Freedom of Information response – Redwood House (Refusal Notice)

Hi all, hope you had a lovely Christmas

In the last update I shared the full questions and answers from the FOI; this update shares the introductory section, which explains why certain information was withheld.

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Freedom of Information Act 2000

Information in relation to Redwood House

Ref: [Redacted]

I am writing to confirm that the South Eastern Health & Social Care Trust has now completed its search for information relating to the above request, which was submitted on 12 September 2025. Please accept my apologies for the delay in responding to your request. Thank you for your understanding and forbearance.

A response to questions 1a, 1b and 2b to 4 has been provided by the Children’s Services and Social Care Directorate and is attached in Appendix A.

In relation to question 2a (Redwood Lease costs), I would like to advise you that the Trust has decided not to release the information held for the following reasons.

The information requested in question 2a is exempt from release under Section 43(2) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

This is a qualified exemption and therefore a Public Interest Test was carried out to decide if the information should be released or not. Having weighed up the factors for and against release, it was decided to withhold this information because disclosure would, or would be likely to, prejudice the commercial interests of any person (including the public authority holding it).

In accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000, this letter acts as a Refusal Notice in respect of question 2a.