Treatment of Freedom of Information Requests - Subjects - Outcomes - Time to Respond

Dear Marlon Campbell
Thank you for your email.

Your enquiry has been forwarded to Isabella Uzodike , the Officer responsible for Freedom Of Information and Data Protection, who will respond to your request within the next 20 working days.

Kind regards

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Dear Mr Campbell

Thank you for your Freedom of Information request. Please find attached the response to your request which includes a spreadsheet.

Please do not hesitate to contact me directly should you require further assistance.

Kind Regards

Isabella Ogo-Uzodike
Business Manager
Corporate Services
Harrow Council, London
Direct Line: 020 8420 9375 (Internal 5375)
[mobile number]
E-mail: [email address]

Harrow: Cosmopolitan, Confident,Cohesive

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Dear Mr Campbell

Thank you for your reply to the Freedom of Information data supplied to you by Harrow Council. In view of your revised request of the 50 most recent FOI requests we are now in a position to obtain that information for you. The report you requested will need to be specially written and we hope to have a reply to you by the 3rd March 2010.

Kind Regards

Dear Isabella Uzodike,

Thank you for your reply.

I am surprised that you say in respect of Questions 3, 4, 6, 7, 8,
9 that "the information for the above requests is not held in a
central database and as such cannot be easily generated".

This is basic statistical information which a reasonable person
would expect the council to wish to collect in order to have it
available when the council can see when it reviews how it is
complying with the FOI Act.

I recommend that you amend your handling procedures for FOI
Requests accordingly.

You estimate the cost of providing the full information to be £625,
at 15 mins per file.
I am surprised you think it would take that long.

I note that if meeting the full request would be excessively
expensive, ICO guidelines say that the council should try to be
helpful, for example by suggesting ways that the request be
modified so as to reduce the cost of providing the information.

On this occasion, I would ask you to provide the information for
the 50 most recent requests.
That would fall well within the FOI limit.

I would also ask you to note how long in fact it takes to obtain
and provide this information, and advise me of this time when you
provide the data.

Yours sincerely,

Marlon Campbell

Isabella Ogo-Uzodike
Business Manager
Corporate Services
Harrow Council, London
Direct Line: 020 8420 9375 (Internal 5375)
[mobile number]
E-mail: [email address]

Harrow: Cosmopolitan, Confident,Cohesive

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Dear Mr Campbell

Further to your email of 3 February 2010, I attach a spreadsheet which
sets out details of relating to requests 3, 4, 6, 7, 8 & 9 of your
original email dated 19 January 2010. The Council*s previous email of
27 January 2010 dealt with requests 1, 2 and 5.

I set out the specific requests and the Council*s response as
follows:

For the 100 most recent FOI requests which the council considers
closed, be that because the request was rejected, met, or declared "not
held", please provide the following information:

(3) The date the request was acknowledged.
From the search undertaken it appears that only one request (number 47
on the spreadsheet) was acknowledged, that request was acknowledged on 9
December 2009.

(4) The date the initial final response was given
Please see the attached spreadsheet.

(6) Whether an Internal Review was requested, and if so the date on
which this was completed and the outcome status
Only one applicant (row number 19) requested an internal review in
December 2009. Upon investigation it appeared that the initial response
did not reach the applicant as it was erroneously sent to the wrong
email address. The response was resent to the correct address and this
closed the matter.

(7) Whether the FOI Request to the council's knowledge was referred to
the ICO.
The Council is not aware of any of the requests being referred to the
ICO.

(8) Whether the ICO issued any guidance or instruction to the council
following this referral.
N/a.

(9) The final outcome after the ICO referral.
N/a.

I hope this is helpful. Please do not hesitate to contact me directly
should you require further assistance.

Kind Regards

Isabella Ogo-Uzodike
Business Manager
Corporate Services
Harrow Council, London
Direct Line: 020 8420 9375 (Internal 5375)
[mobile number]
E-mail: [email address]

Harrow: Cosmopolitan, Confident,Cohesive

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03-Feb-10 21:19 >>>
Dear Isabella Uzodike,

Thank you for your reply.

I am surprised that you say in respect of Questions 3, 4, 6, 7,
8,
9 that "the information for the above requests is not held in a
central database and as such cannot be easily generated".

This is basic statistical information which a reasonable person
would expect the council to wish to collect in order to have it
available when the council can see when it reviews how it is
complying with the FOI Act.

I recommend that you amend your handling procedures for FOI
Requests accordingly.

You estimate the cost of providing the full information to be
£625,
at 15 mins per file.
I am surprised you think it would take that long.

I note that if meeting the full request would be excessively
expensive, ICO guidelines say that the council should try to be
helpful, for example by suggesting ways that the request be
modified so as to reduce the cost of providing the information.

On this occasion, I would ask you to provide the information for
the 50 most recent requests.
That would fall well within the FOI limit.

I would also ask you to note how long in fact it takes to obtain
and provide this information, and advise me of this time when you
provide the data.

Yours sincerely,

Marlon Campbell

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