Freedom of Information Act 2000 / Publication Scheme
Freedom of Information Act 2000
The Freedom of Information Act 2000 is intended to promote a
culture of openness and accountability amongst public sector bodies
by providing people with rights of access to the information held
by them. It is expected that these rights will facilitate better
public understanding of how public authorities carry out their
duties, why they make the decisions they do and how they spend
public money.
About the Publication Scheme
Every public authority is required to adopt and maintain a
publication scheme setting out the classes of information it holds,
the manner in which it intends to publish the information, and
whether a charge will be made for the information. The purpose of
our scheme is to make it easier for the public to identify the
information that they require. The scheme is intended to encourage
the publication of more information proactively, and to develop a
greater culture of openness.
Making Requests for Information
From 1st January 2005 the Act established a right for any
person making a request to a public authority to be informed in
writing whether or not that authority holds the information
requested and, if so, to have access to that information, subject
to exemptions.
Exemptions
Whilst the Act creates a right to request specific information
held by public authorities, it also creates a number of exemptions
from that right. These have the effect of permitting public
authorities to withhold some or all of the information requested,
where that information fits the terms of one or more of the
exemptions.
What to do if you have a complaint
Any person who considers that the Council is not complying
with the Publication Scheme or has not facilitated correctly a
request for information may use our internal complaints
procedure.
Background to the Freedom of Information Act 2000
The Freedom of Information Act 2000 (“the Act”) is intended to
promote a culture of openness and accountability amongst public
sector bodies by providing people with rights of access to the
information held by them. It is expected that these rights will
facilitate better public understanding of how public authorities
carry out their duties, why they make the decisions they do and how
they spend public money.
The Act enables people to gain access to information held by
public authorities in two ways:
- People have the right to make a request for any information
held by a public authority (although this right is subject to a
number of exemptions which permit the withholding of information)
and the authority will have to comply with the Act in
responding.
- Every public authority must make some information available as
a matter of course through a Publication Scheme, with information
included in the Publication Scheme being routinely made available
to anyone who consults it. A Publication Scheme is both a public
commitment to make certain information available and a guide to how
that information can be obtained.
To contact somebody about this page please use the following
contact details:
Marie Bentley
Corporate Information Manager
Harlow Council
Civic Centre
The Water Gardens
Harlow
Essex CM20 1WG
Tel: 01279 446736