The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has published its decision notice on Imperial’s 2020 independent investigation report.

A copy of this notice is now on the ICO website.  The ICO has instructed Imperial to publish a redacted version of the 2020 independent investigation into claims about members of Imperial’s leadership.

Our responsibilities may lead the College to appeal part of this decision, but the issues surrounding this are complex and may take some time to resolve. 

Imperial has a series of responsibilities and obligations to the various parties who participated in the process. More than 50 people contributed to the investigation as witnesses, with an assurance that their contributions would be confidential. We are also mindful of our responsibility to serve the wider public interest.  

Response to the independent investigation

Since the 2020 investigation report and subsequent disciplinary process, Imperial’s culture and leadership style have been significantly improved.  This includes the full implementation of the 12 recommendations by the independent investigator. These recommendations included training and coaching to improve the President and CFO’s leadership style and working practices, annual reviews, as well as further training on certain HR processes.

The President and CFO offered full apologies, both to the individuals affected and to the wider College community in 2020.

Since then, the whole community has contributed positively to improving the culture of the College. This work continues, including through initiatives such as Imperial Together which is underpinned by a new Values and Behaviours framework, drawing on consultation with hundreds of staff and students over a two-year period.  The Imperial Together initiative includes an associated Action Plan, which sets out key ambitions and actions across all the projects and activities designed to help build and strengthen a positive and kind culture.

We recognise our community’s interest and concern regarding these issues and we will update further as soon as we can.