template in ECHO. Remember to remove the PA details from the email to the BinJ covering the decision letter.

(Note that it is the closure reason that determines our approach, not the complaint’s category or sub-category.)

There are two exceptions to this policy:

• If the complainant is not a former or current council employee but complains about a personnel issue (e.g. a member of the public complaining about the appointment of a Chief Executive), there is no personnel relationship between the complainant and the BinJ that we might compromise. In such circumstances, treat it as a normal complaint. Publish the final decision and tell the BinJ about the complaint and complainant in the usual way. Explain in Notes and Analysis why you have taken this approach.
• If the complaint is about a care provider under Part 3A, do not tell the BinJ about the complaint at all, as it is likely the complainant would be identified.

4.2 Outside Jurisdiction – Discretion not exercised 

These cases should be closed using one of the following decision reasons:

Not in jurisdiction (OJ) & discretion not exercised
s26B(2) not made in 12 months
s26(6)(a) tribunal ICO FOIA only
s26(6)(a) tribunal SENDIST
s26(6)(a) tribunal HB
s26(6)(a) tribunal TPT/PATAS
s26(6)(a) tribunal IAP
s26(6)(a) tribunal other
s26(6)(b) appeal to minister
s26(6)(c) court remedy
s26A Not a suitable person or representative*

Part 3A decisions:

Not in jurisdiction (OJ) & discretion not exercised
s34D(1)(b) complaint not made within 12 months
S34C Not a suitable person or representative*
Action complained of occurred exclusively before 1/10/2010 (before start of service)

* Only applies where the PA cannot give us written consent; issue but do not publish a decision statement

ECHO instruction - OJ Early Decisions

Covers Decision, Publication and Closure