25 January 2010

Mr S Hardwicke Carruthers

Via email ([FOI #23421 email])

Our ref: CS/09/133/HJP

(Please quote our reference when contacting us)

If telephoning contact Hilary Pook on 020 7217 4734

or if using email send to: h.pook@lgo.org.uk

Dear Mr Hardwicke Carruthers

Request for information

In your email of 18 November, you asked for the number of person days allocated to providing training to councils by our investigative staff for every year since 2004, by office.

We do not hold detailed information on this prior to 2006/07. Neither do we have a breakdown by office for 2009/10 as yet. The information we do hold is as follows:

These hours only cover investigators and some support staff. Assistant Ombudsmen, Deputy Ombudsmen and Ombudsmen are not directly involved in this training. However, the training team are supported by a full-time Communications Project Officer (an investigator seconded from a team for a fixed term) and a full-time Administrator.

/…

That concludes my response. If you feel I have not dealt properly with your request, you have the right to appeal and, should you wish to do so, I can supply a copy our internal complaints procedure. If you do request an internal review - can you please indicate why you are unhappy with my response. You also have the right to apply to the Information Commissioner to determine whether your request has been properly dealt with. You should note however that the Commissioner will not consider any complaint where you have not first exhausted our internal complaints process or where there has been undue delay in contacting him. You will be able to obtain further details of the Information Commissioner's role from the website on www.ico.gov.uk.

Yours sincerely

Hilary Pook

Hilary Pook

Communications and Records Manager

LGO 01 (03/08)