HFX -v- Croydon Health Services NHS Trust (anonymity order)

High CourtKing's Bench DivisionAnonymity Order

Claim number: KB-2022-003709

In the High Court of Justice
King’s Bench Division

16 July 2025

Before:

Master Stevens

Between:

HFX (A child proceeding by his Mother and Litigation Friend, LFX)

-v-

Croydon Health Services NHS Trust

Order

UPON READING the application of the Claimant dated 16 May 2025

AND UPON

  1. Consideration of the Article 8 rights of the Claimant and his family to respect for private and family life, and the Article 10 right to freedom of expression.
  2. It appearing that non-disclosure of the identity of the Claimant is necessary to secure the proper administration of justice and in order to protect the interests of the Claimant and his family and that there is no sufficient countervailing public interest in disclosure.
  3. The Defendant indicating its neutrality to the making of this order.

AND PURSUANT to section 6 of the Human Rights Act 1988 and CPR Rules 5.5C, 5.4D and 39.2(4).

WHEREAS for the purposes of this Order:

  1. Publication includes any speech, writing, broadcast, or other communication in whatever form (including Internet and social media), which is addressed to the public at large or any section of the public.
  2. Publication for the purpose of this order includes any further publication (as defined in sub paragraph (1) above) from the date of this order, even if such information has derived from a previous stage or stages of these proceedings.

IT IS ORDERED THAT:

  1. The identity of the Claimant and the Claimant’s Litigation Friend as a party to these proceedings is confidential and shall not be published.
  1. Pursuant to CPR rule 39.2(4), there shall not be disclosed in any report of these proceedings or other publication the name or address of the Claimant, the Claimant’s litigation friend or other immediate family members, or any details (including other names, addresses, or a specific combination of facts) that could lead to the identification of the Claimant in these proceedings, and his Litigation Friend.  The Claimant and the Litigation Friend shall be referred to as set out below in paragraph 3 of this Order.
  1. In any judgment or report of these proceedings, or other publication (by whatever medium) in relation thereto:
    i) The Claimant shall be referred to as “[HFX]”
    ii) The Litigation Friend shall be referred to as “[LFX]”
    iii) ‘The address of the Claimant and of the Claimant’s Litigation Friend shall be stated as the address of the Claimant’s solicitors
    iv) Any other details which, on their own or together with other information publicly available, may lead to the identification of the Claimant (including any names of other immediate family members or their addresses) shall be redacted before publication.
  2. Pursuant to CPR rules 5.4C and 5.4D:
    i) A person who is not a party to the proceedings may not obtain a copy of a statement of case, judgment or order from the court records unless the statement of case, judgment order has been anonymised in accordance with subparagraphs 3(I) to (IV) above.
    ii) If a person who is not a party to the proceedings applies (pursuant to CPR rules 5.4c(1B) or (2)) for permission to inspect or obtain a copy of any other document or communication, such application shall be on at least 7 days’ notice to the Claimant’s Solicitor, Trustee or Deputy.
  3. The Claimant’s solicitor shall file with the court an electronic (PDF) bundle of the statements of case that have been anonymised in accordance with paragraph 3 above within 21 days of the date of this Order and re-filed in the event that any statement of case is amended, within 21 days of such amendment being approved.
  4. The Court file shall be clearly marked with the words “An anonymity order was made in this case on 16th July 2025 and any application by a non-party to inspect or obtain a copy document from this file must be dealt with in accordance with the terms of that Order”.
  5. Any interested party, whether or not a party to the proceedings, may apply to the Court to vary or discharge this Order, provided that any such application is made on 7 days’ notice to the Claimant’s Solicitor, Trustee or Deputy.
  6. Pursuant to the ‘Practice Guidance: Publication of privacy and anonymity orders’ issued by the Master of the Rolls dated 16 April 2019, a copy of this Order Shall be published on the judicial website of the High Court of Justice (www.judiciary.uk) for that purpose, a Court Officer will send a copy of the Order by email to the Judicial Office at judicialwebupdates@judiciary.uk.
  7. The costs of obtaining this Order be costs in the case.