Naloxone in custody 728/2025
FOI Reference: 728/2025
Request:
I am submitting a freedom of information request about the use of naloxone in custody suites.
Please could you tell me, from 1 Jan 2022 to present:
- If the force has naloxone in its custody suites
- The number of times naloxone was used in custody by the force
- The number of patients/arrestees naloxone was used on
- The number of drug overdoses in custody
- The number of deaths from drug overdoses in custody
- If naloxone was introduced in custody suites after 1 Jan 2022, please let me know when.
- Also, please could you provide information on who administers the naloxone – eg police officers or healthcare professionals.
Clarification: Information for both and differentiate.
Response:
Section 1 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 places two duties on public authorities. Unless exemptions apply, the first duty at Section 1(1) (a) is to confirm or deny whether the information specified in a request is held. The second duty at Section 1(1) (b) is to disclose information that has been confirmed as being held.
Where exemptions are relied upon Section 17 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 requires Dyfed-Powys Police, when refusing to provide such information (because the information is exempt) to provide you the applicant with a notice which:
(a) states that fact,
(b) specifies the exemption in question and
(c) states (if that would not otherwise be apparent) why the exemption applies.
I can confirm that Dyfed-Powys Police does hold the information you have requested. However, we are withholding the whole of the requested information since we consider that the Section 12(1) exemption the Cost of Compliance exceeds the Appropriate Limit applies to it.
Section 12 (1) – The cost of compliance exceeds the Appropriate Limit
Section 12(1) states: “…Section 1 (1) does not oblige a public authority to comply with a request for information if the authority estimates that the cost of complying with the request would exceed the appropriate limit.”
The cost of providing you with the information requested in respect of your request is above the amount to which we are legally required to respond i.e. the cost of locating and retrieving the information exceeds the “appropriate level” as stated in the Freedom of Information (Fees and Appropriate Limit) Regulations 2004. It is estimated that it would exceed 18 hours (i.e. minimum 1,667 hours) to comply with this part of your request. The regulations can be located @ https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2004/3244
The Freedom of Information Department has been advised that the information in relation to your request is not held in an easily retrievable format. In order to provide a response for question 4, each record would require interrogation to establish if there is any information relevant to this part of your request.
It has been established that there are in excess of 20,000 records that would require individual interrogation and it has been estimated that it would take a minimum of 5 minutes to research each individual record. The relevant time estimate is detailed below:
2022 – present day – 20,000 records x 5 minutes per record = 1,667 hours
Total time estimate to complete whole request = 1,667 hours
In accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000, this letter acts as a Refusal Notice for the WHOLE of this request under Section 17(5) A public authority which, in relation to any request for information, is relying on a claim that section 12 or section 14 applies must, within the time for complying with section 1(1), give the applicant a notice stating that fact.
You may wish to refine and resubmit your request so that it reduces the time shown above to fall within the 18 hours.
Should you require any further advice in relation to this matter please don’t hesitate to contact me.
Please also be advised that should the request be refined, it does not remove the Force’s right to cite exemptions if relevant.
Although excess cost removed the force’s obligations under the Freedom of Information Act, as a gesture of goodwill, I have supplied information, relative to your request, retrieved or available before it was realised that the fees limit would be exceeded. I trust this is helpful, but it does not affect our legal right to rely on the fees regulations for the remainder of your request.
Goodwill Responses 1:
I can confirm that Dyfed-Powys Police does hold the information requested, as outlined below.
Yes
Goodwill Responses 2:
I can confirm that Dyfed-Powys Police does hold the information requested, as outlined below.
21
Please note from Custody: data is only available from May 2023 due to the implementation of NICHE (New Police Computer Software Systems).
Goodwill Responses 3:
I can confirm that Dyfed-Powys Police does hold the information requested, as outlined below.
The following figures are taken from reports submitted via the H&S reporting system, where there is any mention included of patients/arrestees being administered with naloxone.
Total between 01/01/2022 and 06/08/2025 – 9.
Yearly breakdown:
2022 – 4
2023 – 1
2024 – 4
2025 (so far) – 0
User:
5 were administered by Health Care Practitioners.
4 were administered by DPP employees.
Location:
6 were administered within Police Custody Suites.
2 were administered within Police vehicles on route to hospital.
1 was administered in a public location.
Goodwill Responses 5:
There is no information held due to the fact that zero (0) deaths from drug overdoses in custody.
Goodwill Responses 6:
There is no information held due to the fact that naloxone was introduced in custody suites prior to 1 Jan 2022.
Goodwill Responses 7:
I can confirm that Dyfed-Powys Police does hold the information requested, as outlined below.
Both.
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(This is a response under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and disclosed on 13/08/2025)
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