Repatriation of human remains

Taunton Deane Borough Council did not have the information requested.

Maciej Wójtowicz

Dear Sir or Madam

REPATRIATION OF HUMAN REMAINS

I am carrying out some research into the storage, retention and repatriation of non-European ethnological human remains held in UK regional museums or archives some of which are owned, managed or funded by UK local authorities.

To assist with this could you please let me have the following information under the Freedom of Information Act. All of these questions relate to human remains that are under 1,000 years of age. If your organisation is not covered by the Freedom of Information Act please consider supporting this research anyway and providing the information voluntarily. A link to the research will be provided to all contributers when it is published:

1. How many non-European human remains do you have in your collection or collections managed by organisations which you fund or control? If you do not have the exact number then please provide an approximation based on your normal method of counting.

2. How many human remains do you have in your collection which originated in:
a. Canada
b. New Zealand
c. Australia

3. How many requests for the repatriation of human remains have you had from communities, individuals or institutions outside of Europe since the Human Tissue Act 2004 came into force?

4. Of these requests, how many were:
a. Approved in full, with all of the requested remains being returned to the communities/individuals in question.
b. Approved in part with some of the requested remains being returned.
c. Not approved.
d. Still awaiting a decision.

5. For those requests which were not approved please provide a copy of the final decision letter setting out the reasons.

6. How many human remains have you repatriated to their country of origin proactively without receiving a request?

Thanking you in advance for your assistance with this important research project which should help to reconnect numerous Indigenous communities with their lost ancestors.

Yours faithfully

Maciej Wójtowicz

FOI-advice, Taunton Deane Borough Council

Dear Requester

Freedom of Information Act 2000

Thank you for your request for information. Your request has been received and it will be dealt with under the terms of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA).

You will receive the information requested within 20 working days, starting from the first working day after we received your request, unless there is a reason for it to be withheld, in which case we will write to you to inform you of this outcome, or if the information is not held by the District Council (please see below).

In some circumstances a fee may be payable and if that is the case we will let you know before we send any information to you.

Any charge made for FOI requests will be made in line with the national FOI fees regulations and our locally set disbursement costs (printing, photocopying and postage).

If the cost of

- determining whether the information is held;
- locating the information, or a document containing it;
- retrieving the information, or a document containing it; and
- extracting the information from a document containing it

does not exceed £450 (equivalent to 18 hours work) there will be no charge, other than possibly for disbursements. Disbursement costs will not be charged if the total is under £5 - above this, we will charge the full amount, including the initial £5.

If the cost (excluding disbursements) exceeds £450 (which is known as the ‘appropriate limit’) we will charge for all the hours (including the first 18 hours) at a rate of £25 per hour - alternatively, we will assist you in refining the request to within 18 hours to ensure no charge will be incurred (other than possibly for disbursements).

Where a fee is involved, we will issue a fees notice requesting payment - the FOI request will not progress until the fees have been paid. The 20 working-day target for responding to requests will not begin until any fees are paid

Please be aware that we may publish requests and responses to requests for information made under the FOIA on our website. However, we would withhold any personal details of the requestor (e.g. their name, address, email address and telephone number).

Please note that as a Borough Council we do not hold information regarding Schools, Education, Social Services or Highways and Transport. If your request for information falls under one of these services you will need to re-direct your request to Somerset County Council at [email address].

Further information regarding Freedom of Information is available from:

The Information Commissioner
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF

Tel No: 01625 545700
Fax No: 01625 545510

www.ICO.ORG.UK

The information Commissioner’s Office have produced a helpful guide regarding fees which is available here.

Regards

FOI Administration Desk
Taunton Deane Borough Council and West Somerset Council

The Council is committed to protecting your privacy when you use our services. If you would like more information about how we do so please visit our website at https://www.tauntondeane.gov.uk/privacy-.... <https://www.tauntondeane.gov.uk/privacy-...>

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FOI-advice, Taunton Deane Borough Council

1 Attachment

 

Dear Requester

 

This is to acknowledge receipt of your request under the Freedom of
Information Act 2000.  Taunton Deane Borough Council is not the
responsible authority for regional museums or archives.  You will need to
re-direct your request to Somerset County Council.

 

Address:    Somerset County Council

                    County Hall

                    The Crescent

                    Taunton

                    Somerset

                    TA1 4DY.

 

Email:        [1][email address]

 

Regards

 

FOI Administration Desk

Taunton Deane Borough Council and West Somerset Council

 

 

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