1. Freedom of Information
Paul Smallcombe

2. Objectives
Describe the main points of the Freedom of Information Act 2000
Identify implications for your work areas

3. Overview Freedom of Information Act 2000 came in to force 2005
Provides a right of access to ‘information’ held by public bodies
Requests are ‘applicant and purpose blind’
Requests cannot be ignored under any circumstances
20 working days to reply
The College has a statutory duty to comply with the Act. Anyone has the right to make a request to see/have a copy of all/any recorded information held and we can’t ask them why they want it. Even if we don’t hold it, suspect the motives of applicant or will otherwise refuse the request some reply has to be given in 20 days. It won’t just go away.

4. Responsibilities
Inform the Records & Information Compliance Manager of any requests received
He keeps central log to monitor
Pass on without delay any request which is not your responsibility
Duty to advise and assist the applicant
Most requests should come directly to me in the FOI inbox. However, if received by you, please forward to me so that it can be logged. When I get a request usually I cannot deal with it myself. If I forward it to you, please give it your immediate attention as the clock is ticking and may require some considerable work. Send to HoD with intention that it will be delegated down

5. What information is subject to FOI?
All recorded information held by, or on behalf of, a public authority regardless of age, format, origin:
letters, reports, s, databases, videos, maps and so on
might be in current use or historical
bits of information might be in other depts.
May include information received from others and these parties should be consulted, though they do not have a veto on disclosure. All these need to be taken in to account when formulating how to respond to an FOI request

6. Responding to a Request
The clock is ticking!
Duty to advise & assist
The 20 working day time period starts from the day after the request is received by the College. That doesn’t mean when it comes to the attention of the correct person. 20 working days is the absolute maximum – should try to respond as soon as possible. If for any reason a request is not clear or need help to be narrowed or re-formulated then we have a duty to advise and assist the applicant. If we ask them for clarification on something then we can stop the clock until they respond.

7. Importance of good RM Records Management!
Crucial we can find information and supply it in timely manner
Destroy records we are no longer required to retain – less information to look through, easier to find what you’re looking for
Inventory
Good naming conventions for electronic records
Good RM is vital to help in responding to FOI requests: 1. as we can show we’re accountable and 2. we can find the right information promptly and supply it.
Refer to the QM RRS to determine if records can be destroyed/deleted. If carried out we’ll have less outdated rubbish to wade through to locate what’s needed.
It’s good practice to inventory physical records which are in storage and carry out an annual review to get rid of records which have reached the end of their retention. Equally 1. save records on shared drive (inc. s) not hard drives or account folders, 2. give electronic folders and files good names – guidance on ARCS website e.g. using reverse dates to ensure correct order.
I’m the QM Records Manager and can provide advice & guidance. As well as helping FOI good RM can bring benefits to make you work more effectively

8. Exemptions s.21 – Information available elsewhere s.40 – Personal data
s.22 – Intended for future publication
s.43 – Commercial interests
Cost exceeds £450 (s.12)
Request is “vexatious or repeated” (s.14)
These are some of the most common exemptions we might use to refuse a request, but we try not to and the default should be to be transparent and try to give something. When refusing the specific section of the Act must be cited in our reply to justify the non-disclosure
The first two are absolute exemptions: s.21 e.g. information might be on website or held by another body.
s.40 concerns personal data, which is subject to DPA. So connected but slightly different set of rules and procedures.
The next ones are called qualified exemptions. This means that they are subject to a public interest test. I.e. we should only refuse to disclose the info. if it would not be in the public interest for reasons such as commercial confidentiality. There are others which are not all applicable to HE (e.g. endanger national security).
There are a couple of other circumstances where it may be possible to refuse: if the cost of responding exceeds £450 (£25/hour for 18 hours) or if it is vexatious or repeated. Vexatious = obsessive, no serious purpose, causing distress to staff, designed to cause disruption/annoyance…

9. More Information Web pages: http://foi.qmul.ac.uk/
Web pages:
Records & Information Compliance Manager:
Paul Smallcombe
Room E04 Queens’ Building
This is a shared mailbox so will always be monitored. Is used by the general public but can be used by anyone internally needing advice, guidance