Paul McGrath v The Information Commissioner

Facts

The applicant, Paul McGrath, complained to the Information Commissioner about the way St Francis Primary School had handled his personal data, and in particular an erasure request he had made of the School. The complaint was submitted on 13 February 2026 and given the reference IC-480922-X0N1. Having heard nothing further, and having been told in the Commissioner's acknowledgement of his right to apply to the Tribunal, the applicant applied to the First-tier Tribunal on form GRC3 dated 27 June 2026 under section 166(2) of the Data Protection Act 2018, seeking an order that he be informed of the progress or outcome of his complaint within a specified time. On 22 July 2026 the Commissioner's case officer wrote to the School, telling it that it had breached the data protection legislation by failing to answer the request within the statutory one-month period, directing it to respond to the erasure request within 14 days and reminding it of its obligations for future requests; the officer wrote to the applicant the same day explaining what had been done, suggesting that he could consider applying to the court if no adequate response came, and confirming that the complaint would be taken no further. On form GRC5 dated 27 July 2026 the Commissioner applied to strike the application out. The applicant filed no representations in response.