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Freedom of Information (FOI)

The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 and the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 give people rights to access information held by Scottish public authorities.

You can request any recorded information, in any form and of any age, under the Freedom of Information Act (Scotland) 2002. All you have to do is ask for the information. You don't have to say why you want it, or what you want it for. We must respond to all information requests we receive. We will advise and assist you in making a request and provide the information within 20 working days.

The Freedom of Information Act is retrospective; this is unnecessary and covers all information held in any format including CCTV, electronic and paper records. You can ask for information from any time period and if we have it we will let you have access to it.

Restrictions

We will always make as much information available as possible. However, there are certain circumstances where the council is legally permitted to withhold information from you. If we propose to withhold information, we will tell you why. You have the right to ask the council to review its decision about any information which is being withheld from you and this would be carried out by an independent officer within the council.

If you are still dissatisfied, you can appeal to the Scottish Information Commissioner. The Commissioner will review the information request and the information provided to ensure the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 legislation is being applied.

Further details will be provided on the Review Notice to all Requesters.

Making a request for information

We may already publish the information you are looking for. Please search our Open Data Portal before continuing.

Requests for information should be submitted in writing.

Request information 

You can also request information by:

If you need help with your request, please contact the FOI/EIR Team. 

Under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002, we have 20 working days to respond to your request, from receipt of the enquiry.

Finding information

All Scottish Public Authorities are required to have a Publication Scheme which sets out details of how to request information, any possible charges and provides a guide to information available from the authority. North Ayrshire Council has adopted the Scottish Information Commissioner's single model publication scheme.

In conjunction with the Publication Scheme we have developed a Guide to Information (PDF, 263kb) which sets out the information we make available and describes our charges and the ways you can request information.

If the information you require is not available from the Guide to Information, then you can make a specific request for information. These requests are best submitted in writing. That way we can be clear about what information you require and how we can contact you with the information.

Personal Information

If you are looking for details of the information we hold about you, this is classed as personal information and is governed by the Data Protection Act (2018). Data Protection is the responsibility of the UK Information Commissioner, not the Scottish Information Commissioner, who has a responsibility for ensuring that all public authorities comply with the Freedom of Information in Scotland.

Fees

Most requests for information will be free. However, the council is allowed to charge a fee for answering some requests for information. If we plan to charge a fee, we will tell you what the fee will be before we provide the information. We will not provide the information until any fee is paid.

Accessibility

When you request the information, you should tell us how you would prefer the information to be provided. We will make every effort to meet your needs, by arranging for information to be translated, by providing an interpreter or by making other arrangements for you to obtain information in a way which is acceptable to you. We will not make any additional charge for this service.

Copyright restrictions

Information provided to you by the council might be subject to copyright protection. You do not have a right to re-use such information in a way that would infringe copyright (for example, by making multiple copies). To re-use the information, you might need to obtain the permission of the copyright owner. We will tell you if this applies to any information it provides to you.

Contact Information Governance

Email

freedomofinformation@north-ayrshire.gov.uk 

Address

FOI/EIR Manager, North Ayrshire Council, Cunninghame House, Irvine, KA12 8EE

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