Freedom of Information

The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 came into force on the 1 January 2005 and gives everyone a legal right to request information held by a Scottish Public Authority.

The act aims to increase openness and accountability across the public sector by ensuring that individuals have the right to access information held by Scottish Public Authorities. People are able to see and question how public bodies function and how decisions are made.

Anyone has the right to ask the Council for any information it holds and, subject to certain conditions and exemptions, receive a copy of this.

To submit a Freedom of Information request you must simply write to the Council describing the information you would like. Your request should be made in a permanent format, such as a letter, fax or email, and include the following information:

• Your name (we are unable to accept a request without this)
• A contact address, email or telephone number to which information can be sent
• Details of the information you are seeking 

Send your enquiry to foi@eastdunbarton.gov.uk   

We will respond to your enquiry within 20 working days of receiving your request.

Requests for information about the environment, earth, air, water, living organisms or any force or activity that could affect the environment or human health must be dealt with under the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004.

As with the Freedom of Information legislation the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 demand that a request for information is responded to within 20 working days, however, additional time can be obtained if the request is particularly complex or sizable.

You can make a request for Environmental Information verbally. However, the Council may write to you in order to ensure that we have understood correctly the terms of your request.

To ensure that East Dunbartonshire Council complies with the terms of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 and the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 a Freedom of Information Policy has been published. This gives information on the Act, East Dunbartonshire’s commitment to the legislation and the responsibilities it places on us. Available within the documents section on this page.

The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (the Act) requires Scottish Public Authorities to produce and maintain a Publication Scheme. The Scheme and accompanying Guide lists all the classes of information that the Council makes available through publication. The majority of information included in the scheme is published within the documents section of this page although some publications are only available in hard copy.

The scheme states:

• Where the information is available
• How it is made available
• Any charges that may be applicable.

It also provides general information about the Council, your rights under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act and contact information.

The information identified in the Council’s Publication Scheme can be obtained without the need to submit a Freedom of Information enquiry.

In Scotland the Freedom of Information legislation is regulated by the Scottish Information Commissioner. Their website provides information on using the Act, their role in regulating the legislation and also the review decisions issued by the Commissioner where individuals have been dissatisfied with the way in which public authorities have dealt with requests.

The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 came into force on the 1st of January 2005 and gives everyone a legal right to request information held by a Scottish Public Authority.

The Act aims to increase openness and accountability across the public sector by ensuring that individuals have the right to access information held by Scottish Public Authorities. People are able to see and question how public bodies function and how decisions are made

A Freedom of Information enquiry is a request for recorded information. It can be a request for information about the council, the decisions it makes, its processes and its functions. This includes any information recorded from meetings, minutes, written policies and the content emails.

A Freedom of Information request must be in a permanent recorded format, ie a letter or an email. It must have the name and correspondence address for the enquirer.

Some information, for example information about identifiable individuals and commercially sensitive information, can be exempt from release. Where the Council considers the information to be exempt from release an explanation of this decision must be provided within the 20 working day timescale.

It is a criminal offence to destroy information that is subject to an FOI enquiry.

Requests for routine Council Services, such as a request for housing or an uplift of waste. These do not seek recorded information and so should not be treated as a Freedom of Information enquiry.

Under the Act East Dunbartonshire Council must provide a full response to a Freedom of Information enquiry within 20 working days of receiving the request.

All employees should be aware of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 and its implications for East Dunbartonshire Council as a Scottish Public Authority.

Freedom of Information requests can be received anywhere in the Council and it is our responsibility to identify and respond to these. An enquiry does not need to be entitled Freedom of Information for it to be a valid request.

The Council’s Directors have responsibility for Freedom of Information requests where that information is held by their service areas.

• Directors have responsibility for
  • the logging of requests if it has been received directly by their Service
  • compiling the response
  • responding to the enquirer
• logging the request off the FoI ‘Live’ Tracking Database

The Council’s Information Management Team has responsibility for;

• • logging the Freedom of Information requests received in the Council’s FoI Mailbox and Contact Centre Mailbox
  • allocating requests to the appropriate Service
  • providing advice and assistance to the Services
• monitoring the service areas to ensure that they are responding to their enquiries within the statutory timescales

Where the information required for a response is held by more than one service area the request will be allocated to one Directorate that will co-ordinate a response on behalf of the Council.

The 20 working day timescale to respond to Freedom of Information enquiries means that it is vital that all Freedom of Information enquiries are recognised and acted on immediately.

Each service area has one or more point of contact who can offer advice on dealing with Freedom of Information enquiries. It is important that all employees know who this individual is.

It is the responsibility of the employee who receives a Freedom of Information request to consult their line manager and the appropriate FoI Contact for their service area in order to ensure that the request is recognised, logged on the FoI Tracking Database and passed to the employee(s) best able to provide the response.

The Information Management Team should be made aware of all Freedom of Information requests once they have been received.

Responses to Freedom of Information enquiries must follow the Council’s standard layouts. These are made available to staff on the Freedom of Information Toolkit.

Enquirers must be made aware of their right to seek an internal review of the Council’s response to their enquiry should they be dissatisfied. This Review should be addressed to the Freedom of Information Officer, however if a request for review is received directly by a Service it should be passed to the freedom of Information Officer for action.

The Council has a 20 working day timescale under which to consider the request afresh and provide a response to the enquiry altering or upholding the content of the original response.

Reviews will be co-ordinated by the Council’s Information and Records Manager and Shared Services Manager. A meeting will be held with the appropriate manager from the service area responsible for the request.

A route cause analysis of the request will be carried out to identify if any improvements to the delivery can be identified in light of the Review request.

Requests for information about the environment, earth, air, water, living organisms or any force or activity that could affect the environment or human health must be dealt with under the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (EIR).

As with the Freedom of Information legislation the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 demand that a request for information is responded to within 20 working days, however, additional time can be obtained if the request is particularly complex or sizable.

A separate set of exceptions impose restrictions on what the Council is able to provide in response to an Environmental Information enquiry.

Environmental request can be made verbally without the requirement to be in a permanent form, ie during a telephone conversation

Information released in response to a Freedom of Information enquiry is considered to then be publicly available information. For this reason special care must be taken over the release of information which could lead to the identification of a living individual. Specific exemptions exist under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 in relation to personal information. For advice on dealing with requests which may allow for the identification of individuals please contact the Freedom of Information Officer.

Enquirers should not be provided with information about themselves under the Freedom of Information legislation. There is a separate right of access to this personal information where the Council has to take steps to verify the identity of the individual seeking the information. Further advice on this can be obtained from Council’s Freedom of Information/ Data Protection Officer.

For advice or guidance please contact:

Stephen Armstrong
Freedom of Information/Data Protection Officer
Broomhill Industrial Estate
Kirkintilloch
G66 1TF

Telephone 0141-578 8057
Fax 0141-578 8568
stephen.armstrong@eastdunbarton.gov.uk

The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA) provides individuals with a right of access to all recorded information held by Scotland’s public authorities. Anyone can use this right, and information can only be withheld where the Freedom of Information legislation expressly permits it.

Section 23 of FOISA requires that all Scottish public authorities maintain a publication scheme. A publication scheme sets out the types of information that a public authority routinely makes available. Publication schemes are high level, strategic documents in which a public authority commits to making published information reasonably available to the general public. This ensures that published information held by authorities is open, accountable and transparent at all times.

The Council has adopted the Model Publication Scheme, produced by the Scottish Information Commissioner.

• In addition to adopting the model scheme, the Council has produced this guide. The purpose of our guide is to:
• allow you to see what information is available (and what is not available) in relation to each class
• state what charges may be applied
• explain how to find the information easily
• provide contact details for enquiries and to get help with access to the information
• explain how to request information that has not been published.

FOISA and the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (the EIRs) provide separate rights of access to the information held by The Council.

Where information is not published under the scheme, it can be requested through FOISA or, in the case of environmental information, EIRs.

With a population of 106,730 East Dunbartonshire is in the mid-range of Scottish local authorities in terms of population and covers 77 square miles. It comprises a mixture of urban and rural areas that includes the settlements of Bearsden, Bishopbriggs, Kirkintilloch, Lennoxtown, Lenzie, Milngavie, Milton of Campsie, Torrance and Twechar.

East Dunbartonshire has high levels of employment with 77.2% of the working age population classed as economically active, which is slightly higher than the Scottish average of 76.7%. Unemployment is lower than average with 1.2% of the working age population claiming Out of Work benefits, 1% below the national average.

East Dunbartonshire has the highest life expectancy in Scotland for both men (80.5 years) and women (83.5years). This is above the Scottish average of 77.1 years for men and 81.1 years for women.

Skills Development Scotland shows that in East Dunbartonshire there were 3,115 VAT/PAYE registered businesses in 2014, which was up 4.5% from 2013, and above the 2.8% growth in Scotland. Since 2010, the business base has grown by 6%, which is just above the 5% growth in Scotland.

East Dunbartonshire has been recognised as one of the best areas to live in Scotland based on residents’ health, life expectancy, employment, school performance and climate. In 2017 BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour named East Dunbartonshire as the best place in the United Kingdom for women to live.

The Council delivers a wide range of functions and services to the community, many through statutory obligations. The Local Government in Scotland Act 2003 places a legal duty on councils to lead community planning in their area, and also provides them with the statutory power to advance wellbeing – in other words, Councils may undertake and/or support any activity in the interests of their local community, subject to certain limiting provisions.

These services include:

• Building Standards Business Enterprise
• Community Learning & Development Community Safety
• Cultural Services Education Environmental Services Housing
• Information Services
• Legal Services & Licensing Planning
• Registration Roads & Transport
• Services for Children & Young People
• Social Work

Six Council Wards return three Elected Members, the other, Bishopbriggs North and Campsie, returns four Elected Members. In total there are 22 Elected Members, comprising the following political groupings;

• Scottish National Party - 7 Members Scottish
• Liberal Democrats  - 6 Members Scottish
• Conservatives - 6 Members
• Scottish Labour Party - 2 Members
• Independents - 1 Member

The Council’s services are delivered by 11 strategic groupings, which report to two Depute Chief Executives. The Council’s Social Work Service is delivered through the East Dunbartonshire Health and Social Care Partnership in conjunction with NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde.

The Council aims to achieve a significant, measurable and demonstrable improvement in the quality of life of its citizens by delivering or facilitating excellent, customer-focussed services. The Council is committed to providing members of the public with information on its performance to enable them to determine how well their Council is performing. The Local Outcome Improvement Plan (LOIP) 2016-2019 states the strategic direction, priorities

The Council aims to achieve a significant, measurable and demonstrable improvement in the quality of life of its citizens by delivering or facilitating excellent, customer-focussed services. The Council is committed to providing members of the public with information on its performance to enable them to determine how well their Council is performing. The Local Outcome Improvement Plan (LOIP) 2016-2019 states the strategic direction, priorities and outcomes which have been agreed for delivery with community planning partners. The Plan is based on local need - identified via engagement with local people and communities together with data taken from the 2011 Census and 2012 Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD). It identifies progress on achievement of our long-term outcomes aimed at reducing inequality and disadvantage across our communities and engaging with local people in the design and delivery of public services.

The following bodies work alongside the Council in delivering Services to the people of East Dunbartonshire

• Police Scotland
• Scottish Fire and Rescue Service
• Strathclyde Partnership for Transport
• Dunbartonshire and Argyll & Bute Valuation Joint Board
• East Dunbartonshire Licensing Board
• East Dunbartonshire Health and Social Care Partnership
• East Dunbartonshire Leisure and Culture Trust
• inspirED Education (East Dunbartonshire Ltd.)
• East Dunbartonshire Development Company Ltd.
• Scotland Excel
• Lennoxtown Initiative

Information available under the model publication scheme will normally be available through the routes described below.

Online:

Most information covered by the publication scheme is available to download from our website.

By email:

If the information you seek is in the model publication scheme but is not available on our website, we will usually be able to send the information to you by email. When requesting information from us, please provide a telephone number so that we can contact you to clarify details, if necessary.

By phone:

Information under the scheme can also be requested from us over the telephone. Please call the Council’s FOI Officer on 0141-578 8057 to request information available under this scheme.

By post:

All information under the scheme will normally be available in paper copy form. Please address your request to: Freedom of Information Officer, East Dunbartonshire Council, Marina Headquarters, 12 Strathkelvin Place, Kirkintilloch G66 1TJ

When writing to us to request information, please include your name and address, full details of the information or documents you would like to receive, and any fee applicable. Please also include a telephone number so we can contact you to clarify any details, if necessary.

Personal visits:

In limited cases, you may be asked to make an appointment to view the information.

Advice and assistance:

If you have any difficulty identifying the information you want to access, then please contact the Council’s Freedom of Information Officer (0141-578 8057), who will be happy to help or email foi@eastdunbarton.gov.uk.

All information covered by the publication scheme can either be accessed through our website, or will be provided promptly following receipt of your request.

However, sometimes we may not be able to provide certain information which is described in the scheme. This could be for two reasons:-

We do not have it or publish it

The model publication scheme class structure covers every possible type of information a council might publish. Under law, a model publication scheme has to be adopted in its entirety.

Information is exempt from disclosure

Our aim in maintaining the publication scheme is to be as open as possible. You should note, however, that there may be circumstances where information will be withheld from one of the classes of information listed in the scheme. This may be an entire document, or just parts of a document (for example, minutes of meetings might be published, but with personal information ‘blacked out’). Information will only be withheld, however, where FOISA (or, in the case of environmental information, the EIRs) expressly permits it.

Information may be withheld, for example, where its disclosure would breach the law of confidentiality, harm an organisation’s commercial interests, or endanger the protection of the environment. Information may also be withheld if it is someone’s personal information and its release would breach data protection legislation.

Whenever information is withheld we will inform you of this, and will set out why that information cannot be released. Even where information is withheld it may, in many cases, be possible to provide copies with the withheld information edited out. In all instances the Council will endeavour to provide you with such information as it can and will explain why it has not been possible to provide you with some or all of the information requested by you.

Information Published through the Publication Scheme

Information contained within the scheme is available from us free of charge where it can be downloaded from our website or where it can be sent to you electronically by email.

We reserve the right to impose charges for providing information in paper copy or computer disc / alternative formats. The Council is mindful of its obligations under equality and anti-discrimination legislation when setting charges for alternative formats. Charges will reflect the actual costs of reproduction and postage to the authority, as set out below.

Reproduction costs

Black and white copy - 10p per A4 sheet
Colour copy - 30p per A4 sheet

Alternative formats

Computer discs - £1.00 per CD-rom/DVD

Postage

Charged at the cost to the Council of sending the information by first class post

Freedom of Information

Under the FOISA and the EIRs the Council is entitled to charge for making information available in response to requests.

The charges are based on the following:

• estimated costs of staff time to find information
• any costs associated with putting information into a particular format
• copying and postage

The Council would not charge for the time taken to determine whether we hold the information requested, or the time it takes to decide whether the information can be released.

Where it would cost the Council £100 or less to provide the information to you, there will not be a charge. If it costs between £100 and £600 to provide the information, the Council may ask you to pay 10% of that part of the cost.  So, for example, if it costs £400, then the Council may charge up to £30 (i.e. first £100 is free, then we may charge 10% of the cost between £100 and £400).

Under the EIRs the Council is entitled to charge a reasonable amount, not exceeding the costs of producing the information, in answer to environmental information requests.

In responding to Environmental Information requests the Council would not charge for the time to determine whether we hold the requested information, nor for the time it takes to decide whether the information can be released.

Charges may be made for locating, retrieving and providing information to you.

• Photocopying is charged at the rates set out above
• Postage is charged at actual rate for second class
• Staff time is calculated at actual cost per staff member hourly salary rate including

In the event that the Council decides to impose a charge you will be issued with notification of the charge (a fees notice) and how it has been calculated. You will have three months from the date of issue of the fees notice in which to decide whether to pay the charge. The information will be provided to you on payment of the charge. If you decide not to proceed with the request there will be no charge to you.

The Council holds the copyright for the vast majority of information in this

publication scheme. This information (except logos) may be copied, reproduced and used subject to your acceptance of the Open Government Licence for public sector information. You can request a copy of the licence by contacting the Council using the details provided here in the Guide.

This allows use of information freely and flexibly with only a few conditions. For example:

• you must acknowledge the source of the information
• you must ensure that you do not use the information in a way that suggests any official status or that the Council endorses you or your use of the information
• you must ensure that you do not mislead others or misrepresent the information or its source

By using information in which the Council holds the copyright, you accept the terms and conditions of the Open Government Licence.

The Open Government Licence does not cover the use of information in which the Council does not hold the copyright. Where the Council does not hold the copyright in information we publish, we will make this clear.  Where there is any third-party copyright information, you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders.

Re-Use of Public Sector Information

The Re-Use of Public Sector Information Regulations 2015 govern the re-use of information that has been obtained from public bodies in the United Kingdom. The regulations are designed to encourage the re-use of public sector information based on the principles of transparency, fairness and consistency. The Re-Use of Public Sector Information Regulations 2015 apply where an applicant has obtained information from the council and wants to re- use that information for a purpose other than that for which it was originally produced. This could include a commercial purpose.

Further details on the Council’s procedures for re-use can be found using the following link

The Council will review our Guide to the Publication Scheme from time to time. As a result, we welcome feedback on how we can develop the guide further. If you would like to comment on any aspect of this, then please contact us.

You may, for example, wish to tell us about:

• other information that you would like to see included in the scheme;
• whether you found the scheme easy to use;
• whether you found the publication scheme useful;
• whether our staff were helpful;
• other ways in which our publication scheme can be

Please send any comments or suggestions to:

Freedom of Information Officer,
East Dunbartonshire Council,
12 Strathkelvin Place,
Kirkintilloch,
G66 1TJ 

Tel: 0141-578 8057
email foi@eastdunbarton.gov.uk

Complaints about the publication scheme

Our aim is to make our guide to the publication scheme as user-friendly as possible, and we hope that you can access all the information we publish with ease. If you do wish to complain about any aspect of the publication scheme, however, then please contact us, and we will try and resolve your complaint as quickly as possible.  You can contact:

Freedom of Information Officer,
East Dunbartonshire Council,
12 Strathkelvin Place,
Kirkintilloch,
G66 1TJ

Tel: 0141-578 8057
email foi@eastdunbarton.gov.uk

If you are still unhappy, you may contact the Scottish Information Commissioners’ Office, on the details below.

You have legal rights to access information under this scheme and a right of appeal to the Scottish Information Commissioner if you are dissatisfied with our response. These rights will apply only to publication scheme requests made in writing* or another recordable format. If you are unhappy with our responses to your request you can ask us to review it and if you are still unhappy, you can make an appeal to the Scottish Information Commissioner.

This same three-step right of appeal applies if you make written requests for information which is not included in the publication scheme, and are unhappy with the response you receive.

The Commissioner’s website has a guide to this three step process, and he operates an enquiry service on Monday to Friday from 9:00am to 5:00pm. His office can be contacted as follows:

Scottish Information Commissioner

Kinburn Castle
Doubledykes Road St Andrews
Fife
KY16 9DS

Tel:                  01334 464610
Email:             enquiries@itspublicknowledge.info
Website:          www.itspublicknowledge.info

*verbal requests for environmental information carry similar rights

If the information you are seeking is not available under the publication scheme, then you may wish to request it from us. FOISA provides you with a general right of access to the information we hold, subject to certain exemptions.

The EIRs provide a right of access to the environmental information we hold, and the Data Protection Act 1998 provides a right of access to any personal information about you that we hold. Again, these rights are subject to certain exceptions or exemptions.

Together these three pieces of legislation provide rights of access to most information held by the Council. However, there are other acts or regulations which provide a right of access to specific types of information held by local authorities, or which require registers to be publicly available. This includes information held on school pupils and social work client files.

Pupil information

Information Commissioner's Office website - pupils information

Should you wish to request a copy of any information that we hold that is not available under the model scheme, please write to Freedom of Information Officer, East Dunbartonshire Council, 12 Strathkelvin Place, Kirkintilloch G66 1TJ.

Requests for your own personal data under the Data Protection Act 1998

 The Council does not make any charges for dealing with Subject Access requests or any other applications for personal data under the Data Protection Act 1998.

Educational Records

Older school pupils have a right to access all records containing their personal information although in some circumstances information may need to be withheld. In order to obtain access to their school pupil records a pupil must make a formal request in writing or in another permanent form to their head teacher.

Under the Pupil’s Educational Records (Scotland) Regulations 2003 parents are also provided with the right to access their child’s educational records, though not the full pupil record. This application must also be in permanent format and supported with suitable identification.

The school is entitled to charge a fee for producing copies of the information shown to the enquirer, although in East Dunbartonshire such fees are not usually levied.

The fees would be as follows:

Number of pages (maximum fee)

• 1-19 pages (£1)
• 20-29 pages (£2)
• 30-39 pages (£3)
• 40-49 pages (£4)
• 50-59 pages (£5)
• 60-69 pages (£6)
• 70-79 pages (£7)
• 80-89 pages (£8)
• 90-99 pages (£9)
• 100-149 pages (£10)
• 150-199 pages (£15)
• 200-249 pages (£20)
• 250-299 pages (£25)
• 300-349 pages (£30)
• 350-399 pages (£35)
• 400-499 pages (£40)
• 500+ pages (£50).