Kia ora,

I’m making this Official Information Act request as part of ADHDInquiryNZ, a grassroots, unfunded, and non-partisan volunteer initiative supporting a public petition calling for a Parliamentary inquiry into systemic harm to people with ADHD in Aotearoa. This request focuses on information held by your agency to help identify how ADHD is currently recognised within existing systems. The information gathered from this and related requests will be used to help identify patterns across agencies and will contribute to the evidence provided to the Petitions Committee when the petition period closes. I appreciate the time involved in OIA responses.

Please treat this as a request for official information under the OIA. I understand the agency’s obligation to assist under s 13 and that a decision should be made within 20 working days of receipt (and that any transfer must occur within 10 working days). If any part of this request requires clarification, please let me know no later than 5 working days from receipt. If an extension under s 15A is needed, please state the reason and duration. This request is confined to information held by New Zealand Police; please do not transfer for commentary.

Timeframe: This request covers the period 1 January 2015 to the date this request is received.

Format: Where datasets, tables, or modelling outputs are released, I request they be supplied in machine-readable format (CSV or original spreadsheet) with any accompanying data dictionaries or field definitions, to minimise collation effort and preserve original structure.

Scope clarification to reduce unnecessary work
To streamline this request, I am not seeking internal email threads, draft documents, or personal information about identifiable individuals unless they are the only holders of the substantive information described.

If any part of the request is likely to be refused under s 18(f) for substantial collation, please identify the specific part early so I may refine it.

Please provide:

1. Policies, training, and operational guidance
Any policies, practice guidance, or training materials since 2015 that mention ADHD in the context of:
-mental-health-related police response
-youth justice or youth offending
-custody, detention, or vulnerability assessments
-frontline or emergency response
-risk assessment or identification of additional needs.

2. Data, indicators, and analysis
Any data, studies, analysis, or internal reporting that identifies or discusses ADHD prevalence or indicators among people who come into Police contact, including (where available):
-youth, adults, or repeat-contact groups
-descriptive statistics, prevalence estimates, or indicators
-aggregated or anonymised insights relating to ADHD.

If any Māori data governance or Māori equity considerations were applied when deciding whether to collect, categorise, or monitor ADHD-related information, please provide the relevant documents.

(Identifiable case information is not sought.)

3. Inter-agency coordination
Any documents since 2015 relating to coordination with:
-Ministry of Health
-Oranga Tamariki
-Ministry of Justice
-Department of Corrections

where ADHD is referenced in relation to Police operations, youth justice, mental-health response, or data systems.

4. Acknowledgement of limitations or gaps
Any internal documents, reports, or correspondence acknowledging:
-limitations in recognising or recording ADHD
-gaps in data collection or system capability
-barriers to identifying or supporting people with ADHD during Police contact, custody, or youth interactions.

5. Classification and categorisation
If ADHD is not explicitly tracked or recorded as a separate category, please:
-confirm this
-state under which broader operational or data category ADHD related matters would fall (e.g., mental health, behavioural, vulnerability, cognitive)
-provide any data dictionaries, coding guidance, or classification standards that show how ADHD-related needs are categorised in Police systems.

6. Recruitment and medical eligibility policies (workforce)
Any recruitment, medical assessment, or candidate screening policies, guidelines, internal advice, or training materials since 2015 that reference:
-ADHD
-the use of ADHD medication, including stimulants
-considerations used when medically clearing or screening applicants with ADHD.

If ADHD is not explicitly referenced, please confirm and indicate the broader category under which it is assessed for recruitment or medical eligibility purposes.

If information is not held
If your agency does not hold some or all of the information requested, that absence also helps clarify how ADHD is currently recognised and managed across policing and justice systems.

Please confirm if the information is not held, and include any existing documents or correspondence recording a decision not to collect or monitor ADHD related information. If relevant, please indicate how related matters are categorised (for example, mental health, behavioural, vulnerability, or cognitive categories).

Ngā mihi,
Elspeth Baker-Vevers