When might information not be disclosed - FOI

Occasionally, the Council will be unable to supply information requested under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. In many cases, this is because the information is exempt from disclosure.

A list of exemptions can be found on the Information Commissioner’s Office website - https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/foi/guide-to-managing-an-foi-request/exemptions/list-of-exemptions/

Where information is exempt, the Council will tell you why it is unable to supply it.

The Council does not have to comply with information requests that are vexatious or repeated, or where requests are expensive or burdensome.

The Council will refuse requests for information where it has asked you for clarification and you have not provided it.

For further information about what information is exempt from disclosure, and what is considered a vexatious request, see the Information Commissioner's Office website – https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/foi/freedom-of-information-and-environmental-information-regulations/section-14-dealing-with-vexatious-requests/

Cost -

FOI requests are generally free. In certain circumstances, a fee may be payable for determining, locating, retrieving and extracting information and/or the cost for disbursements such as photocopying and postage. If this applies, a Fees Notice will be issued to you with details of any costs involved in advance and you will be required to pay this before we can proceed to deal with your request.

The Council can make a charge when they estimate that the cost of determining whether they hold the information and of locating, retrieving and extracting it would exceed the fees limit of £450, based on an hourly rate of £25.  Section 12 of the Freedom of Information Act provides that where it would cost more than £450 to locate the information sought, the Council is not under a duty to comply.