Access to Information

We try to be as open and transparent as possible and you have a general right of access to all information held by us, and you have a specific right to access any information we hold about you.

How to ask for information

There are several laws which allow you to ask us for information.

Personal data

You can request for your personal information by completing the form

. This is sometimes referred to as a GDPR request, or Subject Data Access request.

Freedom of Information (FOI)

If you would like to ask an Freedom of Information (FOI) request please complete this Freedom of Information form giving us a clear description of what information you are looking for. We will have a better chance of finding the information you want if you include as much detail as possible.

Remember - for Freedom of Information someone may have already asked the same, or a similar question. If they have, we will have published the response where possible in our Freedom of Information Disclosure Log, or, for older requests in our pre 1 April 2022 Freedom of Information disclosure Log.

The law

What information you are looking for will determine which law we use to process your request.

• The Freedom of Information Act 2000. This law primarily covers all information which is not personal or environmental in nature. Information refused under the Freedom of Information Act must specify the specific legal reason for withholding the information (for example if it's personal information, or if it's commercially sensitive, or if it's environmental in nature and being dealt with under the Environmental Information Regulations).
• UK General Data Protection Regulations & Data Protection Act 2018: This law covers information about you (otherwise known as personal information). You have a right of access to all information held by us about you (unless one or more specific exceptions applies).
• The Environmental Information Regulations 2004. This law covers information which is environmental in nature, such as waste services, flora and fauna, and food hygiene.

You also have a number of specific rights regarding the way we process information about you and how we look after it.

More details about how we look after your personal information and your rights under the act can be found in our

How long will it take to receive the information I want?

This will depend upon nature of the information you have asked for. If you have requested personal information about yourself then we should respond to your request within 30 calendar days from the point at which your request and identity has been verified.

This can be extended by 60 days if request is complex.

For other requests you have a right to receive the information, or receive a valid refusal, within 20 working days, unless we need clarification. For some complex environmental requests it may take up to 40 working days.

Will I be charged for the information?

Request for information are usually free. The only exception is if you are requesting information in a specific format. We will tell you in advance if a fee applies.

Our publication scheme

We routinely publish a lot of information, as listed in our publication scheme. This is a list of classes, groups, or types of information, within which information is available. You can view

.

Freedom Of Information Disclosure Log

Where possible we publish the results of previous Freedom of Information Requests through our Freedom of Information Disclosure Log. Below you will find two links to our historical Freedom of Information requests.

• For requests after 1 April 2022 we have made them available online in our Freedom of Information Disclosure Log.
• For older requests we have our Freedom of Information Disclosure log prior to 1 April 2022

How do I complain if I am not happy with your response?

The first stage is to request an internal FOI review by emailing dpo@hertsmere.gov.uk, essentially a reassessment of the handling of the request. This can lead to refusals being reversed. If this fails, the requester can make a complaint to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO). This has to be done via the ICO’s complaints form from their website Information Commissioner's Office.

The ICO is the body responsible for enforcing the access to information laws.

Information Commissioner's Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF

Telephone: 0303 123 1113 or 01625 545745 if you would prefer not to call an '03' number.

Fax: 01625 524510

Further information

For further information please visit the Information Commissioner's Office website.