Are Service Users or the general public allowed to audio-visually record meeting and calls with your staff? If so, do they require permission or are they permitted to do so covertly? FOI Request.

John Jones Researcher made this Freedom of Information request to Home Office This request has been closed to new correspondence. Contact us if you think it should be reopened.

Home Office did not have the information requested.

John Jones Researcher

Dear Home Office,

Are Service Users or the general public allowed to audio-visually record meeting and calls with your staff? If so, do they require permission or are they permitted to do so covertly?
FOI Request.

Freedom of Information Act 2000
Public Interest Survey

http://www.freedomtalkradio.co.uk/uk-sur...

1 Do you have any guidance or policy for the public or service users to record calls when they speak to your staff
What is your organisations protocol on service users recording calls when they speak to your staff? Please provide a copy of your policy, procedure and guideline notes on this issue.
or call centres Do you Inform Users they can record. If the answer is no what is the reason for this please if so do send me a copy.
Are service users made aware of their right to record the encounter, if they choose to do so? Is this reflected in you policy document on the matter?

2. Does your organisation have an “Unacceptable Behaviour” policy? If so, please can you provide me with a copy?
If such a policy contains points of objectionable behaviour such as telephones calls being recorded by the caller due to them being not necessary or unwanted or needed, and furthermore the staff members may feel threatened or apprehensive, are you aware that denying users the right to record calls goes against the current UK laws.

3. Are your policies and procedures compliant with the public right to audio-visually record encounters with your staff, without their consent? If not, will you provide appropriate training for your staff so they are fully informed of the Public right to record?

4. What is our organisations current charging policy for Freedom of Information requests (FOI) or Subject Access Requests (SAR)? If charges are applied are concessions available for those on low income or students?

5. What is your organisations complaints policy? Please can you forward me a copy. Does your complaints procedure permit service users evidence such as covert call recordings to form part of the investigation.
The Public need to record all calls too many lies now its time for honesty.

Your comments please [email address]

Yours faithfully,

John Jones Researcher

FOI Requests, Home Office

Dear Mr. Jones,

 

 

Thank you for contacting the Home Office with your request.

 

This has been assigned to a caseworker (case ref 50533). We will aim to
send you a full response by 05/11/2018 which is twenty working days from
the date we received your request.

 

If you have any questions then please do not hesitate to contact us.

 

 

Thank you,

 

N McKenzie

Home Office

 

 

 

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FOI Responses, Home Office

1 Attachment

Dear Mr Jones

 

Please find attached the Home Office response to your request for
information, case 50533

 

Yours Sincerely

 

M Riddle

Information Rights Team, Knowledge and Information Management Unit

Performance, Assurance and Governance Directorate

Capabilities & Resources

Lower Ground floor, Seacole Building

2 Marsham Street

London

SW1P 4DF

T: +44 (0)20 7035 4848

 

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John Jones Researcher

Dear Home Office,

I really think that out of 4000 requests we have sent this hasnt been a excuse before can you tell me what you charge per hour how many staff are needed to do this work and how many hours you need to complete most of our requests just needed clarification.

revised request

1) Are Service Users or the general public allowed to audio-visually record meeting and calls with your staff? If so, do they require permission or are they permitted to do so covertly?

2) Do you have any guidance or policy for the public or service users to record calls when they speak to your staff

3) What is your organisations protocol on service users recording calls when they speak to your staff or call centres? Please provide a copy of your policy, procedure and guideline notes on this issue.

4) Do you Inform Users they can record. If the answer is no what is the reason for this please if so do send me a copy.

5) Are service users made aware of their right to record the encounter, if they choose to do so? Is this reflected in you policy document on the matter?

6) Does your organisation have an “Unacceptable Behaviour” policy? If so, please can you provide me with a copy? Regarding court staff the public or the court itself.

7) If such a policy contains points of objectionable behaviour such as telephones calls being recorded by the caller due to them being not necessary or unwanted or needed, and furthermore the staff members may feel threatened or apprehensive, are you aware that denying users the right to record calls goes against the current UK laws.

8) Are your policies and procedures compliant with the public right to audio-visually record encounters with your staff, without their consent? If not, will you provide appropriate training for your staff so they are fully informed of the Public right to record?

9) What is our organisations current charging policy for Freedom of Information requests (FOI) or Subject Access Requests (SAR)? If charges are applied are concessions available for those on low income or students?

10) What is your organisations complaints policy? Please can you forward me a copy? Does your complaints procedure permit service users evidence such as covert call recordings to form part of the investigation?

Yours faithfully,

John Jones Researcher

FOI Requests, Home Office

Mr. Jones,

Thank you for contacting the Home Office with your request.

This has been assigned to a caseworker (case ref 50680). We will aim to send you a full response by 15/11/2018 which is twenty working days from the date we received your request.

If you have any questions then please do not hesitate to contact us.

Thank you,

P. Zebedee
FOI Requests
Home Office

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FOI Responses, Home Office

1 Attachment

 

Dear Mr Jones

 

Thank you for your e-mail of 18^th October 2018.

 

We believe that to answer your follow-up request (50680), shown below,
would exceed the cost limit under section 12(2) of the Freedom of
Information Act (FOIA), for the same reasons as we explained in our
previous response to your request, reference 50533 (attached ). Under
section 12(2) of the  Act), the Home Office is not obliged to comply with
an information request where to do so would exceed the cost limit.

 

You may wish to consider the suggestions made in our previous response on
how you could refine your request, so that it is more likely to fall under
the cost limit.

 

If you are dissatisfied with this response or our original response you
may request an independent internal review of our handling of your
requests by submitting a complaint within two months to
[1][email address], quoting reference 50533 and 50680.
If you ask for an internal review, it would be helpful if you could say
why you are dissatisfied with the responses.

 

As part of any internal review the Department's handling of your
information request would be reassessed by staff who were not involved in
providing you with this response. If you were to remain dissatisfied after
an internal review, you would have a right of complaint to the Information
Commissioner as established by section 50 of the FOIA.

 

 

Follow-up to 50533:

 

1)        Are Service Users or the general public allowed to
audio-visually record meeting and calls with your staff? If so, do they
require permission or are they permitted to do so covertly?

2)        Do you have any guidance or policy for the public or service
users to record calls when they speak to your staff

3)        What is your organisations protocol on service users recording
calls when they speak to your staff or call centres? Please provide a copy
of your policy, procedure and guideline notes on this issue.

4)        Do you Inform Users they can record. If the answer is no what is
the reason for this please if so do send me a copy..

5)        Are service users made aware of their right to record the
encounter, if they choose to do so? Is this reflected in you policy
document on the matter?

6)        Does your organisation have an “Unacceptable Behaviour” policy?
If so, please can you provide me with a copy? Regarding court staff the
public or the court itself.

7)        If such a policy contains points of objectionable behaviour such
as telephones calls being recorded by the caller due to them being not
necessary or unwanted or needed, and furthermore the staff members may
feel threatened or apprehensive, are you aware that denying users the
right to record calls goes against the current UK laws.

8)        Are your policies and procedures compliant with the public right
to audio-visually record encounters with your staff, without their
consent? If not, will you provide appropriate training for your    staff
so they are fully informed of the Public right to record?

9)        What is our organisations current charging policy for Freedom of
Information requests (FOI) or Subject Access Requests (SAR)? If charges
are applied are concessions available for those on low income or students?

10)      What is your organisations complaints policy? Please can you
forward me a copy? Does your complaints procedure permit service users
evidence such as covert call recordings to form part of the investigation?

 

 

Kind regards.

 

A.Tomkins.

 

 

Information Rights Team

Knowledge and Information Management Unit

Performance and Risk Directorate

Home Office | 2 Marsham Street | London SW1P 4DF

 

 

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References

Visible links
1. mailto:info.access@homeoffice'gsi.gov.uk

John Jones Researcher

Dear Home Office,

Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.

I am writing to request an internal review of Home Office's handling of my FOI request 'Are Service Users or the general public allowed to audio-visually record meeting and calls with your staff? If so, do they require permission or are they permitted to do so covertly? FOI Request.'.

I have had 4000 orginizations do me a request and not one gave a excuse for the charging linit to be breached,

I feel you are using this as a excuse to avoid giving out the information which is in the public interest.

Please send me a estimate of your costs as i want to see if they are the same charges others would charge me i will appeal all the way as i have the evidence.

A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address: https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/a...

Yours faithfully,

John Jones Researcher

FOI Requests, Home Office

Dear Mr. Jones,

 

 

Thank you for contacting the Home Office with your request for an internal
review.

 

This has been assigned to a caseworker (case ref 50680). We will aim to
send you a full response by 18/12/2018 which is twenty working days from
the date we received your request.

 

If you have any questions then please do not hesitate to contact us.

 

 

Thank you,

 

N McKenzie

Home Office

 

 

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John Jones Researcher

Dear FOI Requests,

Please choose a few questions to answer as a suggestion heres 6

1) Are Service Users or the general public allowed to
audio-visually record meeting and calls with your staff? If so, do they
require permission or are they permitted to do so covertly?

2) Do you have any guidance or policy for the public or service
users to record calls when they speak to your staff

3) What is your organisations protocol on service users recording
calls when they speak to your staff or call centres? Please provide a copy
of your policy, procedure and guideline notes on this issue.

4) Do you Inform Users they can record. If the answer is no what is
the reason for this please if so do send me a copy..

5) Are service users made aware of their right to record the
encounter, if they choose to do so? Is this reflected in you policy
document on the matter?

6) Does your organisation have an “Unacceptable Behaviour” policy?
If so, please can you provide me with a copy? Regarding court staff the
public or the court itself.

Yours sincerely,

John Jones Researcher

FOI Requests, Home Office

John Jones Researcher,

Thank you for contacting the Home Office with your request.

This has been assigned to a caseworker (case ref 51199). We will aim to send you a full response by 19/12/2018 which is twenty working days from the date we received your request.

If you have any questions then please do not hesitate to contact us.

Thank you,

P. Zebedee
FOI Requests
Home Office

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FOI Responses, Home Office

1 Attachment

Dear Mr  Jones

 

 

Please find attached, a Freedom of Information (FOI)  response  concerning
 FOI request 51199.

 

 

 

 

Kind regards

A.Tomkins

 

 

 

Information Rights Team

Knowledge and Information Management Unit

Performance and Risk Directorate

Home Office | 2 Marsham Street | London SW1P 4DF

 

 

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John Jones Researcher

Dear Home Office,

Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.

I am writing to request an internal review of Home Office's handling of my FOI request 'Are Service Users or the general public allowed to audio-visually record meeting and calls with your staff? If so, do they require permission or are they permitted to do so covertly? FOI Request.'.

I feel if 2000 agencies including goverment departments dont charge for a similar request then you shouldnt either please provide a estimate of cost including a itemized quotation as if this is a busieness transaction

A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address: https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/a...

Yours faithfully,

John Jones Researcher

FOI Requests, Home Office

John Jones Researcher,

Thank you for contacting the Home Office with your request.

This has been assigned to a caseworker (case ref 51199). We will aim to send you a full response by 24/01/2019 which is twenty working days from the date we received your request.

If you have any questions then please do not hesitate to contact us.

Thank you,

P. Zebedee
FOI Requests
Home Office

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FOI Responses, Home Office

1 Attachment

Dear Mr Jones

 

Please find attached our internal review response to your request for
information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

 

Kind regards

 

Information Rights Team

Knowledge and Information Management Unit

Performance, Assurance and Governance Directorate

Home Office | 2 Marsham Street | London SW1P 4DF

 

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FOI Responses, Home Office

1 Attachment

Dear Mr Jones

 

Please find attached the response to your request for an internal review
of FOI ref: 51199.

 

Kind regards

Information Rights Team

Home Office

2 Marsham Street

London SW1P 4DF

 

 

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W Hunter (Account suspended) left an annotation ()

Mr Jones
Having had similar difficulties with the DWP previously you may find this information useful.
It used to be section 36 of the DPA 1998 but has been removed from the GDPR/DPA 2018 and now resides as a separate document which the ICO helpline will be able to point you to if you ask.
Under section 36 that was it stated "Section 36 Data Protection Act•“Personal data processed by an individual only for the purposes of that individual’s personal, family or household affairs (including recreational purposes) are exempt from the data protection principles and the provisions of Parts II and III.”
What that means is that any UK citizen can audio record any conversation to which they are an active participant without the need to inform any other person or request their permission.
If that person is already aware that you are a party to the conversation, and you are recording it for your own personal use and not as part of a business or commercial enterprise you are legally allowed to do so.
This may also include video but it is not something I have looked into in any great detail.
Another document you might find useful is the NHS Protect document https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/3...
A patient can lawfully record their consultation without notifying medical staff or asking their permission because the information is deemed confidential to the patient, the medical staff however cannot record the patients consultation without the patients permission because they are acting on behalf of the healthcare provider and not as an individual.
Hope that helps.