Dear Sir or Madam

Please detail total expenditure by Belfast City Council on Common
Purpose courses for each of the following years: 1997, 1998, 1999,
2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008 to date.

Please also supply a copy of the invoice for each Common Purpose
course paid for by Belfast City Council.

By "Common Purpose", I mean the training organisation of that name:
http://www.commonpurpose.org/home.aspx

Yours faithfully, Mrs C Carter

Dear Mrs C Carter

Thank you for your email dated 25 June 2008 requesting information on Belfast City Council's expenditure on the Common Purpose courses from 1997 to date. I can confirm that the Council does not hold all the information you have requested. The specific information the Council does not hold is clearly identified below.

The Council has decided that it can disclose the information it holds relating to your request, subject to the redaction of the personal names of the members of Council staff and the Council's elected members (i.e., Councillors) which appeared on the invoices you requested. Accordingly the information you requested is provided below and in the accompanying attachments, with the personal names referred to above redacted. Where a personal name has been redacted in the attached documentation, I have indicated whether the person concerned was a member of staff or an elected member. I shall now explain why we have redacted this information.

Under Section 40 (2) of the Freedom of Information Act, personal data is exempt from disclosure if its release would contravene the Data Protection Act 1998. The Council considers that to disclose these personal names would breach the Data Protection Act 1998.

Our financial systems only allows us to access information as far back as November 1998. Therefore I can not provide any information prior to this date. Also, we are only required to keep invoices for the current financial year plus six prior years. However, we have electronic copies back to 2001/02.

The expenditure information (net of VAT) held by the Council is as follows

November 1998 to March 1999 Nil
April 1999 to March 2000 Nil
April 2000 to March 2001 £320
April 2001 to March 2002 £4,350
April 2002 to March 2003 £20,750
April 2003 to March 2004 £19,430
April 2004 to March 2005 £16,020
April 2005 to March 2006 £12,800
April 2006 to March 2007 £13,550
April 2007 to March 2008 £8,940
April 2008 to date £4,225

I attach all relevant copy invoices held by the Council.

If you are dissatisfied with how the Council handled your request for information, you have the right to request that the Council formally review this decision. If you wish to do so, please write to the Records Manager, Belfast City Council, Adelaide Exchange, 24-26 Adelaide Street, Belfast, BT2 8GD.

Should you remain dissatisfied following the Council's internal review, you can seek an independent review from the Information Commissioner. Requests for an independent review should be made in writing to: The Information Commissioner, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF. However I would advise you that the Information Commissioner has indicated that a review will not be undertaken unless the Council has first had an opportunity to re-consider its decision.

If you have any queries about this email, please contact me.

Yours sincerely

Trevor Wallace
Financial Accounting Manager

Corporate Services Department
Belfast City Council
Adelaide Exchange
24-26 Adelaide Street
Belfast
BT2 8GD
[email address]
028 9027 0262

www.belfastcity.gov.uk

The information contained in or attached to this message is intended only for the people to whom it is addressed. If you are not the intended recipient, any use, storage, disclosure or copying of this information is unauthorised and prohibited.This information may be confidential or subject to legal privilege.If you have received this email in error please notify the sender immediatelyby using the reply facility in your email software and then delete the email from your inbox.The contents of this message do not represent the expressed view of Belfast City Council unless that is clearly stated.Belfast City Council cannot accept liability in the event that the onward transmission, opening, or use of this message and/or any attachments adversely affects the recipient's systems or data.

<<Common Purpose a.pdf>> <<Common Purpose b.pdf>> <<Common Purpose
c.pdf>>

Dear Mrs Carter

Further to my e-mail dated 8 July 2008, I wish to advise you that the
personal names of the Belfast City Councillors on the invoices disclosed
to you were mistakenly redacted by the Council. In addition, with
regard to the redaction of the personal names of the Council Staff on
the invoices you requested, I should have provided details of the
Officer's job title where it was not given on the original invoice.

Accordingly, please find attached new copies of the invoices disclosing
the names of the Councillors concerned and the job titles of the
relevant officers, where necessary. I apologise for any inconvenience
caused.

If you are dissatisfied with how the Council handled your request for
information, you have the right to request that the Council formally
review this decision. If you wish to do so, please write to the Records
Manager, Belfast City Council, Adelaide Exchange, 24-26 Adelaide Street,
Belfast, BT2 8GD.

Should you remain dissatisfied following the Council's internal review,
you can seek an independent review from the Information Commissioner.
Requests for an independent review should be made in writing to: The
Information Commissioner, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow,
Cheshire, SK9 5AF. However I would advise you that the Information
Commissioner has indicated that a review will not be undertaken unless
the Council has first had an opportunity to re-consider its decision.

If you have any queries about this email, please contact me

Yours Sincerely

Trevor Wallace
Financial Accounting Manager

Corporate Services Department
Belfast City Council
Adelaide Exchange
24-26 Adelaide Street
Belfast
BT2 8GD
[email address]
028 9027 0262

www.belfastcity.gov.uk

The information contained in or attached to this message is intended only for the people to whom it is addressed. If you are not the intended recipient, any use, storage, disclosure or copying of this information is unauthorised and prohibited.This information may be confidential or subject to legal privilege.If you have received this email in error please notify the sender immediatelyby using the reply facility in your email software and then delete the email from your inbox.The contents of this message do not represent the expressed view of Belfast City Council unless that is clearly stated.Belfast City Council cannot accept liability in the event that the onward transmission, opening, or use of this message and/or any attachments adversely affects the recipient's systems or data.

Dear Mrs Carter
Further to my email dated 16 July 2008, I wish to advise you that, in
response to a request from another applicant, Belfast City Council has
now decided that it can disclose unredacted copies of the invoices,
giving the names of staff concerned, relating to its expenditure on
Common Purpose courses. You will recall that with my previous email, I
provided you with copies of unredacted invoices relating to
participation by our Councillors.
If you are dissatisfied with how the Council handled your request for
information, you have the right to request that the Council formally
review this decision. If you wish to do so, please write to the Records
Manager, Belfast City Council, Adelaide Exchange, 24-26 Adelaide Street,
Belfast, BT2 8GD.
Should you remain dissatisfied following the Council's internal review,
you can seek an independent review from the Information Commissioner.
Requests for an independent review should be made in writing to: The
Information Commissioner, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow,
Cheshire, SK9 5AF. However I would advise you that the Information
Commissioner has indicated that a review will not be undertaken unless
the Council has first had an opportunity to re-consider its decision.
If you have any queries about this email, please contact me.
Yours sincerely
Trevor

<<Commom Purpose 1a.pdf>> <<common purpose 2a.pdf>> <<common purpose
3a.pdf>>

Trevor Wallace
Financial Accounting Manager

Corporate Services Department
Belfast City Council
Adelaide Exchange
24-26 Adelaide Street
Belfast
BT2 8GD
[email address]
028 9027 0262

www.belfastcity.gov.uk

The information contained in or attached to this message is intended only for the people to whom it is addressed. If you are not the intended recipient, any use, storage, disclosure or copying of this information is unauthorised and prohibited.This information may be confidential or subject to legal privilege.If you have received this email in error please notify the sender immediatelyby using the reply facility in your email software and then delete the email from your inbox.The contents of this message do not represent the expressed view of Belfast City Council unless that is clearly stated.Belfast City Council cannot accept liability in the event that the onward transmission, opening, or use of this message and/or any attachments adversely affects the recipient's systems or data.