Centre for New Zealand Studies - Finances, Rooms & Staff

Dear Mr Burns

Birkbeck has received your request for information made under the Freedom of Information Act and copied below. Your request is currently being processed by our institution and we will inform you of the outcome within the requisite 20 working days.

With best wishes
Julia Lerch
On behalf of Katharine Bock, Freedom of Information Officer

Julia Lerch
Corporate Support
Birkbeck, University of London

Tel 020 7631 6398
[email address]
www.bbk.ac.uk

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Dear Mr Burns

This is a response to your request for information made under the Freedom
of Information Act and copied below. You will find below the answers to
your questions.

     1) What holding and operating accounts have existed between

     November 2009 and 31 March 2011 that have held or disbursed money

     related to the Centre for New Zealand Studies (or what remains of

     it) in the same period?

Please see answer to question 2 below.

2) Details of income, expenditure and balances that relate to

     Centre for New Zealand Studies (or what remains of it) in these

     accounts for the same period.

Special Fund - Centre for New Zealand Studies: account closed on 31 July
2010

Income

Sale of Publications: £ 232.00

University of London payment: £ 53,403.00

Internal Transfers: £ 355.46

Total: £ 53,990.46

Expenditure

Debit opening balance: £ 21,222.00

Photocopying: £ 34.81

Travel and subsistence: £ 2,727.00

Telephone: £ 3.49

Postage: £ 486.55

Salary costs (professional and support staff): £ 1,677.95

Salary costs (academic): £27,838.66

Total: £ 53,990.46

Balance when account was closed (31 July 2010): £ 0

Special Fund – New Zealand Ministry of Education:

Expenditure

Salary costs (academic): £12,631.25

Income

Credit opening balance (grant NZ Ministry of Education): £ 98,379.00

Balance as of May 2011: £85,747.75 credit

Holding account for salary costs:

Expenditure

Salary costs (academic) incurred before November 2009: £ 5,881.00

Salary costs (academic) incurred during and after November 2009: £
17,937.00

Total: £ 23,818.00

Income

University of London payment: £23,818.00

3) What rooms has the Centre for New Zealand Studies (or what

     remains of it) occupied between November 2009 and 31 March 2011?
If

     any rooms have not been occupied continuously, please make known

     the period of occupancy. If not shown in the above accounts,

     details of costs of these rooms.

In the time period specified the Centre for New Zealand Studies has not
occupied any rooms at Birkbeck. Please contact the University of
London’s Freedom of Information Office
([1][email address]) to request information on rooms
occupied by the Centre for New Zealand Studies at the University of London
during that time period.

4) What staff / consultant costs has the Centre for New Zealand

     Studies (or what remains of it) incurred between November 2009
and

     31 March 2011? Who are these members of staff / consultants and

     what types of work have been undertaken by them in this period?
If

     not shown in the above accounts, details of staff / consultant

     costs.

The total staff/ consultant costs related to the Centre during the time
period specified amounted to £ 60,084.86. This figure is made up of the
salary costs detailed in the accounts above (incurred during and after
November 2009). The payments were made to:

-the University of Northampton for the contribution of a research fellow

-a research assistant

-a web developer

-Director of the Centre for New Zealand Studies

Detailed information on the identity of staff/ consultants is personal
information and hence protected from disclosure by Section 40 of the
Freedom of Information Act.

Best wishes

Julia Lerch

On behalf of Katharine Bock, Freedom of Information Officer

Julia Lerch

Corporate Support

Birkbeck, University of London

Tel 020 7631 6398

[2][email address]

[3]www.bbk.ac.uk

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Dear Mr Burns

Thank you for your request for information made under the Freedom of Information Act and copied below. As you are asking for pieces of information which you had not previously requested ("For example, what exists in the way of minuted meetings, reports, teaching, publications, ongoing research, conferences hosted, exhibitions held, visiting speakers, lectures to Birkbeck students or wider audiences and contributions to continuing education? Please provide names and dates of minuted meetings, reports, publications, topics researched, lectures given etc") this request will be treated as a new request. You will receive a response within the requisite 20 working days from the date we received your request (23 May 2011).

Best wishes
Julia Lerch
On behalf of Katharine Bock, Freedom of Information Officer

Julia Lerch
Corporate Support
Birkbeck, University of London

Tel 020 7631 6398
[email address]
www.bbk.ac.uk

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Dear Mr Burns

This is to confirm that, as requested in your email copied below, the response to your recent request made under the Freedom of Information Act has been submitted for an internal review. The review will be carried out using the Information Commissioner's Office's guidelines. We intend to complete the review in 20 working days as set out in the guidelines.

In the meantime we are processing your request made on 23 May and will reply by 20 June.

Yours sincerely

Katharine Bock
Freedom of Information Officer
Birkbeck, University of London

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Dear Mr Burns

This email is in response to your request for information made under the Freedom of Information Act and copied below.

You asked for:

What exists in the way of minuted meetings, reports, teaching,
publications, ongoing research, conferences hosted, exhibitions
held, visiting speakers, lectures to Birkbeck students or wider
audiences and contributions to continuing education?

Please provide names and dates of minuted meetings, reports,
publications, topics researched, lectures given etc.

In response to this request, please find attached:
** minutes of meetings and proposed constitution of the New Zealand Studies Network
** a report on New Zealand Studies at Birkbeck between 2010 and 2011
** details of planned events

Data as exempted by the following sections of the Freedom of Information Act has been redacted:
** Section 40 Personal Data
** Section 43 Commercial Interests
** Section 27 International Relations

In your request you ask: "what has been achieved at a cost of over £60,000?". Please note that £53,334.31 of the £60,084.86 staff/consultant costs relating to the Centre during November 2009-31 March 2011 represented salary commitments to existing staff at the Centre as it was wound down in its existing form. This amount of £53,334.31 is made up of the following salary costs which were detailed in our release to your previous request:

** Salary costs (professional and support staff - web developer): £ 1,677.95
** Salary costs (academic - Centre Director): £ 27,838.66
** Salary costs (academic - research assistant): £ 23,818.00

The information attached to this email relates to what has been achieved for the Centre going forward, from the funding granted by the New Zealand Ministry of Education, at a cost of £12,631.25.

With best wishes
Julia Lerch
On behalf of Katharine Bock, Freedom of Information Officer

Julia Lerch
Corporate Support
Birkbeck, University of London

Tel 020 7631 6398
[email address]
www.bbk.ac.uk

If you are unhappy with the way your request for information has been handled you can request a review by writing to:

College Secretary
Birkbeck, University of London
Malet Street
London
WC1E 7HX.

If you remain dissatisfied with the handling of your request or complaint, you have a right to appeal to the Information Commissioner at:

The Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF.
Telephone: 0303 123 1113 Website: www.ico.gov.uk

There is no charge for making an appeal.

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Dear Paul Burns

Please find attached the internal review requested by you in your email 21 June 2011 (copied below).

Best wishes

Julia Lerch
On behalf of Katharine Bock, Freedom of Information Officer

Julia Lerch
Corporate Support
Birkbeck, University of London

Tel 020 7631 6398
[email address]
www.bbk.ac.uk

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Dear Mr Burns,

Following a review of the documents released to you on 20 June 2011, in response to your request for further information following disclosure of documents relating to a Freedom of Information request made by you on 18 April 2011, the College has determined that the documents can now be released without redactions. The unredacted documents are attached to this email.

Yours sincerely

Katharine Bock
Freedom of Information Officer
Birkbeck, University of London

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