ELS -v- London Borough of Lambeth (anonymity order)

Administrative CourtHigh CourtKing's Bench DivisionAnonymity Order

Case number: AC-2025-LON-004410

In the High Court of Justice
King’s Bench Division
Administrative Court

In the matter of an application for judicial review

19 December 2025

Before:

Tom Little KC
(sitting as a Deputy High Court Judge)

Between:

ELS
(A child supported by his mother and Litigation Friend, ELM)

-v-

London Borough of Lambeth

Order

On an application by the Claimant for anonymity

Following consideration of the documents lodged by the Claimant

ORDER BY TOM LITTLE KC (sitting as a Deputy High Court Judge)

  1. Anonymity:

(a) Pursuant to CPR 39.2(4) and/or the Court’s inherent jurisdiction and/or s. 6 of the Human Rights Act 1998: 

(i) the Claimant’s name and that of the Litigation Friend is to be withheld from the public and must not be disclosed in any proceedings in public; and 

(ii) the Claimant is to be referred to orally and in writing as ELS

(iii) the Litigation Friends is to be referred to orally and in writing as ELM.

(b) Pursuant  to  s.  11  of  the  Contempt  of Court Act 1981, there must  be no publication of the identity of the Claimant or of any matter likely to lead to the identification of the  Claimant  or  the  Litigation  Friend  in  any  report of, or otherwise in connection with, these proceedings.

(c) Pursuant to CPR 5.4C(4):

(i) the parties must within 7 days file a redacted copy of any statement of case filed, omitting the name, address and any other information likely to lead to the identification of the Claimant and/or the Litigation Friend; 

(ii) if any statement of case subsequently filed includes information likely to lead to the identification of the Claimant and/or the Litigation Friend, a redacted copy omitting that information must be filed at the same time; 

(iii) unless the Court grants permission under CPR 5.4C(6), no non-party many obtain a copy of any unredacted statement of case. 

(d) Any person wishing to vary or discharge this Order must make an application, served on each party. 

REASONS

(1) Anonymity: The Claimant is five years of age with complex special educational needs and has autism spectrum disorder, global developmental delay and speech and language delay.  The  claim relies  on personal  medical  information  in  which  the Claimant has a reasonable expectation of privacy, so too his Mother. There are accordingly compelling reasons for the limited derogations from the principle of open justice in paragraph 1. 

Signed: Tom Little KC 
Date: 19thDecember 2025