Off-island travel undertaken by Children’s Social Care

​Request ​798416213

I am requesting information regarding off-island travel undertaken by Children’s Social Care (within CYPES or its responsible department). Please provide data for the most recent 24-month period for which records are available.

Total Off-Island Travel Costs 

Please provide the total off-island travel cost for Children’s Social Care, broken down by month and by travel purpose. Please include the following categories, or map internal categories where different: 

– Escorting or accompanying children, parents or family members 

– Return journeys 

– Placement-support travel 

– Contact-related travel 

– Treatment-related travel 

– Staff business travel 

– Training 

– Any other internal category used 

Staffing Levels on Each Trip 

For each off-island trip undertaken by Children’s Social Care, please provide: 

– The number of staff who travelled (e.g., 1 staff, 2 staff, 3 staff) 

– The purpose of the trip 

– The destination

– The total cost per trip (rounded to the nearest £100 to preserve anonymity) 

No names or identifiers are requested. 

Repeated or Routine Travel Patterns 

Please provide: 

– The number of repeated or recurring off-island trips made for the same purpose each month 

– The number of trips where staff were required to accompany or escort individuals due to reasons such as fear of flying, behavioural concerns, or risk considerations (as recorded internally). Totals only. 

Placement-Support Travel 

Please provide: 

– The total number of off-island placements supported during the period 

– The total number of staff trips made to support or supervise these placements 

– The total cost of these trips 

– The number of occasions where multiple staff travelled for a single placement or contact-related purpose 

Policies Governing Off-Island Escorting 

Please provide any policies, guidance, criteria, or decision-making frameworks that determine when staff must accompany or escort children, parents, or family members off-island. Please also provide any recent changes to these policies. 

Approval Levels 

Please provide details of the approval levels required for off-island travel within Children’s Social Care (for example, Service Manager, Head of Service, Director). 

Budget Context 

For the same 24-month period, please provide: 

– The total annual budget for Children’s Social Care 

– The percentage of the budget used for off-island travel 

– Any overspend or underspend recorded in travel budgets 

Partial Responses 

If any part of this request exceeds FOI cost/time limits, please provide the information that can be supplied within the limit, explain which sections exceed the limit and why, and provide any summary reports or existing documents that could meet the request in an alternative format.

Response

Total Off-Island Travel

The table below shows the total costs for off-island travel for the entire Children’s Social Care department for the last 2 years as requested.

We are unable to provide further breakdown as requested as the data is not category coded at the point of collection. Article 3 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 is applied.

Staffing Levels on Each Trip

Data on the staffing levels for each trip is not held in a recordable format. Article 3 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 is applied.

Repeated or Routine Travel Patterns

The number of repeated or recurring off-island trips made for the same purpose each month, and the total number of staff trips made to support them, or the reason, is not held in a recordable format. Article 3 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 is applied.

Placement-Support Travel

We are unable to answer questions about placement support travel as we do not hold the data in a recordable format. Article 3 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 is applied.

Policies Governing Off-Island Escorting

Policies, guidance, criteria, and decision-making frameworks that determine when staff must accompany or escort children, parents, or family members off-island are currently under development. Article 35 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 is applied.

Approval Levels

All off-island travel for the whole of Children’s Social Care is approved in accordance with the Public Finance Manual rules.

Budget Context

The table below presents the total annual Children’s Social Care Budget for 2024 and 2025 for the entire of Children’s Social Care (not only linked to children placed off island). The percentage of budget used for all off-island travel in the context of the whole Children’s Social Care budget is also provided:

We are unable to provide information on the over or underspend because the department does not have a set budget for travel. Article 3 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 is applied.

Articles Applied

Article 3 - Meaning of “information held by a public authority”

For the purposes of this Law, information is held by a public authority if –

(a) it is held by the authority, otherwise than on behalf of another person; or

(b) it is held by another person on behalf of the authority.

Article 35 - Formulation and development of policies

Information is qualified exempt information if it relates to the formulation or development of any proposed policy by a public authority.

Public Interest Test

Article 35 is a qualified exemption for information relating to the formulation or

Development of policy, requiring a Public Interest Test to determine whether the public

interest in disclosure outweighs the public interest in maintaining the exemption.

The Scheduled Public Authority has considered arguments for and against disclosure as laid out below.

Arguments for Disclosure

There is a clear public interest in:

1. Transparency in public sector decision‑making

Publishing information about how decisions will eventually be made could increase public confidence in safeguarding procedures, particularly where children or vulnerable people, or their families, may travel off‑island.

2. Promoting accountability

Disclosure could help the public understand the intended direction of policy and ensure that public authorities act consistently and in line with safeguarding best practice.

3. Supporting public debate

There is public interest in ensuring that debates about safeguarding, parental involvement, and escorting arrangements can be fully informed.

These factors support transparency but must be balanced against the risks of releasing unfinished, unapproved, or incomplete material.

Arguments for Maintaining the Exemption

1. Disclosure would prejudice the safe and orderly development of policy

The documents requested are currently drafts and form part of an ongoing internal policy development process. Releasing them prematurely could:

• Misrepresent the final policy position

• Lead to public confusion about procedures that are not yet accurate or complete

• Undermine the integrity of internal discussions and expert consultation

2. Officials require a safe space to develop policy

Effective policy making relies on civil servants and subject matter experts being able to:

• Explore options freely

• Challenge assumptions

• Consider sensitive safeguarding issues

• Provide advice without concern that early drafts will be published

Releasing drafts would inhibit this process and could lower the quality of final policy.

3. Potential impact on safeguarding and operational practice

Premature disclosure of incomplete criteria relating to escorting children or families off‑island could:

• create unrealistic expectations

• lead individuals to act on draft criteria that do not yet represent confirmed practice

• risk operational inconsistency, confusion, and safeguarding vulnerabilities

Conclusion of Public Interest Test

While there is public interest in transparency, this is outweighed by the public interest in ensuring that policy is developed thoroughly, safely, and without external pressure or misunderstanding arising from the release of incomplete material.

Releasing draft policies, criteria, or frameworks relating to escorting children or families off‑island would:

• Prejudice the effective formulation and development of policy

• Risk public confusion and safeguarding implications

• Undermine the quality and integrity of internal policy work

Therefore, the public interest in maintaining the exemption under Article 35 outweighs the public interest in disclosure.

The information is withheld under Article 35 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 – Formulation and Development of Policies.