Gareth Walker  
My ref 
 
request-10148-
Your Ref: 
SMBC/15944 
41536557@whatdotheyknow.
Please ask for: 
Nigel Parr  
com 
Telephone No: 
0121 569 3248 
 
e-Mail: 
[email address] 
Date: 17th April 2009 
 
Dear Mr Walker,  
 
Freedom of Information Request: Freedom of Information Statistics 
 
Thank you for your Freedom of Information (FOI) request concerning the 
number of FOI requests received by the Council and the corresponding 
costs associated with answering these enquiries.  
 
In response to your questions, I can confirm the following: 
 
1.  Total Number of applications received 
 
2009 to 
2005 2006 2007 2008 08/04/2009 
279 196 227 390 
124 
 
In Autumn 2005, the Improvement and Development Agency (IDEA) 
produced a report entitled “Freedom of Information Act 2000: the First Six 
Months”, based on responses to a questionnaire sent to a number of local 
authorities. The average response time, based on those authorities who 
responded, was 13.8 hours per Freedom of Information enquiry.  
 
Sandwell Council does not record the total number of hours spent 
answering each enquiry, but using this average and the costs of £25 per 
person hour, adopted by the Ministry of Justice, I can provide the following 
details as to costs.  
 
2009 to 
2005 2006 2007 2008 08/04/2009 
£96,255 £67,620 £78,315 £131,100  £42,780 
Governance Services 
Sandwell Council House, Oldbury, Sandwell, West Midlands B69 3DE 
 

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These are estimated costs as some requests may take more or less time to 
answer and are based solely on the IDEA survey.  
 
2.  Total number of applications and costs of responding to requests 
from media organisations 
 
The Council did not corporately retain information as to who was making 
requests from 2005-2007, but has started to do so from 2008. The 
information as to the number of requests made by all media organisations 
and corresponding costs can be found below:  
 
2008 
2009 to 08/04/2009 
82 £28,290  34  £11,730 
 
Details as to the number of requests and corresponding costs specifically in 
respect of requests from the Express and Star Newspaper Group and the 
Taxpayers’ Alliance can be found below: 
 
Express and Star:  
2008 
2009 to 08/04/2009 
16 £5,520  12  £4,140 
 
 Taxpayers’ Alliance: 
2008 
2009 to 08/04/2009 
7 £2,415  2  £690 
 
 
Yours sincerely  
Nigel Parr  
 
Data Protection/Freedom of Information Officer  
 
Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council  
 
Governance Services 
Sandwell Council House, Oldbury, Sandwell, West Midlands B69 3DE 
 

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