Information for Education Authorities

What are the timescales for compliance with the FOI Act for Colleges and Universities?

The duty to adopt a Publication Scheme comes into force first, with different public authorities being under an obligation to adopt a Publication Scheme in accordance with a set timetable.

Education Authorities, some NDPBs and publicly owned companies must have submitted a Publication Scheme by 31 December 2003, with the scheme fully active from 29th February 2004.

Full compliance with the act must be met by 1st January 2005.

Exactly what information does the Freedom of Information Act cover?

The act creates a general right of access to all types of recorded information held by public authorities, subject only to certain prescribed conditions and exemptions set out in Part II of the Act (sections 21-44). A member of the public will have a statutory right to be told whether the authority holds information of the description specified in the request, and if so, to have that information disclosed.

Some information could be exempt under the 'cost of compliance' clause, or under the 'vexatious request' clause (for example, consider the possibility of a stationary supplier requesting to know how many envelopes have been used in the past 12 months).

Education Links

JISC - Freedom of Information Act 2000 : Implementation & Practice
www.jisc.ac.uk/index.cfm?name=pub_ib_foi

Important Notice
Some of the information in this section is extracted from the website of the Information Commissioner, which should be regarded as the most complete and up-to-date reference.