ICO Upholds FOI Complaint Against Cheshire Constabulary

ICO Decision Notices

Filed February 13th, 2026

Detected February 17th, 2026

Summary

The UK's Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has upheld a Freedom of Information (FOI) complaint against Cheshire Constabulary. The ICO ruled that the constabulary cannot rely on a specific FOI exemption to withhold information related to the Lucy Letby case and must issue a fresh response.

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What changed

The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has issued a decision notice upholding a Freedom of Information (FOI) complaint against Cheshire Constabulary concerning a request for information related to the Lucy Letby case. The ICO determined that Cheshire Constabulary is not entitled to rely on section 12(1) of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) to refuse the complainant's request and has ordered the constabulary to issue a new response that does not use this exemption.

This decision means Cheshire Constabulary must re-evaluate the request and provide the information unless another valid exemption applies. Compliance requires issuing a fresh response to the complainant, adhering to the ICO's ruling. Failure to comply could lead to further regulatory action by the ICO.

What to do next

Issue a fresh response to the complainant regarding the FOI request, without relying on section 12(1) of FOIA.

Source document (simplified)

Chief Constable Cheshire Constabulary

Date 13 February 2026
Sector Police and criminal justice
Decision(s) FOI 12(1): Upheld The Commissioner’s decision is that Cheshire Constabulary isn’t entitled to rely on section 12(1) of FOIA to refuse the complainant’s request for information associated with the Lucy Letby case. The Commissioner requires Cheshire Constabulary to take the following step to ensure compliance with the legislation: Issue the complainant with a fresh response to their request that doesn’t rely on section 12(1).