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Freedom of Information

Information on the Freedom of Information Act

The Freedom of Information Act

The Freedom of Information Act 2000 and Environmental Information Regulations 2004 allow greater access to information held by public authorities.

The Freedom of Information Act gives a general right of access to all types of recorded information held by public authorities, with the Environmental Information Regulations covering information to do with the environment.

There are certain exemptions under the legislation which may prevent release. For a full list of exemptions, and further information relating to the Freedom of Information Act and the Environmental Information Regulations, please see the Information Commissioner's website.

Publication Scheme

Individuals already have the right of access to information about themselves under data protection legislation. As far as public authorities are concerned, the Freedom of Information Act and the Environmental Information Regulations extend this right to allow public access to all types of information held.

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
  • whether a charge will be made for the information

The purpose of a scheme is to ensure a significant amount of information is available, without the need for a specific request. You can view our publication scheme document at the bottom of this page.

Request information

Freedom of Information requests

Before making a request for information:

Some matters are the responsibility of County Council and fall outside of the jurisdiction of the Borough Council. We will not hold information relating to these matters. For example:

  • Roads and Transport - e.g. potholes, road safety, on-street parking
  • Education and Learning - e.g. schools
  • Care, support and health - e.g. adult social care, blue badges
  • Children and Families - e.g. children social care
  • Libraries, local history and archives
  • Trading Standards

Details on how to make an FOI request to Norfolk County Council can be found on the Norfolk County Council website.

If, after reviewing the above, you are still unable to access the information you require, please submit a request for information to the contact details listed below. Please note:

  • Your request must be made in writing. This can be in any written form, such as a letter or email. The request must state your name, address for correspondence, and describe the information required.
  • Requests must be responded to within 20 working days of being received, although this timescale can be extended in certain circumstances.
  • If we need further information from you at any point to complete your request, we will put the request on hold and contact you. Please reply as soon as possible to avoid delays because days the request is on ’hold’ do not count towards the 20-working day deadline.
  • We will always explain if there a reason we cannot release the information. In some circumstances we may need a further 20 working days to assess the public interest of the disclosure. If this is the case, we will inform you within the first 20 working days.

You may request that the information be supplied in any form, however we will consider the cost of supplying the information in this form, before complying with your request. In particular, you may ask for a copy of the information sought, or for permission to inspect the records containing the information.  We will provide the information in the form requested unless it is unreasonable to do so.

We will charge the full cost for disbursements such as copying and printing. A fees notice will be sent to you that will put a hold on the 20 days for responding to your initial request until the fee is paid. If after three months the fee is unpaid, it will be assumed that you no longer require the information.

Environmental Information Regulation Requests

Under the Environmental Information Regulations 2004 (EIR), you can request information on the state of the environment, such as:

  • Air, water, soil, flora, fauna (including humans) and diversity.
  • Information on emissions, noise, energy, radiation, waste, and other similar substances
  • Measures and activities such as policies, plans, and agreements
  • Reports, cost benefit and economic analyses
  • Human health and safety and contamination of the food chain
  • Cultural sites and built structures (as they may be affected by environmental factors).

If you require environmental information for a particular site or as part of a home purchase, you can request this information, at cost, from our Environmental Quality team.

Information on how to do this can be found on our Advice for home buyers page.

Please let us know if there are any adjustments we can make for you in order to receive information from us or enable you to contact us. For example, if you need a copy of any of the information above in a different format such as large print, coloured background, Braille or in a different language then please contact us and we will be happy to help.

What to do if you're dissatisfied

If you're unhappy with how your request has been handled, or if you disagree with any exemptions applied, you may ask for an internal review using the contact details below. This will be carried out by an officer not involved with the original response to your request.

You should be informed of the decision in 20 working days (or in exceptional cases, 40 working days).

If, after an internal review, you remain dissatisfied, you may make a complaint to the Information Commissioner's Office who are responsible for adjudicating on the way requests have been handled.

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