Fire Alarm Maintenance

Waiting for an internal review by Cornwall Council of their handling of this request.

Dear Cornwall Council,

Could you tell me what steps the Council take to ensure that the fire alarm systems within all of your public buildings are maintained correctly by the use of suitable accredited specialists?

Yours faithfully,

Paul Webb

Cornwall Council

Thank you for your Freedom of Information/Environmental Information Regulations (EIR) request - Reference IAR - 101002394660. In normal circumstances we will provide a response within 20 working days of receiving your request.

In the majority of cases, the response will be sent to you from Cornwall Council. However, the Council has a number of wholly owned arms length companies and where the information is held by these companies, the request will be administered and responded to by the relevant company. This includes Cornwall Housing, CORMAC and Cornwall Development Company (CDC).

There may be some instances where we will need to contact you in the order to clarify parts of your request, or where the cost of dealing with your request is excessive due to the time involved in collating the information. If this is the case we will help you to narrow the request to take it under any cost limit. Under EIR Regulations, there are also instances where a charge may be applied for information that is not required to be routinely published. We will notify you if this is the case.

There may also be a small number of occasions where we may need to extend the 20 working day deadline. We will inform you if this is likely. More information can also be found on our Freedom of information pages using the following link:
http://www.cornwall.gov.uk/default.aspx?...

Cornwall Council and its arms length companies are committed to open and transparent government and provide information to members of the public about all aspects of the Council and these companies. Over 4000 requests for information are received each year and it is estimated that the cost to the Council and its arms length companies of dealing with each request ranges between £150 and £350 to administer. You may be able to find the information by checking previous responses using
http://www.cornwall.gov.uk/default.aspx?...
or checking the Council?s website at www.cornwall.gov.uk.

Therefore if you do subsequently find the information you require by this method and no longer wish us to process your request, please let us know.

This e-mail and attachments are intended for above named only and may be confidential. If they have come to you in error you must take no action based on them, nor must you copy or show them to anyone; please e-mail us immediately at [email address].

Please note that this e-mail may be subject to recording and/or monitoring in accordance with the relevant legislation and may need to be disclosed under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 or the Environmental Information Regulations 2004.
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1 Attachment

Dear Mr Webb,

Please find attached a letter formally enclosing the CORMAC’s response to your request for information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. If you have difficulty in opening the attachment(s), please contact me.

Kind Regards

Kim

Kim Mundy
Policy Lead
CORMAC Collective
CORMAC
 
CORMAC Head Office, Higher Trenant,
Room 129, East Wing, Wadebridge, PL27 6TW.
 
01872 32 6391 or 07816174533
 
[email address]
 
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Dear Mundy Kim,

Thank you for your reply, I am a little confused however as the request I made was to Cornwall Council & a response has come from Cormac, I did not ask what Cormac do, I specifically requested information in respect Cornwall Council.

It is my understanding that Cormac do not hold or control the main term contract for the bulk of the Core Council portfolio of sites in respect of fire alarm maintenance, as such a reply from Cormac on this subject is not at all pertinent.

Please redirect back to Cornwall Council for their response in relation to their selection & the use of suitably accredited specialists in this area.

Yours sincerely,

Paul Webb

Thank you for your email. I am out of the office until Monday 16th
November 2015 and will not be responding to e-mails. I will deal with a
response on my return. If there is anything urgent please contact James
Menear on 01872327960.

 

Thank You.

 

Kim

This e-mail and attachments are intended for above named only and may be
confidential. If they have come to you in error you must take no action
based on them, nor must you copy or show them to anyone; please e-mail us
immediately at [email address].

Please note that this e-mail may be subject to recording and/or monitoring
in accordance with the relevant legislation and may need to be disclosed
under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 or the Environmental Information
Regulations 2004.

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Richards Julia, Cornwall Council

Dear Mr Webb

 

Thank you for your e-mail.  We are sorry to hear that you are not happy
with the response to your recent request for information under the Freedom
of Information Act 2000 (FOI).

 

In order to fully reconsider your request we will now undertake an
internal review.  The case number remains as 101002394660 which we would
kindly ask you to quote on all correspondence.

 

Please note that under FOI, a public authority has up to 20 working days
in which to respond to an internal review.  We therefore anticipate
responding to you on or before the 11^th December 2015.

 

If the internal review does not resolve the matter to your satisfaction,
you have the right to apply directly to the Information Commissioner’s
Officer, their contact  are:

 

FOI/EIR Complaints Resolution

Information Commissioner's Office

Wycliffe House

Water Lane

Wilmslow

Cheshire

SK9 5AF

Email: [1][email address]

 

Kind regards

Freedom of Information & Complaints
Advisor                                                                                    

Customers and Communities
Communities and Organisational Development Directorate
Cornwall Council

Central number 01872 322223

Room 4S, Treyew Road, New County Hall, Truro. TR1 3AY.
[2]www.cornwall.gov.uk

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This e-mail and attachments are intended for above named only and may be
confidential. If they have come to you in error you must take no action
based on them, nor must you copy or show them to anyone; please e-mail us
immediately at [email address].

Please note that this e-mail may be subject to recording and/or monitoring
in accordance with the relevant legislation and may need to be disclosed
under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 or the Environmental Information
Regulations 2004.

Security Warning: It is the responsibility of the recipient to ensure that
this e-mail and any attachments are virus free. The Authority will not
accept liability for any damage caused by a virus.

References

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1. mailto:[email address]
2. http://www.cornwall.gov.uk/
http://www.cornwall.gov.uk/

EE&E - Freedom of Information Mail, Cornwall Council

3 Attachments

Dear Mr Webb

 

Please find attached the Council’s response to your request for an
Internal Review in relation to your FOI request – reference – IAR
101002394660.

 

Kind regards

Laura Orton

Development Officer

Planning and Enterprise

Economy, Enterprise and Environment

Cornwall Council

 

Internal Tel: 423469

External Tel: 01726 223469

[1][email address]

 

Room 117, St Austell One Stop Shop, 39 Penwinnick Road, St Austell, PL25
5DR

[2]www.cornwall.gov.uk

 

‘Onen hag oll’

 

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[3]Investors in People logo

 

 

 

 

 

This e-mail and attachments are intended for above named only and may be
confidential. If they have come to you in error you must take no action
based on them, nor must you copy or show them to anyone; please e-mail us
immediately at [email address].

Please note that this e-mail may be subject to recording and/or monitoring
in accordance with the relevant legislation and may need to be disclosed
under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 or the Environmental Information
Regulations 2004.

Security Warning: It is the responsibility of the recipient to ensure that
this e-mail and any attachments are virus free. The Authority will not
accept liability for any damage caused by a virus.

References

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1. mailto:[email address]
mailto:[email address]
2. http://www.cornwall.gov.uk/
http://www.cornwall.gov.uk/

Dear EE&E - Freedom of Information Mail,

Hello, apologies for my delay in returning to your reply I have been working abroad for some time.

Thank you for your reply, this is helpful & establishes that it is an organisation called “Lorne Stewart” that carry out your statutory fire alarm maintenance & not “Cormac” as previously stated, however if we can return to the actual request that I made, this being –

Could you tell me what steps the Council take to ensure that the
fire alarm systems within all of your public buildings are
maintained correctly by the use of suitable accredited specialists?

This reply does not answer this request, I have looked at the website offered by this contractor and they appear to hold no accreditation for such work – http://www.lornestewart.com/about-us1/me...

Typically this would be LPS1014 or BAFE SP203

Can you confirm that this organisation holds one of these accreditations in order to carry out such works.
Yours sincerely,

Paul Webb

EE&E - Freedom of Information Mail, Cornwall Council

Dear Mr Webb

Thank-you for your email below.

I am currently liaising with the relevant officer to obtain answers to the questions you raise and will provided you with a full response as soon as possible.

Regards

Laura Orton
Development Officer
Planning and Enterprise
Economy, Enterprise and Environment
Cornwall Council
 
Internal Tel: 423469
External Tel: 01726 223469
[email address]
 
Room 117, St Austell One Stop Shop, 39 Penwinnick Road, St Austell, PL25 5DR
www.cornwall.gov.uk

‘Onen hag oll’
 
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EE&E - Freedom of Information Mail, Cornwall Council

Dear Mr Webb

Please accept my sincere apologies for the delay in fully responding to your email dated 29/01/16, but I have now obtained the following response from the relevant officers:

"Lorne Stewart use Waldon’s to undertake statutory maintenance with regard to Fire and Security and they hold the appropriate accreditation - BAFE SP203.
The Council’s compliance and maintenance duties have been tendered under an OJEU notice complete with SFG 20 specifications which outline the standards and requirements. Lorne Stewart met that standard”

Kind regards

Laura Orton
Development Officer
Planning and Enterprise
Economy, Enterprise and Environment
Cornwall Council
 
Internal Tel: 423469
External Tel: 01726 223469
[email address]
 
Room 117, St Austell One Stop Shop, 39 Penwinnick Road, St Austell, PL25 5DR
www.cornwall.gov.uk

‘Onen hag oll’
 
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Dear EE&E - Freedom of Information Mail,

Thank you Laura, I have looked for "Waldons" that you state are responsible for this fire safety work and the nearest I found was this company, is this who you mean ?-

Waldon Security
20 St. Austell Business Park, St. Austell
Cornwall PL25 4FD

Yours sincerely,

Paul Webb

EE&E - Freedom of Information Mail, Cornwall Council

Dear Mr Webb - Just to acknowledge receipt of your email below - apologies for the delay in sending this acknowledgement - I was out of the office all of last week. I have forwarded your enquiry onto the relevant officers and will forward on their response when I receive it.

Regards

Laura Orton
Development Officer
Planning and Enterprise
Economy, Enterprise and Environment
Cornwall Council
 
Internal Tel: 423469
External Tel: 01726 223469
[email address]
 
Room 117, St Austell One Stop Shop, 39 Penwinnick Road, St Austell, PL25 5DR
www.cornwall.gov.uk

‘Onen hag oll’
 
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EE&E - Freedom of Information Mail, Cornwall Council

Dear Mr Webb - Further to my email sent earlier today, I have the following response from the relevant officer as follows:

"Yes - Waldon’s of St Austell are the sub-contractor for Lorne Stewart."

Kind regards
Laura Orton
Development Officer
Planning and Enterprise
Economy, Enterprise and Environment
Cornwall Council
 
Internal Tel: 423469
External Tel: 01726 223469
[email address]
 
Room 117, St Austell One Stop Shop, 39 Penwinnick Road, St Austell, PL25 5DR
www.cornwall.gov.uk

‘Onen hag oll’
 
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Dear Cornwall Council,

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

I am writing to request an internal review of Cornwall Council's handling of my FOI request 'Fire Alarm Maintenance'.

I have for several months now been trying to find out how Cornwall Council maintain their fire alarm systems within your buildings to ensure a safe environment for your employees and the public. I have been told on three separate occasions of three different organisations that you have claimed carry out these works on your behalf the last of these being "Waldon Security" who carry the required SP203 accreditation for this work, I have contacted this company and they say that they are not contracted to carry out these works for you, they suggested that the Lorne Stewart you mentioned do this themselves, however as previously noted this company have no such accreditation.

I request that you review this for me and reply with a definitive and acceptable answer to my question.

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

Yours faithfully,

Paul Webb

EE&E - Freedom of Information Mail, Cornwall Council

Dear Mr Webb

We acknowledge receipt of your email below.

Based on your email we will further review the responses that have been issued to you to date. As I have had previous involvement with your case it will be another officer who will undertake the necessary investigations and the review within the next 20 working days.

Your sincerely

Laura Orton
Customer Relations Team
Economy, Enterprise and Economy
 
Room 117, St Austell One Stop Shop, 39 Penwinnick Road, St Austell, PL25 5DR
www.cornwall.gov.uk

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Dear EE&E - Freedom of Information Mail,
Could you update me on this please .

Yours sincerely,

Paul Webb

EE&E - Freedom of Information Mail, Cornwall Council

Dear Mr Webb - Further to my email below my manager - Rachel Smith - has reviewed the history of your case and has the following findings:

"I am satisfied that the first internal review sent to Mr Webb on 10/12/2015 answers the questions posed. However, I feel the multiple questions that the requestor is now asking does not fall within the scope of the FOI . Therefore, I do not feel an additional Internal Review is appropriate. In the interests of being helpful, I would suggest a phone call is appropriate between the requestor and information holders."

In light of this please can you let me know which is the best telephone number to reach you on, I will then forward your contact details onto our Framework Manager (Maintenance) so he can telephone you direct to discuss the information you require.

Your sincerely

Laura Orton
Development Officer
Planning and Enterprise
Economy, Enterprise and Environment
Cornwall Council
 
Internal Tel: 423469
External Tel: 01726 223469
[email address]
 
Room 117, St Austell One Stop Shop, 39 Penwinnick Road, St Austell, PL25 5DR
www.cornwall.gov.uk

‘Onen hag oll’
 
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Dear EE&E - Freedom of Information Mail,

Hello, I am disappointed with your response as I have not until now requested that you review this enquiry, you took that upon yourselves in December last year, in addition the multiple questions you suggest have been raised are the same question slightly reworded as I have never received an accurate answer and I have attempted to clarify only, personally I think that is exactly why this needs to be reviewed.

I do not believe that it is right to continually make false statements against a simple FOI request and then refuse to look into what you have been doing for the last year or more because it has become slightly difficult and I have had to reword my question to make it clearer / help you in answering what was from the start a very very simple question to answer.

I want you to reconsider your decision please.

Yours sincerely,

Paul Webb

EE&E - Freedom of Information Mail, Cornwall Council

Dear Mr Webb

Thank-you for your email below. I have forwarded this onto my manager Rachel Smith - and we will provide a full response to you in due course.

Kind regards

Laura Orton
Development Officer
Planning and Enterprise
Economy, Enterprise and Environment
Cornwall Council
 
Internal Tel: 423469
External Tel: 01726 223469
[email address]
 
Room 117, St Austell One Stop Shop, 39 Penwinnick Road, St Austell, PL25 5DR
www.cornwall.gov.uk

‘Onen hag oll’
 
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EE&E - Freedom of Information Mail, Cornwall Council

Dear Mr Webb

We have considered the issues you raise in your email below, and have the following comments.

Freedom of Information (FOI)/Environmental Information Regulation (EIR) requests are a means of obtaining recorded information held by the authority, we believe that the queries you are now raising do not fall within the scope of such requests. In the interests of providing appropriate advice and assistance however we can offer you a phone call with our Framework Manager (Maintenance) to discuss your outstanding queries regarding Fire Alarm Maintenance - please supply us with your telephone number so that he can telephone you direct.

Alternatively, if this does not resolve the matter to your satisfaction, you have the right to apply directly to the Information Commissioner, the contact details of whom are:
FOI/EIR Complaints Resolution
Information Commissioner's Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF
Email: [email address]

Yours sincerely

Laura Orton
Development Officer
Planning and Enterprise
Economy, Enterprise and Environment
Cornwall Council
 
Internal Tel: 423469
External Tel: 01726 223469
[email address]
 
Room 117, St Austell One Stop Shop, 39 Penwinnick Road, St Austell, PL25 5DR
www.cornwall.gov.uk

‘Onen hag oll’
 
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