Freedom of Information

The Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA) applies to all public authorities in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, including central government departments, local councils, NHS bodies, schools, and the police. The Scottish equivalent is the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002. Requests must be made in writing (including email), describe the information sought, and provide a name and correspondence address. The authority must respond within 20 working days, either providing the information, confirming it does not hold it, or claiming an exemption. Absolute exemptions (such as court records and personal data) and qualified exemptions (subject to a public interest test) are listed in the Act. If a requester is dissatisfied, they can request an internal review and then complain to the ICO. The ICO can issue decision notices requiring the authority to disclose information or upholding the refusal. Environmental information requests fall under a separate regime (the Environmental Information Regulations 2004).

In practice, the quality of the answer depends almost entirely on the quality of the question. Ask for recorded information — reports, minutes, correspondence, datasets, decision records — rather than for explanations or opinions, because FOI gives you access to what is written down, not a duty to answer questions. Narrow the scope with dates, departments and document types. A request that would take an authority more than the statutory cost limit to answer can be refused outright, so a focused request often gets you more than a sweeping one.

Worked example: Ruth wants to know why her council closed a local day centre. She asks for the cabinet report and appendices considered on a named date, the equality impact assessment prepared for that decision, and any consultation responses summary, all within a three-month window. The council releases the report but withholds part of the consultation summary citing the exemption for personal data. Ruth accepts that redaction of names but asks for internal review of the withheld analysis, arguing the public interest in transparency about a service closure outweighs the qualified exemption relied on. When the review upholds the refusal, she complains to the ICO, which issues a decision notice.

The misconceptions are common. FOI is not a route to your own personal data — that is a subject access request, and the two should not be mixed in one letter. It does not apply to private companies, even those delivering public contracts, though information the authority holds about the contract is in scope. Requests are applicant-blind, so your reasons do not matter and you do not need to give them. And information about the environment, including planning, pollution, waste and highways, falls under the separate 2004 Regulations, which have a slightly different exemption structure and no fixed cost limit.

FOI complaints are policed by the Information Commissioner's Office, and often run alongside a service complaint to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman or the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman. Read our guides to complaining about your council and the ICO complaints process.