Freedom of Information Act 2000
The Freedom of Information (FOI) Act 2000 gives a general right
of access to all types of 'recorded' information held by the Trust,
sets out exemptions from that right and places a number of
obligations on the Trust.
The objective of The Freedom of Information 'Act' is to promote
a culture of openness and accountability.
The Right to Information
Individuals already have the right to access information about
them ('Personal data'), which is held on computer, and in some
paper files, under the Data Protection Act 1998. This is known as
the 'Subject Access Right'.
The Freedom Of Information Act will extend this right to allow
access to all types of corporate, business information held
Making a 'Request for Information'
Applicants will not be required to mention the FOI Act when
making a request for information.
Before the Trust is required to respond, a request will have to
satisfy certain conditions. A request for information under
The Act's general right of access must be:
- In permanent form, (in writing or by e-mail - which is received
in legible form and is capable of being used for subsequent
reference)
- State the name and address of the applicant for
correspondence
- Include sufficient information to enable the Trust to identify
the information requested
Under the terms of "The Act" a request for information can be
received and should be dealt with by any employee of the
organisation in receipt of a request.
However, North Bristol NHS Trust has implemented a procedure
whereby any request received for should be forwarded
immediately to:
Helen Williamson Information Governance Manager (FOI Lead),
telephone: 0117 3238402 or email: helen.e.williamson@nbt.nhs.uk
In the case of the Media requesting information to:
Richard Cottle, Media Relations Manager, telephone:
0117 3406779 or email: press.office@nbt.nhs.uk
Dealing with a 'Request for
Information'
All information, not covered by an
exemption must be released to the applicant within 20 working days*
of receipt of the request (NB: Which starts the 1st working day
after receipt).
*Working Days: Do not include Saturday, Sunday,
Christmas Day, Good Friday or a day which is a bank holiday under
the Banking & Financial Dealings Act 1971 in any part of the
UK.
Charging Fees
A charge may be made for
dealing with the request. The details of the charging regime
are to be set out in the Freedom of Information & Data
Protection (Appropriate Limit and Fees) Regulations 2007.
'Fees Regulations'
The Trust does not have
to action the request for information if it estimates that the cost
of complying will exceed the limit of: £450.00
Based on:
- A national rate of £25.00 per person, per hour
- Photocopying at 25p per sheet
- Postage & Packaging
These provisions also apply to the 'unstructured' data element
of the Data Protection Act 1998, Principle 6 – Subject Access
Requests'.
The applicant must be issued with a 'Fees Notice' within 20
working days*.
Exemptions
The Act lists 23 exemptions to
the duty to disclose. These are not exhaustive. If
information is withheld, the applicant will be given reasons for
this decision and will also be informed of their right to appeal to
the Information Commissioner.
Reuse of Public Sector Information & Links with
FOI
July 1 2005 new regulations came into force
covering the re-use of public sector information (Re-use of Public
Sector Information Regulations 2005 (SI 2005 No. 1515)
These regulations take Freedom of Information (and other access
legislation) on to the next logical stage. Responding to an
FOI request by supplying information does not confer an automatic
right of re-use.
Scheme Accountability (NBT Website) The Director of Information
Management & Technology is the senior lead for this Scheme. The
day to day maintenance of the Publication Scheme (this website) is
the responsibility of Helen Williamson, Information Governance
Manager, Information Management Directorate.
-
-
Print this page