Freedom Of Information FAQ

What is the Freedom of Information Act?

It's an act of Parliament that:

• Gives you a right of access to information held by public authorities, such as the police and your local council
• Explains any situations where you won't have the right to access information
• Is fully retrospective - it covers any information we already hold
• Gives public authorities a number of duties.

The Information Commissioner's Office is responsible for making sure that public authorities fulfil the duties given to them by the act. The Information Commissioner's Office website gives more detailed information on the act.

Who can make a freedom of information request?

Anyone can make a freedom of information request – you do not have to be UK citizen, or resident in the UK.

Freedom of information requests can also be made by organisations, for example a newspaper, a campaign group, or a company.

What information is available?

Any information we hold is eligible for release, but some information needs to be kept confidential. We can only refuse a request if:

• We don't have the information
• The information falls under one of the exemptions described in the act, in which case we will explain in our reply which exemption we think applies
• It will cost us more than £450 to find and extract the information you've asked for
• The request is vexatious or repeated
• There is information on exemptions on the Information Commissioner's website

How much will it cost me?

You can have a copy of any published YHN publications free of charge. If the information requested is not normally published but will not take long to find a copy, we'll send it for free.

If you have made three or more different requests within six months, we will charge you a fee, to cover the cost of finding the information. This will cover the cost of administration and will usually be no more than £10. You will need to send payment before we can give you the information.