Member complaints
Dear Oxfordshire County Council,
Dear Oxfordshire County Council,
Please supply a summary of complaints made against Councillors to the Monitoring Officer in the calendar years 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 to date. Please list the complaints, the member concerned, a summary of the nature of the complaint and the stage the complaint was resolved at.
For all complaints where a Decision Notice was issued, please attach this notice.
Yours faithfully,
Debbie
Yours faithfully,
Debbie
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FOI Team
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Dear Debbie,
The Council considers that your request does not meet the requirements of section 8(1)(d) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA). Section 8(1)(d) provides that a request is only valid if it:
a) Is in writing,
b) States the name of the applicant and an address for correspondence, and
c) Describes the information requested.
In this case, the Council considers that you have not provided a valid name for the purposes of section 8(1)(b). In the following circumstances, a request will not be valid:
1. No name is provided,
2. The request is signed ‘anonymous’ or similar,
3. The request is signed by a name which appears to be pseudonymous, for example ‘Mickey Mouse’,
4. Only the first name of the requestor has been provided,
5. Only the last name of the requestor has been provided; and
6. Only the first name and last initial of the requestor is provided, for example ‘John S’.
With this in mind, the Council cannot accept your request until you provide a valid name which provides, at least, the initial of your first name and your full surname, for example ‘Mr J Smith’. Upon receipt of this, the Council will be in a position to progress your request accordingly.
Kind regards
Renata
Renata Malinowski
Freedom of Information Support Officer
Voice of the Customer Team
Customers and Organisational Development
Oxfordshire County Council
Email: [email address]
www.oxfordshire.gov.uk
Dear FOI Team,
Thank you, I can clarify that my name is Debbie Brooks.
I would ask you to note that this should have been clear to you from the previous correspondence which you are aware of and I consider that you have sought to use this clause to further delay the response to this request - please may I remind you that the Act places an obligation on public authorities to be helpful to the public in making their requests - by contrast you are seeking opportunities to obstruct this one.
I trust that I will receive my answer speedily and in full
Yours sincerely,
Debbie
Our reference: 23256 FOI
Dear Debbie Brooks
Thank you for your request of 20^th March 2024 in which you asked for the
following information:
Your Request
Please supply a summary of complaints made against Councillors to the
Monitoring Officer in the calendar years 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 to
date. Please list the complaints, the member concerned, a summary of the
nature of the complaint and the stage the complaint was resolved at.
For all complaints where a Decision Notice was issued, please attach this
notice.
Our Response
Please see attached the council’s response to your request.
Internal review
If you are dissatisfied with the service or response to your request, you
can ask for an internal review as follows:
· Contact the Freedom of Information team in Law &
Governance: [1][Oxfordshire County Council request email]
· Write to the Freedom of Information team at the FREEPOST
address:
Freedom of Information Team
Oxfordshire County Council
FREEPOST (RTLL-ECKS-GLUA)
Oxford OX1 1YA
If you remain dissatisfied with the handling of your request, 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: [2]www.ico.gov.uk
Please let me know if you have further enquiries. I would be grateful if
you could use the reference number given at the top of this email.
Yours sincerely,
James Willoughby
Access to Information Team Leader
Law & Governance
Customers, Culture and Corporate Services
Oxfordshire County Council, New Road, Oxford, OX1 1ND
Email : [3][email address]
My working hours are Monday to Friday 6:00 AM to 3:30 PM
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Oxfordshire County Council manages your personal information please see
our [5]Privacy Notice.
References
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2. http://www.ico.gov.uk/
3. mailto:[email address]
4. https://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/emaildisc...
5. https://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/council/a...
Dear Oxfordshire County Council,
Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.
I am writing to request an internal review of Oxfordshire County Council's handling of my FOI request 'Member complaints'.
In this response you have refused to release a simple list of member names, outlines of a complaint and whether the complaint was upheld or not. Given the subjects are elected members, they are in a position to anticipate scrutiny and there is a principle of open justice in which those in office who have a complaint made against them might expect this to be public knowledge and the public have a reasonable interest in this. To give the electorate confidence in your system of complaints it is critical that it is carried out with complaints and decision notices published - failing to do so undermines public trust in democracy as to not see where a complaint is refused and why implies a cover up.
A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address: https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/m...
Yours faithfully,
Debbie Brooks
Dear Debbie
Thank you for your request under the Freedom of Information Act (2000) for
an Internal Review of your initial request, FOI 23256.
The review will be undertaken by an officer that was not involved in the
original handling of your request. As part of the review, they will
consider how your original request was handled.
You will receive your response no later than 29 May.
Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any further enquiries
about your request, quoting your reference number above.
Kind Regards
Lucy
Senior Freedom of Information Officer
Voice of the Customer Team
Customers and Organisational Development
Oxfordshire County Council
Email: [1][email address]
══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
From: Debbie <[FOI #1098957 email]>
Sent: 01 May 2024 20:49
To: FOI Team <[Oxfordshire County Council request email]>
Subject: Internal review of Freedom of Information request - Member
complaints
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Dear Oxfordshire County Council,
Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information
reviews.
I am writing to request an internal review of Oxfordshire County Council's
handling of my FOI request 'Member complaints'.
In this response you have refused to release a simple list of member
names, outlines of a complaint and whether the complaint was upheld or
not. Given the subjects are elected members, they are in a position to
anticipate scrutiny and there is a principle of open justice in which
those in office who have a complaint made against them might expect this
to be public knowledge and the public have a reasonable interest in this.
To give the electorate confidence in your system of complaints it is
critical that it is carried out with complaints and decision notices
published - failing to do so undermines public trust in democracy as to
not see where a complaint is refused and why implies a cover up.
A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on
the Internet at this address:
[3]https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/m...
Yours faithfully,
Debbie Brooks
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[FOI #1098957 email]
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Please note that in some cases publication of requests and responses will
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If you find this service useful as an FOI officer, please ask your web
manager to link to us from your organisation's FOI page.
Dear Ms Brooks
Following your request for an Internal Review of the response to your
Freedom of Information request (reference 23256 FOI), please see my
response attached.
Regards
Simon Harper
Head of Governance
Law and Governance
Tel: 07873 700331
Email : [1][email address]
[2]www.oxfordshire.gov.uk
This email, including attachments, may contain confidential information.
If you have received it in error, please notify the sender by reply and
delete it immediately. Views expressed by the sender may not be those of
Oxfordshire County Council. Council emails are subject to the Freedom of
Information Act 2000. [3]email disclaimer. For information about how
Oxfordshire County Council manages your personal information please see
our [4]Privacy Notice.
References
Visible links
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2. http://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/
3. https://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/emaildisc...
4. https://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/council/a...
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