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Mr
Simon Cordell 109
Burncroft Ave Enfield Middlesex EN3
7JQ 00/00/0000 re_wired@ymail.com and lorraine32@blueyonder.co.uk 07864
217519 20/02/2024 ACRO (SAR) Dear Sir/Madam, Subject: Request for Confirmation of Rehabilitation of
Offenders Act 1974 Information
and one
other issue. I hope this letter finds you well. I am writing to kindly
request your assistance in confirming the accuracy of certain information
related to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (ROA) in the United
Kingdom. After conducting thorough research, I have come across various
details concerning the rehabilitation periods and the process for the removal
of spent convictions, as well as exceptions to rehabilitation outlined in the
ROA. As responsible citizens, it is crucial for us to remain informed of
these matters to ensure fair treatment and adherence to the law. Based on my understanding, the ROA stipulates that the
rehabilitation periods are determined by the sentence received or disposal
administered as a result of a conviction, as well as the individual's age on
the date of conviction. I have also noted that recent government legislation,
effective as of 28th October 2023, introduced updates to the rehabilitation
periods. For instance, custodial sentences exceeding four years (excluding
schedule 18 offenses) become spent after a period of seven years from the completion
of the sentence, including any associated license period. However, it is also my understanding that certain convictions
are excluded from rehabilitation and will always be disclosed to specific
parties. These include sentences of imprisonment for life, sentences of
imprisonment, youth custody, detention in a young offender institution or
corrective training exceeding four years for a schedule 18 offense, sentences
of preventive detention, sentences of detention at His Majesty's pleasure,
sentences of custody for life, and public protection sentences. To ensure that I have the most accurate and up-to-date
information, I kindly request your confirmation regarding the following
points: 1. The accuracy of the information outlined above concerning
the rehabilitation periods under the ROA, taking into account the recent
legislative changes. 2. The process for applying to ACRO or the Disclosure and
Barring Service (DBS) for the removal of spent convictions, including
relevant application details, fees, and supporting documentation
requirements. 3. Clarification regarding the exceptions to the removal of
spent convictions, particularly in relation to professions and roles that may
require individuals to disclose such convictions. 4. The importance of removing spent convictions from an ACRO
report and its impact on individuals seeking employment, housing, or visas,
with respect to the principles of rehabilitation and reintegration into
society. 5. Information regarding provisions in the law for the sealing
or becoming spent of records related to offenses committed by individuals
under the age of 18 based on the severity of the offense. 6. The treatment of cases marked as "NFA" (No
Further Action) or "Not Guilty" in regards to their removal from
the ACRO report. 7. The removal of associated convictions from the ACRO report
in cases where an individual has received a pardon or a royal prerogative of
mercy. 8. Eligibility criteria for the removal of cases that, if
retained, would infringe upon an individual's human rights or potentially
lead to unjust discrimination. 9. Any additional guidance or relevant provisions under the
UK's Data Protection Act and General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR),
allowing for the erasure of personal data, including the removal of old or
irrelevant criminal records. 10. Any future plans or potential legislation concerning the
expungement or removal of specific types of convictions. 11. Specific criteria regarding the removal of certain
convictions from an individual's PVG Scheme record within Scotland. 12. Also, can you explain if you feel any data is wrong that
you hold on me what is the process to deal with this as there are errors on
my record. If possible, I kindly request your response within 1 month to
ensure I have accurate and reliable information for personal and professional
purposes. I greatly appreciate your time and attention to this matter. Should
you require any additional information or have any questions, please do not
hesitate to contact me using the provided contact details. Thank you very much for your kind assistance. I eagerly await
your response. Yours sincerely, Mr Simon Cordell 20/02/2024 |
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ACRO Criminal Records Office Record Deletion Application Form Guide If
you have any questions, please email the ACRO Public Access team at deletions@acro.police.uk Overview The 'Record Deletion Process' (RDP) should
only be used when requesting the deletion of certain offences and/or records
held on the Police National Computer (PNC), the National Fingerprint Database
(IDENT1) and the National DNA Database (NDNAD). To apply for the deletion of offences and/or
records held on one of the above databases, you will need to complete a
'Record Deletion Application Form'. This guide is to help you complete the
form and apply for the deletion of your record(s). With the exception of the custody
photograph, this application does not cover requests for the deletion of any
other records held on local police systems. Requests for the deletion of
records held on local police systems must be made directly to the relevant
force. By completing this form, you are requesting
that the relevant police force (via ACRO), review and decide whether a
specific arrest event (or events) recorded on the PNC and the associated
fingerprints and DNA, if held, can be deleted in accordance with the grounds
and reasoning that you represent within your request. Please note that this is a review process
and submitting an application does not mean that the offences and/or
record(s) in question will be deleted. We recommend you complete the Record
Deletion Application Form electronically and send to us via email to enable
your application to be processed as quickly as possible. ACRO will not
accept handwritten forms by email; however they can be posted to us. Please be advised: •
You may be contacted by ACRO in relation to
your application using the contact details you provide. [1] 1.
The application form is not completed
correctly or, is submitted in an incompatible format. 2.
The correct identity documents and proof of address
are not enclosed. 3.
The application form is not sent directly to
ACRO. 4.
There is an unforeseen event or occurrence
outside of ACRO's control such as a postal strike or computer system failure. 5.
You have an ongoing complaint with the
police force regarding the investigation for which you seek to have national
records reviewed for deletion. A police force may advise that a decision on
deletion cannot be made until the complaint has concluded. •
The result of your application will be
notified to you as a letter attached to an email, using the email address you
provide on page 1 of the application form. Alternatively, you can elect to
receive the result via post, at the current address you provide in page 1 of
the application form. •
ACRO accepts no responsibility for
information being sent to incorrect addresses, as we will only use the
information provided on the application form, so please check this is correct
before sending your application form to us. •
A person who impersonates or attempts to
impersonate another person without their knowledge may be guilty of an
offence. Before
you start: Before
you complete a Records Deletion Application Form, you will need to: •
Check
your offence(s) are eligible for review under this process. See eligibility
below. •
Download
the application form and complete electronically (photos of handwritten forms
will not be accepted). •
Check
you can answer all mandatory fields marked with a red asterisk *. •
Provide
a copy of proof of ID and proof of current address (which must be dated
within the last 6 months). •
Make
a note of the offence details that you wish to have considered for deletion. Eligibility to apply: Please
use the following table to establish if the offences(s) you are applying for
consideration for deletion are eligible. If your offences(s) falls into the
'Not Eligible' category please do not continue with your application but view our Frequently
Asked Questions for next steps. Individuals cannot apply if they believe
information on their PNC record is incorrect. Any issues of this nature are
regarded as a data dispute and will need to be raised directly with the police force concerned.
The remaining fields
within the application form are not mandatory but please endeavour to
complete all fields as fully as possible as this will help us to process your
application in a quicker timescale. 1.
Personal information Please complete all fields in this section. Previous Names If you do not have
any previous or maiden names please write 'Not Applicable' in this field. Email Address All correspondence, unless indicated
otherwise, will be sent via this email address so please ensure that it is
correct. 2.
Proof of identity
and proof of address Proof of Identity Please provide: 1)
A copy of an official proof of identity,
which clearly shows your name, date of birth and current address. An identity
document with your photograph will assist us to process your request but is
not essential. Examples:
Passport (photo page), Photo driving licence or Birth certificate. Please note if your proof of identity
includes your current address and is dated within the last 6
months you do not need to provide a separate proof of address. Please provide: 2)
A copy of an official proof of current
address, dated within the last 6 months. Examples: Utility bill (gas, electric, TV, landline phone bill),
local authority council tax bill or bank statement. PLEASE NOTE:
If submitting your application via email, each file you send must be
no more than 2MB in size and must be in JPG, GIF, TIF or PDF
format. Please note that if we cannot read your documents due to low image
quality then your application may be delayed. Address
provided when arrested / charged, if different to current address: If
your address is the same as your current address, please place an 'X' in the
'Not Applicable' box. Name of the police officer who dealt with
your case (if known) This information is
not mandatory but if you are able to provide it, it will assist the force
when dealing with your application. To the best of your knowledge, has the
police investigation concerning yourself concluded? If the investigation
concerning yourself is still ongoing, the details of your application will be
passed to the relevant force to confirm the investigation status. However,
the force will not be able to action your request if it is in relation to a
live investigation and you will be advised as such. In no more than 600
characters, please provide details of the circumstances of the event which is
sought for deletion and also provide evidence to support the grounds for
record deletion you will select on page 3. It is not mandatory
to provide this information, but it will assist the relevant police force if
you do and may help to expedite the force's decision. If you are seeking
the deletion of further arrest events, then please complete the Record
Deletion Additional Event Form. 4.
Grounds for Record
Deletion Please provide us with the detail concerning
the grounds under which you are requesting a record deletion. The following are examples of circumstances
(the grounds) in which a Chief Officer should consider the deletion of a
person's PNC record and biometric data. Please read the examples below and tick the most relevant box(es)
that relate to your circumstances.
The ACRO Public Access team will review your
request and if it meets the set eligibility criteria for this process, it
will be sent via secure email to the relevant point of contact within the
force who are the Controllers of your records. You will receive an acknowledgement from us
once your application has been sent to force. The force will conduct their review in
accordance with their own internal processes and they will provide a
decision, via email, to the ACRO Information Management team. The ACRO Information Management team will
then notify you of the outcome. If your application does not meet the
criteria for any reason then, you will also be contacted to be advised as
such. 7.
Where can I get more
information? Further information
about the Records Deletion Process can be found on our website - Record Deletion
(acro.police.uk) or in the
national guidance.
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ACRO Criminal
Records Office Date: 21/02/2024 Reference: Queries
regarding ROA Mr Simon CORDELL Sent via email: lorraine32@blueyonder.co.uk Queries regarding spent conviction and the Rehabilitation of
Offenders Act 1974 (ROA) Dear Mr CORDELL, Thank you very much for your letter received by email on the 20th
February 2024. Please see the below responses to your questions. 1.
The accuracy of the
information outlined above concerning the rehabilitation periods under the
ROA, taking into account the recent legislative changes. Yes, the Rehabilitation Periods outlined in
the ROA are determined by the sentence or disposal issued to the individual
(e.g. a prison sentence, fine or caution). It will also depend upon the age
of the offender at the time that they were convicted or issued a caution. You are correct in respect of your
understanding regarding the recent legislative changes which, has resulted in
some updates to the rehabilitation periods. These changes came into effect
from 28 October 2023. Before this no custodial sentence of more than four
years could become spent. There are certain convictions which are
excluded from rehabilitation such as those which result in life sentences or,
sentences of over four years for sexual or violent offences. In addition to this, the gov.uk website
advises the following: If you have a conviction that is excluded
from rehabilitation, then previous convictions that were unspent at the time
would also never be spent. Any further convictions after the conviction
which is excluded for rehabilitation however can become spent once the normal
rehabilitation periods have passed. Everything
you need to know about the ROA including the recent changes can be found
here: [Title]
(publishing.service.gov.uk) 2.
The process for
applying to ACRO or the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) for the removal
of spent convictions, including relevant application details, fees, and
supporting documentation requirements. The ROA only impacts upon the disclosure
of information. The DBS has their own framework in place for
determining the disclosure of information from the Police National
Computer (PNC) which are known as the DBS Filtering Rules. Further
information on this Home Office owned model can be found here: DBS
filtering guide - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) You cannot apply to the DBS for the removal
of convictions from a disclosure, the DBS filtering rules applied will
determine what gets disclosed and for how long. The DBS also has a list of
specified offences which will never filter from a DBS certificate: List
of offences that will never be filtered from a DBS certificate - GOV.UK
(www.gov.uk) The ROA and the DBS Filtering Rules do not
impact upon the retention of the information held on the Police
National Computer (PNC). The current retention policy for records held on the
PNC is that they will be retained until an individual is deemed to have
reached 100 years of age. Court convictions are not eligible for
deletion from the PNC. Therefore, in answer to your question there is no
process in place for the removal of convictions (from PNC) irrespective of
whether they are spent or not under the ROA. Information relating to court convictions
held on a Police Force's local system is held in accordance with the
Management of Police Information (MOPI) framework: Review,
retention and disposal | College of Policing Cautions and other disposals, with the
exception of court convictions, are eligible for review for deletion from
PNC. I have given advice on this process on Page 6 of this response. 3.
Clarification
regarding the exceptions to the removal of spent convictions, particularly in
relation to professions and roles that may require individuals to disclose
such convictions. As above, spent convictions or unspent
convictions do not get deleted from the PNC. However the disclosure of that information from PNC for the
purposes of employment must be managed lawfully in accordance with the ROA
and DBS filtering rules. For any other purpose, data protection legislation
must be complied with. As outlined in the Guidance document linked
above, "there are certain exceptions where someone may be asked to
disclose their caution or conviction even if it is considered spent under the
1974 Act. The provision for this is set out in the Rehabilitation of
Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975, (the "Exceptions
Order"). This is in recognition that there are certain activities for
which fuller disclosure of a person's criminal record history is relevant,
for example, working with children and other vulnerable groups, in vulnerable
circumstances or some other particularly sensitive area of work." Page 21 of this guidance document provides a
table on which cautions and convictions needs to be disclosed under the
Exceptions Order:
[Title] (publishing.service.gov.uk) 4.
The importance of
removing spent convictions from an ACRO report and its impact on individuals
seeking employment, housing, or visas, with respect to the principles of
rehabilitation and reintegration into society. When you refer to an 'ACRO report', I am
assuming that you are referring to the disclosure you would receive from the
PNC following a Subject Access Request application (Subject
Access
(acro.police.uk) This process enables an individual to make a
request which, in turn will provide that individual with a copy of the
arrests and disposals recorded about them by the Police on the PNC. ACRO carry out this service on behalf of
Police Forces however, we are a Processor as defined in the Data Protection
Act 2018. ACRO are not the Controllers of the information recorded about a
person on the PNC which has been added by a Police Force. A PNC disclosure provided under this service
would include all the arrests and disposals recorded about the person on that
system as it's an individual right for that individual to have access to a
copy of their personal data. We would not remove any conviction
information from such a disclosure as a Subject Access Request is for
personal use. It should not be used by an individual for
employment purposes as it could disclose more information than an employer is
entitled to (e.g. No Further Action disposals) but this is why the DBS exists
because they specifically issue criminal record certificates for employment
purposes and so, certain information would get filtered from such a
certificate in accordance with the DBS Filtering Rules. It is an offence under section 184 of Data Protection Act 2018 'Prohibition
of requirement to produce relevant records' for a person to require
another person to provide them with a relevant record in connection with— (a)
the recruitment of an employee by P1, (b) the continued employment of a
person. 5.
Information
regarding provisions in the law for the sealing or becoming spent of records
related to offenses committed by individuals under the age of 18 based on the
severity of the offense. I'm not aware of there being any provisions
in law in the UK with regards to the "sealing" of criminal records,
this is not something that comes under the remit of ACRO. With regards to records becoming spent for offences
committed by individuals under the age of 18, the ROA would be applied
accordingly depending on the disposal. For sentences of life imprisonment and
youth custody for over 4 years for schedule
18 offences, these will never become spent. 6.
The treatment of
cases marked as "NFA" (No Further Action) or "Not Guilty"
in regard to their removal from the ACRO report. As above, a PNC disclosure provided under
the Subject Access Request service would include all the arrests and
disposals recorded about the person on that system and so, that would include
No Further Action and Not Guilty disposals. The ROA does not get applied to disclosures
provided under the Subject Access Request service because this document is
intended for an individual's personal use e.g. for those individuals wishing
to confirm what is held about them on the PNC. The disclosure ACRO provides should not be
used for employment purposes. In respect of the DBS whose certificates are
specifically for employment purposes, such disposals do not get disclosed on
a basic or standard disclosure. However, they may be subject to disclosure on
an enhanced certificate but, such information goes through a very rigorous decision-making
process at force level for the Chief Officer to decide whether there is
non-conviction information held locally which, is relevant to the job that is
being applied for and ought to be disclosed. This is in accordance with Part of the
Police Act 1997 (113 B (4): Police Act 1997
(legislation.gov.uk) 7.
The removal of
associated convictions from the ACRO report in cases where an individual has
received a pardon or a royal prerogative of mercy. If a conviction were removed from PNC as a
result of a pardon or royal prerogative mercy then, this would not be present
on PNC and therefore would not be disclosed. The deletion of such information would be actioned by the Controller
(the Police Force responsible for the conviction record on PNC) and so, once
that information was deleted from PNC then it would not be there to form any
future disclosures applied for by the individual through ACRO. The Home Office also oversee a process
called Disregarding Certain Convictions. Only certain offences can be applied
for under this process: How
to apply to remove a conviction for decriminalised sex offences - GOV.UK
(www.gov.uk) Court convictions are not eligible for
removal from the PNC. The National Police
Records (Recordable Offences) Regulations 2000 permits the following: 3.—(1) There may be recorded in national
police records— (a)
convictions for; and (b)
cautions, reprimands
and warnings given in respect of, any offence punishable with imprisonment and
any offence specified in the Schedule to these Regulations. If an individual felt that the continued
retention of a court conviction was infringing upon their human rights then
the individual has the right to raise a Judicial Review: Judicial
review - Courts and
Tribunals Judiciary 9.
Any additional
guidance or relevant provisions under the UK's Data Protection Act and
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), allowing for the erasure of
personal data, including the removal of old or irrelevant criminal records. The current stance in England and Wales is
that court convictions are not deleted from the PNC. This position is
outlined in 1.5.5 of the NPCC Guidance 'Deletion of Records From National
Police Systems (PNC/NDNAD/IDENT1)':
Microfiche Library (publishing.service.gov.uk) If you have certain non-conviction
information held about you on the PNC then you may be eligible to apply under
the Record Deletion Process which, is the process outlined in the
aforementioned guidance. Please be advised
that all requests for record deletion under the 'Record Deletion Process'
(RDP) should be submitted on the necessary application form, please find
enclosed a blank form and some application form guidance for your
convenience. Cautions/warnings/reprimands and
non-convictions are eligible for consideration and review under this process
however, court convictions and conditional / absolute discharges are not. Please be aware that submitting an
application does not automatically mean that a record will be deleted, it
simply gives applicants the opportunity to put forward a request for the
owning police force to review and to make a decision as to whether they will
retain or delete the record. Furthermore, this process only covers
requests for the removal of records from national police systems, namely,
IDENT1 (National Fingerprint Database), NDNAD (National DNA Database) and the
PNC (Police National Computer). Requests for the deletion of records held
locally by police forces are not covered under this process and are held in
accordance with the Authorised
Professional Practice on Information Management. Any queries with regards
to such records should be directed straight to the force who own them. On the application form, please select the
ground(s) that you applying under and provide detailed evidence to support
each ground selected e.g. what happened in the run up to the event and why
you feel your case for deletion falls under the ground(s) that you have
ticked. You will also need to provide a copy of a
proof of identity (e.g. passport / driving licence) and a copy of a proof of
current address dated within the last 6 months (e.g. utility bill / bank
statement). Upon receipt of an eligible record deletion
application, we will refer this to the owning force for them to review and
make a decision upon. The decision will be communicated back to you via this
office. Please note that ACRO do not make the
decision on record deletion, we are a conduit for this process. ACRO is not responsible for legislation and
so, you may wish to raise this query with the Home Office. ACRO have no involvement in this process and
therefore, you may wish to contact Disclosure Scotland to query this: How to
contact Disclosure Scotland - mygov.scot ACRO are not the Controllers of information
recorded about a person by the Police whether that be on the PNC or, on a
police force's local system(s). Therefore, if you have concerns about the
accuracy of information held about you by the police then you are able to
raise a Right to Rectification request directly with the police force(s)
concerned. Details on exercising your Subject Right of
Rectification with a specific police force can be found on the website for
that force. I hope the above is of assistance but please do not hesitate to
contact me if you have any further questions. Yours sincerely,
Jess Mullins Public Access Supervisor |
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ACRO Criminal Records Office Record Deletion Application Form You must refer to the Record Deletion
Application Form Guide in order to complete this form and you must complete
all mandatory fields marked with an asterisk* as these fields will enable us
to confirm your identity. Failure to do so may result in your application
being returned to you. NB. The information supplied in connection with this application
will be used for the purpose of processing this request and may be used to
update the PNC, where applicable. By submitting this form to ACRO, you
consent to ACRO and other relevant police forces contacting you in relation
to this application, using the details you have provided.
*Email Address: Records that you are applying to
have deleted I | I acknowledge that in submitting this
application, I am applying for the eligible arrest event(s) on my PNC record
(and which are detailed in this form) plus any accompanying fingerprints and
DNA to be reviewed for deletion, if still held. I | If held, I would also like my custody image
to be reviewed for the deletion at the same time Please place an 'X' in the relevant boxes
below to confirm the type of documentation included with your application. Please see the Record Deletion application guide for details on
acceptable proof of address (dated within the last 6 months) and proof
of identity.
I
| Passport (photo page) |
| Photo driving licence I
| Other And
Q Proof of Address
1. I am the individual to whom this
application relates, or I am the parent/legal guardian/appropriate adult
acting on behalf of the individual to whom this application relates. 2. I understand the questions asked in this
application and I confirm that the information I have supplied is accurate. 3. I enclose with my application a copy of a current identification
document and a copy of proof of current address, which will assist the Police
in establishing that I am the person to whom this application relates. 4. If I am a parent/legal guardian/appropriate adult acting on behalf
of the applicant then I have enclosed a copy of proof of identity and current
address pertaining to me in addition to those pertaining to the applicant. 5. If I have Power of Attorney for the applicant, I have enclosed a
copy of the Power of Attorney documents with this request. 6. If I am a legal representative acting on behalf of the applicant
then I have enclosed a signed letter of authority dated within the last 6
months to reflect this. 7. I understand that the results of my application will be sent to me
via email, unless I place an 'X' in the following box, which means that I
elect to have the results forwarded to me via post (to my current address
detailed on page 1 of this form). Q *
By signing below I acknowledge and understand the aforementioned
declarations. *Print name: *Date: For
use by the Parent/Legal Guardian/Legal Representative/Appropriate Adult
acting on behalf of the applicant only *
I am acting on the applicant's behalf and by signing below, I acknowledge and
understand the aforementioned declarations.
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