Freedom of Information

What is freedom of information?

​The Freedom of Information (FOI) Act gives the public the right to request any recorded information from a public authority. The authority will then have 20 working days to provide this information subject to any exemptions.

How do we process freedom of information requests?
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We pride ourselves on being an open organisation and will endeavour to respond to requests for information where we are required to under the guidance attributable to primary care. While we will provide as much information as it can, due to the sensitivity of some of this information, the organisation has a duty of confidence to both patients and staff. In line with FOI Act, this means that no information will be released which could lead to the identification of an individual.

Modality Partnership is a legally recognised partnership under the Partnership Act, providing primary care services. The majority of our contracts are with NHS organisations, usually Integrated Care Boards (ICB’s) or Acute/Community Trusts. Please contact the ICB or Acute/Community Trust, with whom we hold a contract, directly to acquire any information related to contractual obligations for the purposes of FOI.

Some activities that Modality Partnership undertake are exempt from FOI legislation.

Where can you make your request?

Any requests relating to Modality Partnership should be made to our Data Protection Officer: modality.dpo@nhs.net

If your request refers to any contracts that we hold with ICB’s or Acute/Community Trusts, please make your FOI request directly to the relevant public body.

Equality Diversity Statement

Modality Partnership is committed to eliminating individual and institutional discrimination, harassment and victimisation across all protected characteristics set out in the Equality Act 2010 relating to patients and employees which are: Race, Sex, Disability, Sexual Orientation, Religion or Belief, Gender Reassignment, Age, Marriage and Civil Partnership and Pregnancy and Maternity.

​All Modality Partnership staff complete equality and diversity training.

Did Not Attend Policy

We aim to provide all our patients with the best possible service and to achieve this we need your help.  Patients who fail to attend for their appointments and do not let us know incur significant cost to the practice and to other patients in terms of lost appointments.

If you are unable to keep your appointment, please make every effort to cancel it well in advance so that it may be offered to someone else. This can be done over the phone, or online.

  • Modality Partnership will monitor those patients who do not attend their appointments. When a patient regularly fails to attend appointments within a 12 month period, the patient will be written to explaining that should they fail to attend a further appointment without prior notification, they risk being removed from the Practice list.

  • If the patient fails to attend a following appointment following receipt of the first letter, the patient will be written to with a warning that any future failure to attend an appointment without prior notification will lead to their removal from the Practice list.

Zero Tolerance Policy

We are committed to taking all reasonable precautions necessary to ensure the health, safety, welfare and well-being of our employees, patients and visitors.  We endeavour to ensure that all employees are protected from physical and verbal abuse while they are working and strongly support NHS guidelines regarding zero tolerance.  We operate a Zero Tolerance Policy for patients.

Anyone attending the surgery who is abusive, violent, aggressive be it verbally, physically or in any threatening manner whatsoever to members of staff or other persons present on the practice premises, will risk removal from the practice list.  In extreme cases we may summon the police to remove offenders from the practice premises.