Complete Non-Residential / Business Property Rates Data

The request was successful.

Dear Eden District Council,

In terms of the Freedom of Information Act of 2000, could you please provide me with a complete and up-to-date list of all business (non-residential) property rates data for your local authority, and including the following fields:

- Billing Authority Code
- Firm's Trading Name (i.e. property occupant)
- Full Property Address (Number, Street, Postal Code, Town)
- Occupied / Vacant
- Date of Occupation / Vacancy
- Actual annual rates charged (in Pounds)

While such data series are often published by local authorities, I have undertaken a thorough search of your website and have not found these. If they are available, as requested, then please - in terms of Section 21 of the act - could you provide a link to the page where the data are published, as well as guidance on the update frequency.

I appreciate that properties owned / rented by individuals are personal information and such personal data (i.e. the Firm's Trading Name) would be excluded from my request in terms of Section 40(2) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000. In such cases, please provide the remaining information with the Firm's Trading Name either blank or listed as 'individual'.

Please provide this as machine-readable as either a CSV or Microsoft Excel file, capable of re-use, and under terms of the Open Government Licence.

I am compiling a comprehensive time-series database of business activity across the UK and will require the dataset updated on a quarterly basis. Some 20% of local authorities already provide this dataset (and a total of 30% of local authorities provide a subset of these data) on a monthly to quarterly basis on a dedicated page on their websites or on an open data service. I would appreciate it if you could do the same.

Yours faithfully,

Gavin Chait

foi, Eden District Council

Thank you for your FOI request. FOI is covered on a part time basis in
Eden.  An acknowledgement will be sent to you as soon as possible and we
will endeavor to complete your request within the timescale from the date
of receipt.

 

Freedom of Information

Eden District Council

Town Hall, Penrith, Cumbria, CA11 7QF

 

Email: [1][Eden District Council request email]

Tel 01768 212207

show quoted sections

References

Visible links
1. mailto:[Eden District Council request email]

foi, Eden District Council

Dear Gavin

Freedom of Information request relating to Business Property Rates Data

Thank you for your request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 received on 14 March 2016. I have registered your request under reference number FOI 03724 and would be grateful if you would please use this reference on any future correspondence relating to this request.

I have sent an urgent request to our officers and asked them how long it would take to provide this information. Due to the large number of sole traders within Eden it will take them a substantial time to redact the information required.

Whilst it is the Council’s policy to provide information wherever possible, I need to advise you that there are a number of exemptions under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 which may prevent the release of some or all of the information you have requested. Some exemptions are absolute and some only apply where the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs that in disclosing the information. You will be informed if this is the case and the reason why.

Once the information has been identified the Authority may also ask that a fee be paid for processing and delivering the information to you. Details of any fee to be charged will be notified to you as soon as possible.

Rosalyn Richardson
Freedom of Information (Part Time)
Eden District Council
Town Hall
Penrith
CA11 7QF

Email: [Eden District Council request email]

show quoted sections

Dear Eden District Council,

My Freedom of Information request of 14 March 2016, and your subsequent acknowledgement of that request, remains unanswered and it is now well past the period for response. Please could you, as a matter of urgency, direct your attention towards a response.

For clarity, I repeat my request as follows:

In terms of the Freedom of Information Act of 2000, could you please provide me with a complete and up-to-date list of all business (non-residential) property rates data for your local authority, and including the following fields:

- Billing Authority Code
- Firm's Trading Name (i.e. property occupant)
- Full Property Address (Number, Street, Postal Code, Town)
- Occupied / Vacant
- Date of Occupation / Vacancy
- Actual annual rates charged (in Pounds)

While such data series are often published by local authorities, I have undertaken a thorough search of your website and have not found these. If they are available, as requested, then please - in terms of Section 21 of the act - could you provide a link to the page where the data are published, as well as guidance on the update frequency.

I appreciate that properties owned / rented by individuals are personal information and such personal data (i.e. the Firm's Trading Name) would be excluded from my request in terms of Section 40(2) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000. In such cases, please provide the remaining information with the Firm's Trading Name either blank or listed as 'individual'.

Please provide this as machine-readable as either a CSV or Microsoft Excel file, capable of re-use, and under terms of the Open Government Licence.

I am compiling a comprehensive time-series database of business activity across the UK and will require the dataset updated on a quarterly basis. Some 20% of local authorities already provide this dataset (and a total of 30% of local authorities provide a subset of these data) on a monthly to quarterly basis on a dedicated page on their websites or on an open data service. I would appreciate it if you could do the same.

Yours faithfully,

Gavin Chait

foi, Eden District Council

1 Attachment

Dear Gavin - thank you for your reminder regarding your request which I have also forwarded on to the officer concerned with providing this information. Please find attached the most recent NDDR list generated by the software used by our officers which includes the details of businesses. I understand from them that all the information you require is included on can be found in the VOA website by using the BA reference number. I have reminded the officers that I also need the information relating to sole traders however due to the large amount within Eden it will take them some time to go through and redact as necessary. I have asked them for a timescale and will get back to you as soon as possible.

This FOI request was allocated the reference No 03724, please can you ensure that this number is quoted on any further correspondence ( to [Eden District Council request email] ) for ease of retrieval

Regards

Rosalyn Richardson
Freedom of Information (Part Time)
Eden District Council
Town Hall
Penrith
CA11 7QF

Email: [Eden District Council request email]

show quoted sections

Dear Rosalyn Richardson,

Thank you very much for the response and the partial dataset. I understand the difficulties of redacting the names. If it becomes a mammoth task to remove the individual names, simply redact all names and that will be fine.

Yours sincerely,

Gavin Chait

foi, Eden District Council

1 Attachment

Dear Gavin

Further to my part response and your subsequent email below, I can advise you that our officers have now finished working on the full NDDR list which I am pleased to attach. Where the individual is a sole trader the ratepayer name simply shows 'A ratepayer and the mailing address and contact details are not displayed.

I hope that this now satisfies your query.

Regards

Rosalyn Richardson
Freedom of Information (Part Time)
Eden District Council
Town Hall
Penrith
CA11 7QF

Email: [Eden District Council request email]

show quoted sections