@clairemiller@mstdn.social
@clairemiller@mstdn.social avatar

clairemiller

@clairemiller@mstdn.social

I’m an award winning investigative #datajournalist with more than a decade's experience of using #data skills to dig out data, find stories, and create #visualisations.

I've grappled with thousands of #spreadsheets and #datasets in search of stories. Then found lots of quicker techniques and formulas to speed that up.

I am also an enthusiastic sender of #FreedomOfInformation requests. I've doggedly pursued access to #FOI information I need, up to winning against the ICO in court.

This profile is from a federated server and may be incomplete. Browse more on the original instance.

clairemiller, to random
@clairemiller@mstdn.social avatar

Slightly obsessed with the optical illusion cycle path (it’s a gift of a local news story).

But it’s a good example of using to find and follow up stories - now looking at what happened to personal injury claims.

The rest of this week’s FOI stories: https://clairemiller.net/2024/05/freedom-of-information-in-the-news-week-ending-3-5-2024-foifriday/

clairemiller,
@clairemiller@mstdn.social avatar

shows 504,276 patients classed as Code 2, meaning they were deemed to be in need of “very urgent emergency care”, arrived at A&E not in an ambulance in 2023.

This was up 11,500 (2.4%) compared to 2022, and up 141,000 (38.9%) compared to 2019.

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/tories-accused-uber-ambulance-crisis-32706981

clairemiller,
@clairemiller@mstdn.social avatar

Another might suggest one of the reasons why people are having to make their own way to hospital.

Just 78 per cent of ambulances nationally are operational on any given day – falling to as low as 72 per cent at South Central Ambulance Trust.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-13361561/Ambulances-maintenance-reliability-issues-investigations.html

clairemiller,
@clairemiller@mstdn.social avatar

has found there have been three deaths due to ‘missed cancers’ at County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust over the past three years

The Trust could not confirm if they were due to a ‘wrong diagnosis', or a ‘failure’ or ‘delay’ in diagnosis

https://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/24279746.three-missed-cancer-deaths-durham-darlington-nhs-trust/

clairemiller,
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shows in 2015, the last full year before Sadiq Khan became mayor, there were 456 instances of shoplifting involving weapons or tools.

The number rose to 844 in 2018, then dropped in the pandemic, but was 874 offences in 2023.

https://enfielddispatch.co.uk/armed-shoplifting-in-london-nearly-doubles/

clairemiller,
@clairemiller@mstdn.social avatar

You can use as a kind of survey tool (as you don’t want to FOI every school).

Policy Exchange sent requests to 800 schools and found that only 11% of secondary schools had an “effective ban” on mobile phones in place.

https://www.leaderlive.co.uk/news/national/24287271.schools-ensure-pupils-hand-lock-phones-start-day---report/

clairemiller,
@clairemiller@mstdn.social avatar

Not the ones that make pedalling up a steep hill a bit less of a challenge, but those that are more like mopeds.

shows that 260 electric powered bicycles were seized by police last year, double the 130 confiscated in 2022 & 4x as many as 61 in 2021.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13374185/Illegal-e-bikes-hit-40mph-death-traps-motorways.html

clairemiller,
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Fibre analysis can be used as evidence to indicate if a suspect was present at a crime scene.

shows police forces paid for less than 1,000 hours of fibre analysis per year between 2018 and 2020 – the equivalent of around 30 hours per force.

https://inews.co.uk/news/police-use-forensics-slashed-crisis-unfolds-3014701

clairemiller,
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Police figures show that only two out of 19 reports of sexual assaults in pubs, bars and clubs in four major towns have resulted in arrests.

shows Lowestoft had the highest number of reports since 2020, with 16 reports with two arrests made.

https://www.becclesandbungayjournal.co.uk/news/24280671.sexual-assaults-pubs-four-east-suffolk-towns/

clairemiller,
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There have been more than 12,000 reported cases of scarlet fever in the last few months in the UK alone.

shows Chelsea and Westminster Hospital Trust has seen cases rise from five in to 20 cases last year.

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/health/unusual-strawberry-symptom-scarlet-fever-32712800

clairemiller,
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In 2023, Belfast City Council confiscated 671 illegal vapes, enough for two to be sold every day in the city alone, according to .

https://www.belfastlive.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/figure-show-number-illegal-vapes-29066038

clairemiller, to random
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With falling response rates from central Government and patchy responses from Oxford colleges, it's perhaps not been a great week for .

However, some people did successfully get a response, if this week's FOI Friday is anything to go by.

https://clairemiller.net/2024/04/freedom-of-information-in-the-news-week-ending-26-4-2024-foifriday/

clairemiller,
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Buckinghamshire Council spent £1.8 million a year on one child’s care in an unregistered home, as well as shelling out more than £1 million for the care of a single child on four occasions in 2023/24, according to

https://www.bucksherald.co.uk/news/politics/bucks-council-spent-ps18m-a-year-on-one-childs-care-in-unregistered-home-4602878

clairemiller,
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An interesting use of , where the lack of info is the story.

The Suzy Lamplugh Trust found only 11 police forces were able to show how many stalking cases were charged as different crimes, e.g. malicious communications, or no further action was taken

https://worcesterobserver.co.uk/news/police-support-stalking-campaign-as-conviction-rates-and-support-for-victims-remain-poor-49426/

clairemiller,
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The technology behind England's smart motorway network stops working on a regular basis.

Where the hard shoulder has been removed, radar & cameras are supposed to spot broken-down vehicles and close affected lanes - but shows power failed 392 times

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-68848418

clairemiller,
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Academies and academy trusts are subject to the Act.

Aspirations, which runs schools across the south of England, spent £87,000 on company cars between 2021 and 2023, including Tesla Model 3 saloons, with 2022 registrations.

https://schoolsweek.co.uk/academy-trust-defends-40k-teslas-for-central-team-staff/

clairemiller,
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Doctors have seen a 276% rise in admissions for vaping-related disorders since 2020, but a 733% rise among those who are teens or younger

That was an increase from 6 in every 100 vaping-related admissions in 2020 to 14 in 100 last year, according to

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-13335481/Children-young-FOUR-hospitalised-vaping-Charities-slam-deeply-worrying-rise.html

clairemiller,
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Labour have described the varying cost of vital police equipment in neighbouring areas as “extraordinary”.

shows it costs £100 more to buy a police baton in one area, compared to the price in nearby areas.

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/police-forces-cost-baton-equipment-labour-101829941.html

clairemiller,
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With 2,494 crimes, Heathrow saw the highest total number committed of any UK airport in 2022.

When adjusting for the number of passengers, Humberside Airport had the highest crime rate, with 9.7 crimes per 100,000 passengers, shows.

https://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/heathrow-airport-crimes-luton-police-theft-flying-b1094106.html

clairemiller,
@clairemiller@mstdn.social avatar

A good example of a how much did that cost question.

Over £100,000 has been spent on plans to erect fencing on Werrington Fields over the last 5 years

Peterborough Council has spent £106,399 on fencing, surveys, legal advice & planning applications

https://www.peterboroughtoday.co.uk/news/politics/council/more-than-100k-spent-on-werrington-fields-fencing-plans-by-peterborough-council-so-far-4600572

clairemiller,
@clairemiller@mstdn.social avatar

Use to get the full reports for takeaways with terrible food hygiene reports.

Find out all about the dirt, cobwebs, grease, food poisoning risk from raw chicken, and lack of proper handwashing.

https://www.thestar.co.uk/business/adnans-sheffield-health-officer-very-concerned-after-giving-west-street-kebab-the-worst-hygiene-score-4599875 and https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/24278047.oxfords-pizza-roma-cobwebs-hygiene-inspection/

clairemiller,
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Stay informed about #FOI news and tips by following the blog: https://clairemiller.net/blog/

Or by signing up for my newsletter: https://clairemiller.net/blog/#newsletter

clairemiller, to random
@clairemiller@mstdn.social avatar

successes for this week:

The Echo has won a victory in its battle to reveal which Liverpool councillors haven't paid their council tax

The optical illusion cycle path is no more.

And lots of people are using FOI to get other great stories...

https://clairemiller.net/2024/04/freedom-of-information-in-the-news-week-ending-5-4-2024-foifriday/

clairemiller,
@clairemiller@mstdn.social avatar

A series of independence papers by the Scottish Government has been branded “dismal” over a plummeting number of downloads.

The volume of clicks has fallen from 78,571 for the first paper to 3,168 for one covering Scotland’s place on the world stage.

https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/politics/independence-paper-downloads-slumped-humza-32553419

clairemiller,
@clairemiller@mstdn.social avatar

No fines have been issued to Oldham dog owners who do not pick up after their pets in the last two years.

revealed over 300 complaints about dog poo in public areas in the last two years.

https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/unforgivable-error-left-greater-manchester-28959711

clairemiller,
@clairemiller@mstdn.social avatar

Stay informed about #FOI news and tips by following the blog: https://clairemiller.net/blog/

Or by signing up for my newsletter: https://clairemiller.net/blog/#newsletter

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