This guidance is for such bodies as fire and rescue authorities, waste disposal authorities, passenger transport authorities, port health authorities and other joint authorities and boards established in accordance with the legislative provisions mentioned in Part
II
of Schedule
I
of the Freedom of Information Act 2000.
This guidance gives examples of the kinds of information that we would expect joint authorities and boards to provide in order to meet their commitments under the model publication scheme. We would expect these bodies to make the information in this definition document available unless:
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they do not hold the information;
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the information is exempt under one of the FOI exemptions or Environmental Information Regulations (EIRs) exceptions, or its release is prohibited under another statute;
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the information is archived, out of date or otherwise inaccessible; or,
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it would be impractical or resource-intensive to prepare the material for routine release.
The guidance is not meant to give a definitive list. The legal commitment is to the model publication scheme, and authorities should look to provide as much information as possible on a routine basis.
Who we are and what we do
Organisational information, structures, locations and contacts.
We would normally expect information in this class to be for the current year only.
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Structure of the authority
Names of members of the authority or board and any council or other body represented by those members. Committee and sub committee structure. Details of any other authority providing administrative support.
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Staff structure of the authority
Basic staff structure, management structure, chief officer’s details, numbers in post.
This should give an indication at least of offices and buildings open to the public, the role of any contact, phone number and where used e mail address. Where possible, give named contacts.
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Geographical area of operation
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General outline of responsibilities
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Relationship with other authorities
It will assist members of the public to appreciate the role of the authority if partnership or joint board arrangements with other authorities are detailed and the relationships with, for example, central government departments and local authorities are outlined.
What we spend and how we spend it
Financial information relating to projected and actual income and expenditure, procurement, contracts and financial audit.
We would expect as a minimum that financial information for the current and previous two financial years should be available.
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Summary of revenue budget estimates and capital expenditure plans
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Annual statement of accounts
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Financial audit reports
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Staff pay and grading structure
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Expenses paid to or incurred by members of the authority and senior officers
Details of the allowances and expenses that can be claimed or incurred. It should include the total of the allowances and expenses paid to individual senior staff and authority members by reference to categories. These categories should be produced in line with the authority’s policies, practices and procedures and will be under headings like travel, subsistence and accommodation.
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Procurement procedures
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List of contracts and value
We do not expect that all information about all contracts however small to be included in this scheme. We would normally expect there to be ready access to information about contracts that are large enough to have required a tendering process in accordance with financial regulations or are in relation to capital items.
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Internal financial regulations and delegated authority
What our priorities are and how we are doing
Strategies and plans, performance indicators, audits, inspections and reviews.
We would expect information in this class to be available at least for the current and previous two years.
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Strategic plan, business plan, aims and objectives
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Reports indicating service provision, performance assessments, operational assessment reports
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Reports by external inspectors
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Joint strategies
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Statistical information
How we make decisions
Decision making processes and records of decisions.
We would expect information in this class to be available at least for the current and previous two years.
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Schedule of meetings open to the public
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Agendas and approved minutes of the authority and authority sub-committees
This will be the information that is required to be publicly available under local authority access to information rules.
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Background papers for meetings open to the public
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Facts and analyses of facts used for decision making
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Public consultations
Our policies and procedures
Current written protocols, policies and procedures for delivering our services and responsibilities.
We would normally expect information in this class to be for the current year only.
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Policies and procedures for the conduct of authority business
Standing Orders, delegated powers, corporate governance, code of conduct, memoranda of understanding, standing orders and similar matters.
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Policies and procedures for the provision of services
Policies of the authority that affect the manner in which services are provided. This will include any policies and procedures for handling requests for information.
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Policies and procedures about the employment of staff
Such as equality, recruitment, discipline, grievance, health and safety. If vacancies are advertised as part of recruitment policies, details of current vacancies will be readily available.
Standards for the provision of services to the authority’s customers, including the complaint procedure. Complaints procedures will include those covering requests for information and operating the publication scheme.
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Internal instructions, manuals and guidelines
Where access to internal instructions, manuals and guidelines for dealing with the business of the authority would assist public understanding of the way decisions are made these should be readily available. We would not expect information that might damage the operations of the authority to be revealed.
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Records management and personal data policies
This will include information security policies, records retention, destruction and archive policies, and data protection (including data sharing) policies.
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Charging regimes and policies
Details of any statutory charging regimes should be provided. Charging policies should include charges made for information routinely published and clearly state what costs are to be recovered together with the basis on which they are made and how they are calculated.
Lists and registers
We expect this to be information contained only in currently maintained lists and registers.
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Asset lists and information asset register
We would not expect departments to publish all details from all asset registers. We would expect some information from capital asset registers to be available. If a department has prepared an information asset register for the Re-use of Public Sector Information Regulations 2005, it should publish the contents.
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Registers open to public inspection (and arrangements for access to the contents)
If a department is required to maintain any register and make the information in it available for public inspection, the existing provisions covering access will usually be adequate. However, we expect authorities to publicise which public registers they hold, and how the information in them is to be made available to the public. Where registers contain personal information, authorities must ensure that they consider the data protection principles.
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Register of members’ interests
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Register of gifts and hospitality
The services we offer
Information about the services we offer, including leaflets, guidance and newsletters.
Generally this is an extension of part of the first class of information. While the first class provides information on the authority’s roles and responsibilities, this class includes details of the services the authority provides. The starting point would normally be a list or lists of the services the department is responsible for, linked to details of these services.
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Information about the provision of the authority’s services
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Regulatory responsibilities and procedures
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Leaflets and explanatory booklets
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Services for which the council is entitled to recover a fee, together with those fees
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Media releases
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Fire Services
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Fire Service Reports on major incidents
While we would expect fire service authorities to publish some information about major incidents which have generated public interest, we would not expect the full contents of fire damage and accident reports to be made available as a matter of routine. In view of the nature of these reports, they will inevitably contain personal and other confidential material. The full report will need to be prepared for the internal procedures of the Fire Service and for fire monitoring generally and fire service authorities may wish to make them available on request with the deletion of material that should not be made public. In particular, fire services need to be aware of any requirement to release what would amount to environmental information. We would recognize, in view of the additional fees involved, that an administrative charge could be made for this redacted copy as long as any charge did not act as an obstacle to its provision. This would not in any way interfere with the opportunity of the Fire Service to make a full copy of the report available to those who request it at a commercial charge, where the identity of the requestor is taken into account, taking it outside the provisions of the FOIA, subject to safeguards about the personal and sensitive material.
We would not expect fire services to make available as a matter of course information contained in fire safety plans or fire safety risk assessments.
Version 2
23 October 2008
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