1. What is an FOI Request?
A Freedom of Information (FOI) request is your legal right to access recorded information held by public authorities under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA).
Information you can request includes:
- Policies, procedures, and internal guidance
- Minutes and agendas from meetings (board meetings, committees)
- Financial reports, spending records, and expense claims
- Statistics and data sets
- Email correspondence relating to official business
2. Why Make an FOI Request? Strategic Uses
- Uncover evidence: Obtain the official record of decision-making processes for use in a grievance, regulatory complaint, or legal action.
- Expose hypocrisy: Identify inconsistencies between an organisation's public statements and its internal policies or actions.
- Create leverage: Asking for information about a specific issue signals to an authority that their conduct is under scrutiny.
- Promote transparency: Hold publicly funded bodies accountable for their spending and governance.
3. Who Can You Send an FOI To?
Any public authority covered by the FOIA, including universities, NHS bodies and trusts, local and central government departments, the police, and publicly funded research bodies.
4. How to Make an Effective Request
Identify the Correct Contact
Check the authority's website for a dedicated FOI page with the correct email address. Using the official contact ensures your request is logged correctly and the 20-day clock starts.
Write a Clear and Focused Request
Your request must be in writing — email is best. Be precise. A vague request can be rejected or run into the cost limit. Use the template below for a robust and legally sound request.
Understand the Cost Limit
Authorities are not obliged to comply if the cost of locating information exceeds £450 (18 hours at £25/hour). Use precise date ranges and ask for specific documents rather than "everything about X."
5. Understanding and Challenging Refusals
An authority must respond within 20 working days. If they refuse, they must state which legal exemption they are applying.
Used to refuse information about identifiable living individuals.
If the personal data you need is your own, use a SAR instead.
Used if disclosing information would harm commercial interests.
Argue that the public interest in transparency outweighs the potential harm. Particularly strong for publicly funded projects.
A broad exemption to protect internal deliberations.
Requires the "reasonable opinion" of a senior "qualified person." In your internal review, ask for evidence this process was followed correctly.
Used if the information is claimed to already be publicly available.
If you cannot find it, state that the information is not reasonably accessible and ask for a direct link or copy.
6. The Escalation Path
Request an Internal Review
You have 40 working days to ask for an internal review. State clearly why you believe the initial decision was incorrect and why any exemptions were wrongly applied.
Escalate to the ICO
If still unsatisfied after the internal review, complain to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO). The ICO can order the authority to release the information.
7. FOI and SAR: Using Them Together
The official meeting minutes about a redundancy policy. The employer's official bullying and harassment policy.
The emails between managers discussing you in relation to that redundancy. Your HR file and all records of how your bullying complaint was handled.