FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT 2000 - REQUEST REF: FOI2025/00004S 

Thank you for your email of 22 January 2025 asking for information under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 2000. You asked: 

I would like to submit a Freedom of Information request for records related to any and all training delivered by your department on the following topics: antisemitism, Islamophobia, and the Middle East (including Israel, Palestine, and Gaza). 

This includes formal and informal training, workshops, or educational sessions, regardless of delivery method or target audience. 

This request relates to training you have either commissioned or developed and delivered yourself, including through the networks in your organisation, or through third-party organisations and delivery platforms, rather than any central / cross Civil Service provision.    

1) Between October 7, 2023, and January 22, 2025, has your department run any training, workshops, educational sessions, or events (either mandatory or optional) on antisemitism or Judaism?   

a. Please include any sessions developed or delivered internally, commissioned externally, or conducted through third-party providers.  

b. Please provide all training materials used, including but not limited to presentation slides, handouts, videos, speaker notes, and any supplementary materials provided to participants.  

c. Please provide a detailed breakdown of costs, including but not limited to development, delivery, materials, and external provider fees.  

d. What was the total take up of these sessions? How many people signed up and attended vs how many people were invited?  

2) Between October 7, 2023, and January 22, 2025, has your department run any training, workshops, educational sessions, or events (either mandatory or optional) on Islamophobia or Islam?  

a. Please include any sessions developed or delivered internally, commissioned externally, or conducted through third-party providers.  

b. Please provide all training materials used, including but not limited to presentation slides, handouts, videos, speaker notes, and any supplementary materials provided to participants.  

c. Please provide a detailed breakdown of costs, including but not limited to development, delivery, materials, and external provider fees.  

d. What was the total take up of these sessions? How many people signed up and attended vs how many people were invited?  

3) Between October 7, 2023, and January 22, 2025, have you run any sessions or events related to the conflict in the Middle East? This includes, but is not limited to:  

• Trauma workshops,  

• Bias training related to the conflict,  

• Information sessions,  

• Drop-in Q&As,  

• Panel discussions, or  

• Any other initiatives addressing this topic.  

a. Please confirm whether any such sessions occurred, and provide details, including their purpose, content, target audience, and delivery format.  

b. Please provide all training materials used, including but not limited to presentation slides, handouts, videos, speaker notes, and any supplementary materials provided to participants.   

c. Please provide a detailed breakdown of costs, including but not limited to development, delivery, materials, and external provider fees.  

d. What was the total take up of these sessions? How many people signed up and attended vs how many people were invited?  

4) Was there any evaluation of the training carried out which has been outlined in answers 1 – 3?   

a. If the answer to the above is yes, please provide a summary of the evaluation and any conclusions made, including quantitative data and qualitative summaries.  

b. Have any internal complaints, feedback, or comments (formal or informal) been documented regarding the sessions mentioned above? If so, please provide details, including redacted summaries to protect personal information.  

5) In total, how many hours has been spent in your department on the above training sessions. 

I am writing to advise you that following a search of our paper and electronic records, I have established that the information you requested is not held by this Department.  

FCDO Services is a Trading Fund of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO). FCDO Services manages its own departmental training resources/budget, but it also has access to training/briefings/blogs provided by the FCDO. This includes attendance at monthly FCDO staff briefings and staff drop-in/Q&A sessions.   

If you would like to request a review of our decision, you should write to the Data Protection Officer (DPO), Knowledge and Information Management (KIM) Team, FCDO Services, Hanslope Park, Milton Keynes, England, MK19 7BH (e-mail: FCDOServices.DataProtectionOfficer@fcdo.gov.uk).  Please note you have 40 working days to do so from the date of this letter. Please quote the reference number above in any future communications. 

If you are not content with the outcome of your complaint, you may then apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a decision.  Generally, the Information Commissioner cannot make a decision unless you have exhausted the complaints procedure provided by the FCDO. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at: Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF, or online at: https://ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint/ 

Yours sincerely, 

FOI Officer 

Knowledge and Information Management (KIM) Team 

FCDO Services