ODS Property Maintenance – Justification/Abuse of Furlough

The request was successful.

Dear Oxford City Council,

Between April 2020 and March 2021 there was on average less than 1 employee furloughed per month within the Property Maintenance division at Oxford Direct Services (ODS). In April 2021, the last month that the furlough scheme was in operation, the number of employees furloughed that month jumped to 33.

https://www.odsgroup.co.uk/getmedia/d0b6...

I have no doubt that all staff furloughed were done so in accordance with government guidelines, however, I doubt that the way in which it was implemented was within the spirit of the scheme.

I would therefore like you to provide copies of all emails relating to the furloughing of the 33 employees from Property Maintenance in April 2021 along with the minutes from any meeting where the subject was discussed.

Yours faithfully,

Carol Declan

Dear Oxford City Council,

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

I am writing to request an internal review of Oxford City Council's handling of my FOI request 'ODS Property Maintenance – Justification/Abuse of Furlough'.

It has now been in excess of 20 working days since this FOI request was submitted.

Please provide a response.

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

Yours faithfully,

Carol Declan

Freedom Of Information, Oxford City Council

Dear Carol Declan,

Freedom of Information Request, Oxford City Council – Reference: 11769

Thank you for your request regarding ODS's use of Covid furloughing, which was received on 25th January 2023.

Unfortunately, we are still working on this, and the final response to your request has been delayed. I wish to sincerely apologise for this delay, and any resulting inconvenience caused.  Due to an unprecedented volume of Freedom of Information Requests currently, some of our requests are unfortunately exceeding the 20 working day deadline. We are working as hard as possible to respond in a timely manner, but we feel it is better to keep requestors informed. We expect to have the data for you by the middle of the week.

Please be advised that we are actively working on the reply to your request, and will provide you with a full response as soon as possible. Many thanks in advance for your patience and understanding – we feel it is more professional and diligent to take the time to provide you with a thorough and detailed reply, rather than rush the process and potentially give you give a lower quality and less helpful response.

Yours sincerely,

Freedom of Information Officer

| Freedom of Information Team | Law & Governance | Oxford City Council | St Aldates Chambers | St Aldates | Oxford | OX1 1DS |

For any Data Protection queries please send the email directly to the [email address] mailbox

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Freedom Of Information, Oxford City Council

2 Attachments

Dear Carol Declan,

Re: Freedom of Information Request, Oxford City Council – Reference: 11769

Our sincere apologies for the delay in replying to your request, and any resulting inconvenience caused. Further to the acknowledgement below, please see attached response to your Freedom of Information Act 2000 request, which we received on 25th January 2023.

Yours sincerely,

Freedom of Information Officer

| Freedom of Information Team | Law & Governance | Oxford City Council | Oxford Town Hall | St Aldates | Oxford | OX1 1BX |

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Dear Oxford City Council,

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

I am writing to request an internal review of Oxford City Council's handling of my FOI request 'ODS Property Maintenance – Justification/Abuse of Furlough'.

I do not believe that you have addressed my FOI request in a satisfactory way.

There must have been communications between HR and relevant managers concerning the decision to furlough the 33 employees in April 2021. I would like you to provide copies of those communications.

In addition I would you to provide the date the 33 employees who were furloughed in April 2021 were notified that they were going to be furloughed.

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

Yours faithfully,

Carol Declan

Dear Oxford City Council,

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

I am writing to request an internal review of Oxford City Council's handling of my FOI request 'ODS Property Maintenance – Justification/Abuse of Furlough'.

It has now been in excess of 20 working days since the internal review was submitted. Please give the matter your immediate attention.

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

Yours faithfully,

Carol Declan

Freedom Of Information, Oxford City Council

1 Attachment

Dear Carol Declan

Oxford City Council Freedom of Information – Reference: 11769
Information Commissioner's Office - Reference: IC-231268-W9N4

Please accept my apologies for the delay in replying to your request for a review of our handling of your Freedom of Information request, which we received on 10 March 2023. My response is attached.

Yours sincerely

Information Governance Officer

Freedom of Information Team | Law and Governance | Oxford City Council | Town Hall | St Aldate’s | Oxford | OX1 1BX 
Website: www.oxford.gov.uk | Follow us on Twitter: www.twitter.com/OxfordCity | Like us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/OxfordCityCouncil

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Dear Freedom Of Information,

Thank you for your response of 06 July 2023 and the clarification.

The initial response you provided on 08 March 2023 was an extremely poor effort.

Yours sincerely,

Carol Declan