Access to your social care files

You can ask your Leaving Care practitioner at any time to help you try and find out more about your life so far. They can help search our files for specific information, or provide you with summaries of what we know about what has happened to you in the past, including the decisions social workers and others have made about your care and the reasons for this.

You’re also entitled to all information the Children and Families Service holds about you and you can make a subject access request, or SAR, to ask for a copy of this information. Please be aware that your file may contain uncomfortable or upsetting information, especially if it’s not already known to you. Even if you’re aware of the information, it may still be distressing to read about or remember difficult times in your life. 

We’ll support you throughout the process of obtaining your information, including discussing your needs at the beginning and how best to share your file with you. It’s also important to know that some of the information contained within your file is likely to be related to other people (your siblings or parents, for example) and this will need to be taken out or ‘redacted’ (blacked out) before the file is shared with you. This is because of laws about data protection. This can sometimes feel frustrating. It may be possible for this information to remain if you are able to get the appropriate consent from these individuals. 

How can I request my information?

The quickest way to access information you want from your records is to speak to your Leaving Care practitioner and ask them to help you find out what you want to know. However, you can make a subject access request from the Council’s Information Management Team at any time now, or in the future  - for details of how see https://hackney.gov.uk/subject-access-request.