The Access to Personal Files (Housing) Regulations 1989

Information exempt from access

4.—(1) The authority’s duty under regulation 3(1)(b) does not arise where—

(a) subject to paragraph (3), the information sought would itself or with other available information identify another individual (other than a member of the tenant’s family) who has not consented to the disclosure, including an individual who has provided that information;

(b) the information sought would—

(i) in the opinion of an appropriate health professional expressed in response to a notification under regulation 6(2), or

(ii) in any case to which regulation 6 does not apply, in the opinion of the authority,

if supplied, be likely to cause serious harm to the physical or mental health of the tenant or of any other person;

(c) the information sought is information held by the authority for the purposes of prevention or detection of crime, or apprehension or prosecution of offenders, and disclosure of it would prejudice those matters;

(d) the information sought is information in respect of which a claim to legal professional privilege could be maintained in legal proceedings;

and where any part of the information falls within one or more of sub-paragraphs (a) to (d) the authority’s duty arises in relation to the part that does not.

(2) Where the information sought falls within sub-paragraph (a) of paragraph (1), but is not as described in paragraph (3), the authority shall—

(a) within the period referred to in regulation 3(1), supply so much of the information sought as can be supplied without disclosing the identity of the other individual;

(b) within 14 days of its duties arising under regulation 3(1), inform that other individual in writing that the relevant information contains information which would identify him and ask him whether he consents to that information being disclosed to the tenant.

(3) Information falling within sub-paragraph (a) of paragraph (1) is not exempt from disclosure on the ground that it identifies an individual where the individual identified is—

(a) one who is or was a health professional and who provided the information in his capacity as a health professional having been involved with the care of the person the subject of the information; or

(b) one who acted in the course of his employment by the authority in connection with its functions as a landlord or who for reward provided services on behalf of the authority in performance of the authority’s duties as a landlord.

(4) Where the information sought falls within sub-paragraph (b) of paragraph (1), the authority shall supply so much of the information sought as can, in the opinion of the appropriate health professional, or, as the case may be, the authority, be supplied without causing serious harm.