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Jo Coles - York and North Yorkshire Deputy Mayor for Policing, Fire and Crime

Jo Coles - North Yorkshire Deputy Mayor for Policing, Fire and Crime

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NYFRS Staff Dismissals

Information Disclosed

Our Ref: NY10181

Date: 12/12/2025 

Freedom of Information request reference number: NY10181 

I write in connection with your request for information that was received by the York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority, Policing, Fire and Crime Directorate (PFC) on the 27th November.  

 

Question/ Request: 

  1. Since the Deputy Mayor took post on Monday 8th July 2024 how many appeals against dismissal have been heard following North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue serviceterminating a staff members employment?

    2. Of this number, how many had been dismissed due to being found guilty of bullying and harassment following an investigation by North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue service?

    3. How many cases has employment been terminated following an investigation by North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue service and the Deputy Mayor has reversed the decision and reinstated the employee? 

 

 

Answer/ Response: 

 

To locate the information relevant to your request searches were conducted within the PFC.   

I can confirm that the information you have requested is held by the PFC.   

Q1) Since the Deputy Mayor took post on Monday 8th July 2024 how many appeals against dismissal have been heard following North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue service terminating a staff members employment? 

  • Answer: Since 8 July 2024, two Appeal Panels have convened in response to the dismissal of an employee by North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service. 

Q2) Of this number, how many had been dismissed due to being found guilty of bullying and harassment following an investigation by North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue service?  

Q3) How many cases has employment been terminated following an investigation by North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue service and the Deputy Mayor has reversed the decision and reinstated the employee? 

Answer: I have considered your request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA) in relation to questions two and three.  The information you have requested constitutes personal data of individuals employed by York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority, in its capacity as Fire and Rescue Authority.  Due to the low numbers of employees in referenced in question one, disclosure of this information would make it possible to identify specific individuals.   

  

Under Section 40(2) of the FOIA, information is exempt from disclosure if it constitutes personal data and its release would contravene any of the data protection principles set out in the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018. In this case, disclosure would be unfair and unlawful because it would reveal personal information about identifiable individuals without their consent. 

  

Section 17 of the Act requires PFC, 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.  

  

Section 40(2) is an absolute class-based exemption, which does not require a public interest test, but requires the balancing of the legitimate interests of the public against the interests of the individual under the first Data Protection Principle; in that processing of personal data must be lawful and fair (DPA 2018 35(1), EUGDPR Article 5(1)).  

  

This exemption applies because the right given under the FOI Act to request official information held by public authorities does not apply to the personal data of third parties where disclosure of that information would not be fair to the individual, and where there is no legitimate public interest in disclosure.  

  

In all the circumstances of the case it has been determined that the duty to the individual under the Data Protection Act 2018 & UK General Data Protection Regulations, and the public interest in maintaining the exemption from disclosure of personal information held by the PFC in such instances, outweighs the public interest in disclosure.  In this instance, personal information can only be disclosed to the individual concerned.   

  

Releasing personal details to a person other than the data subject would not only breach the data subject’s Data Protection rights it may also breach the obligations placed on an authority under the European Convention on Human Rights  

  

Pursuant to Section 17(1) of the Act this letter acts as a refusal notice under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 in relation to your request.  

  

Please note that systems used for recording information are not generic, nor are the procedures used locally in capturing the data.  It should be noted therefore that this response to your questions should not be used for comparison purposes with any other responses you may receive.