Your right to know

There are a number of ways to gain access to information about Tendring District Council and to find out what information the Council holds about you. There are separate pieces of legislation that govern how we supply different types of information. These are:

• the Data Protection Act 1998, which gives you the right to see information we hold about you
• the Freedom of Information Act 2000, which gives you the right to access information we publish and other information we hold
• the Environmental Information Regulations 2004, which gives you access to information held by us relating to the environment

Obtaining information from the Council

There are different procedures in place to access information held under these Acts and Regulations, and we work hard to meet our obligations.

• How to make a data protection request

• How to make a freedom of information/Environmental Information Regulation request

Occasionally, we are unable to supply information requested under the Acts and Regulations. In many cases, this is because the information itself is exempt from publication. This can be for a variety of reasons. Where information is exempt, we will tell you why we are unable to supply it. We do not have to comply with information requests that are considered vexatious. For further information about what information is exempt from publication, and what is considered a vexatious request, see the Information Commissioner's Office website (www.ico.gov.uk).
 
A great deal of information about the work of the Council is published as part of our Publication Scheme (available as a useful document on the right of this page).

The Scheme contains a wealth of information about:
• who we are and what we do
• what we spend and how we spend it
• what our priorities are and how we are doing
• how we make decisions
• our policies and procedures
• lists and registers
• services provided by the Council

Retention of information

The Council retains different types of information for different lengths of time. The different types of information, and the length of time we retain them for is set out in the Council’s Record Retention Policy. 

Making a complaint

If you are unsatisfied with the service you receive from the Council, you are entitled to make a complaint by following the Council's Access to Information Complaints Procedure. If you are still unhappy you can take your complaint to the Information Commissioner's Office.

Making a Data Protection Act information request

Data protection gives people the right to know what personal information Tendring District Council holds about them. Access to non-personal information is managed under the Freedom of Information Act and the Environmental Information Regulations.

A request for personal information under the Data Protection Act can be made via email or in writing.
This is known as a Subject Access Request. In order to make a Subject Access Request you will need to provide the following information:
• your name
• your address
• proof of identity
• enough information to enable us to identify your records

Once you have made a request you will receive an acknowledgement and your request must be answered within 40 calendar days. In certain circumstances, though, we are allowed to take longer. For more details about what you can expect from us, see the Information Commissioner's website.
If you would like to make a request, please contact us in the following ways:
By email: DPAOfficer@tendringdc.gov.uk

In writing to:

Access to Records
Corporate Data Protection Officer
Town Hall
Clacton on Sea
CO15 1SE

See also our Data Protection page for further, more detailed, information

Making a Freedom of Information/Environmental Information Regulation Request

The Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA) gives everyone the right to request written or recorded information held by Tendring District Council. Personal information held by the Council is covered by the Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA).

The Environmental Information Regulations 2004 (EIR) gives everyone access to information held by the Council that relates specifically to the environment, including the state of water, air, animals and plant life across the District.

Requests for information under the FOIA or EIR can be made via email or in writing. Once you have made a request you will receive an acknowledgement and your request should be answered within 20 working days, although in certain circumstances we are allowed to take longer to respond. For more details about what you can expect from us, please visit the Information Commissioner's website (www.ico.gov.uk). Some information may be withheld to protect various interests. This is allowed under the terms of the FOIA and EIR. If we withhold information for these reasons, we will tell you why.

Under certain circumstances, the Council is allowed to make a charge for information that is provided to you. Information about the charges we make is contained within the Council’s Information Charging Policy.

If you would like to make a FOI or EIR information request, please contact us in the following ways:

By email: corporateinfomanager@tendringdc.gov.uk

In writing to:

Corporate Information Manager
Tendring District Council
Legal Services
Town Hall
Station Road
Clacton on Sea
Essex
CO15 1SE

We make a lot of information available through the publication scheme. Before making a Freedom of Information request, you may like to check if the information you require has already been published.

Please note that FOI requests concerning Highways, Social Services and Education matters for the Tendring district are dealt with by Essex County Council.

Essex County Council - Highways
Essex County Council - Social Services
Essex County Council - Education

You can e-mail your request to ECC at: YourRightToKnow@essex.gov.uk 
OR send a written request to:

Information Sharing Information Security (ISIS)
P O Box 11
County Hall
Chelmsford
Essex
CM1 1LX

See also our Environmental Information Regulations page for further, more detailed information on each subject.