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FOI request detail

Unwanted Sexual Behaviour incident reports

Request ID: FOI-2600-2425
Date published: 16 December 2024

You asked

I am submitting a request to obtain the below datasets under the FOI Act regarding unwanted sexual behaviour incidents on TfL services: 1. USB incident reports on the TfL train network (Distributed by Tube, Overground, and, if possible, Elizabeth Line) (Covering FY 18/19 to FY 23/24) The dataset should include: o Type of USB incidents (e.g., verbal harassment, unwanted touching, staring) o Date and time of incidents (broken down by hour and day) o Location of incidents (broken down by specific lines and stations) o Reporting mechanisms (how the incident was reported e.g. via staff, call, text, app, etc.) 2. USB incident reports on the Bus Network (Distributed by Boroughs) (Covering FY 18/19 to FY 23/24) The dataset should include: o Type of USB incidents (e.g., verbal harassment, unwanted touching, staring) o Date and time of incidents (hour and day) o Location of incidents (broken down by bus route number and/or bus stop name, distributed by boroughs) o Reporting mechanisms (how the incident was reported, e.g. via staff, call, text, app, etc.) Please let me know if any part of this request requires clarification or refinement.

We answered

Our Ref:        FOI-2600-2425

 

Thank you for your request received on 17 November 2024 asking for information about unwanted sexual behaviour incidents on our network.

 

Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act and our information access policy. I can confirm that we do hold the information you require. 

 

We take a zero-tolerance approach to all forms of abuse on our network, and we are working hard to ensure our customers and staff are safe, feel safe and have the confidence to report any incident knowing that it will be taken seriously and investigated. Tackling sexual harassment and improving customers’ confidence to travel is a priority for us and we are committed to playing our full part in delivering the Mayor’s strategy to end violence against women and girls (VAWG).

 

The VAWG programme builds on a strong foundation of safety and security measures that includes over 2,000 police and police community support officers, 500 TfL enforcement officers an extensive CCTV network and 24/7 control centre.

 

Unfortunately, to provide the information you have requested would exceed the ‘appropriate limit’ of £450 set by the Freedom of Information (Appropriate Limit and Fees) Regulations 2004. 

 

Under section 12 of the FOI Act, we are not obliged to comply with a request if we estimate that the cost of determining whether we hold the information, locating and retrieving it and extracting it from other information would exceed the appropriate limit. This is calculated at £25 per hour for every hour spent on the activities described. 

 

We have estimated that your request would cost in excess of £450 to provide a response to your current request. This is largely due to the way reports are recorded by our Contact Centre. We have a specific category for ‘sexual harassment’ and ‘assault’, however there are also several other categories where such incidents may have been recorded such as ‘offensive behaviour’ or ‘safety concerns’. We would need to review each of these in order to determine whether they were relevant to your request. This is in addition to the time it would take to review any reports via social media.

 

To help bring the cost of responding to your request within the £450 limit, you may wish to consider narrowing its scope so that we can more easily locate, retrieve and extract the information you are seeking. For example, you may wish to narrow your request to only crimes reported to the British Transport Police and not reports we’ve received via our Contact Centre or social media.

 

Please note that we currently publish our six monthly Crime and Anti-Social Behaviour reports as part of the papers for the Customer Service and Operational Performance Panel (CSOPP), which includes data on violent crimes and sexual offences and are available on our website:

 

Meetings - Customer Service and Operational Performance Panel - Modern Council (tfl.gov.uk)

 

https://board.tfl.gov.uk/mgConvert2PDF.aspx?ID=21856&ISATT=1#search=%22Six%20month%20Crime%20Anti-Social%20Behaviour%20%20%20ASB%20%20Repor%22

https://board.tfl.gov.uk/documents/s20334/csopp-20230712-item09b-Appendix%201%20Crime%20and%20Antisocial%20Behaviour%206%20Monthly%20Report.pdf

https://board.tfl.gov.uk/documents/s19234/Post-Meeting%20Publication%20-%20Quarterly%20Customer%20Services%20and%20Operational%20Performance%20Report%20-%20Quarter%20.pdf

 

Older data can also be found on our website:

 

https://tfl.gov.uk/corporate/publications-and-reports/crime-and-incident-bulletins

 

If you would like more detailed crime data, this can be obtained from the British Transport Police and the Metropolitan Police Service:

 

https://www.btp.police.uk/foi-ai/af/accessing-information/

https://www.met.police.uk/foi-ai/af/accessing-information/

 

If you want to refine your request or make a FOI Act request in future, please bear in mind that the FOI Act allows you to request recorded information held by us. You should identify the information that you want as clearly and concisely as you can, specifying the types of document that you are looking for. 

 

Although your request can take the form of a question, rather than a request for specific documents, we do not have to answer your question if it would require the creation of new information or the provision of a judgement, explanation, advice or opinion that was not already recorded at the time of your request. 

 

Please note that we will not be taking further action until we receive your revised request. 

 

In the meantime, if you have any queries or would like to discuss your request, please do not hesitate to contact me.

 

Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal.

 

Yours sincerely 

 

Gemma Jacob

Senior FOI Case Officer

FOI Case Management Team

General Counsel

Transport for London

 

foi@tfl.gov.uk

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