Policies and Procedures

Freedom of Information and Publication Policy

Freedom of Information & Publication Scheme

Adopted - 25/08/2016

Introduction
Compliance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000 is the legal responsibility of local authorities and other public organisations. It is part of a wider group of national policies which aim to modernise government and show people how it is working on their behalf.

Since January 2005 people have had a right to know what decisions are taken on their behalf, and how services are run. They can ask to see not only printed leaflets and other publications, but also any background files and other records relating to the business of the organisation, unless statutory exemptions apply.

Bardney Group Parish Council has produced and publicised a Publication Scheme, which makes it clear what information can already be accessed. The Publication Scheme outlines any charges which may be made in supplying any information.
Publication Scheme

Information to be published	How it can be obtained
Class 1 - Who we are and what we do
Who’s who on the Council and its Committees	Website/Notice Boards
Contact details for Parish Clerk and Council	Website/Notice Boards
Location of main Council office and accessibility details	Website/Notice Boards
Members of Staff	Website/Notice Boards
Class 2 – What we spend and how we spend it
Annual return form and report by auditor	Website
Finalised budget	Website
Precept	Website - Meeting Minutes
Expenditure against budget	Website - Meeting Minutes
Financial Standing Orders and Regulations	Website
Grants given and received	Website - Meeting Minutes
List of current contracts awarded and value of contract	Website - Meeting Minutes
Borrowing Approval Letter	On Application - none to date
Members’ allowances and expenses	Website - Meeting Minutes
Class 3 – What our priorities are and how we are doing
Parish Action Plan (current year)	Website/Notice Boards On Application for archived
Annual Report to Parish or Community Meeting (current year)	Website On Application for archived
Class 4 – How we make decisions
Timetable of meetings (Council and any committee/sub-committee meetings and parish meetings)	Website/Notice Boards
Agendas of meetings ( current and previous year as minimum)	Website On Application for archived
Minutes of meetings – n.b. excluding information that is properly regarded as private to the meeting	Website On Application for archived
Reports presented to council meetings – n.b. excluding information that is properly regarded as private to the meeting	On Application
Responses to consultation papers	On Application
Responses to planning applications	On Application
Bye-laws	On Application
Class 5 – Our policies and procedures
Procedural standing orders	Website
Committee and sub-committee terms of reference	Website
Delegated authority in respect of officers	Website
Code of Conduct	Website
Policy statements	On Application
Policies and procedures for the provision of services and about the employment of staff	On Application
Internal instructions to staff and policies relating to the delivery of services	On Application
Complaints procedures (including those covering requests for information and operating the publication scheme)	Website
Equality and diversity policy	Website
Health and safety policy	Website
Recruitment policies (including current vacancies)	On Application
Policies and procedures for handling requests for information	Website
Complaints procedures (inc those covering requests for information and operating the publication scheme)	Website
Data protection policies	Website
Schedule of charges (for the publication of information)	Detailed Below
Class 6 – Lists and Registers Currently maintained lists and registers only
Any publicly available register or list	On Application
Assets register	On Application
Disclosure log	On Application
Register of members’ interests	On Application
Register of gifts and hospitality	On Application
Burial Records	On Application
Class 7 – The services we offer
Allotments	Website
Burial grounds and closed churchyards	Website
Seating, litter bins, clocks, memorials and lighting	On Application
Bus shelters	On Application
Services for which the council is entitled to recover a fee, together with those fees (e.g. burial fees)	On Application
Markets	None
Parks, playing fields & recreational facilities	None managed by BGPC
Village Halls	None managed by BGPC
Public Conveniences	None

Any additional information which is not part of the Publication Scheme can be requested under the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

Schedule of Charges

Type of Charge	Description	Basis of Charge
Disbursement Cost	Photocopying @ £0.15 per sheet (black & white) Photocopying @ £0.30 per sheet (colour) Postage	Actual cost incurred
Statutory Fee	To be confirmed on application and subject to nature of request.	In accordance with the relevant legislation.
Other	To be confirmed on application and subject to nature of request.	In accordance with any relevant legislation.

Procedures

A request for information must be made by letter or e-mail and should be sent to:
The Clerk to the Council at Bardney Group Parish Council, The Parish Office, St Oswald's Park, Horncastle Road. Bardney. LN3 5SU
The request must include a contact name, an address for correspondence and state clearly what information is required.
Responsibility for dealing with all requests for information has been delegated to the Clerk to the Council.
The first step will be to identify whether the requested data is held by the council. If not, the applicant will be notified accordingly.
If information is held, and is not subject to any exemption, it will normally be supplied within 20 working days unless there is a fee to pay, or further clarification must be sought.
If the request for information is unclear, the Clerk of the Council will contact the applicant to clarify what data is being sought. If clarification of a request is needed, the 20 working day period will commence on receipt of the additional information.
If the information is not held by the Council, but the Council is aware of another public body which may hold the information, the request will either be forwarded to the third party concerned, or the applicant will be given details of which public authority is believed to hold the information.
Where information cannot be provided, a refusal notice will be issued explaining which exemption applies, and advising of any right to appeal, if applicable.
Where information is subject to a ‘qualified exemption’ under the FOI Act, there may be an extension to the 20 day period whilst further consideration is given to applying the public interest test, to determine whether any information should be withheld or disclosed.
Where any complaint is received about the processing of any request for information, this will be referred on to the Complaint’s Panel for attention.
Where any correspondence is received from the Information Commissioner’s Office in relation to any Freedom of Information matter, this will be referred on to the Council for attention.