Freedom of Information Act 2000

Not all types of information are disclosable under the Act, as some can be withheld under a number of Exemptions.  The Freedom of Information Act does not cover personal information.

Exemptions which may prevent information being released to the public include, but are not limited to:

• Information available elsewhere (Section 21)
• Information that would cost the Council more than £450 to gather (Section 12)
• Personal Information (Section 40)
• Information that would prejudice an organisation's Commercial Interests (Section 43)
• Information prohibited from disclosure by law (Section 44)

Refusal notices:

Business Rates and Council Tax Credits - Refusal Notice [49.98KB]

For more information visit the Information Commissioner's website.

To view all of Mendip District Council's open data on data.gov.uk please visit:  Mendip District Council INSPIRE Data

What is the Freedom of Information Act?

The Freedom of Information Act 2000 came into force on 1 January 2005, allowing the public new rights of access to information held by the Council .

The Act gives you the right to request information from the Council. It is intended to promote a culture of openness and accountability and, therefore, create a better understanding of how we carry out our duties, make decisions and provide services to the public. Requests must be responded to within 20 working days.  The Council will send you an acknowledgement letter once a request has been received to inform you of this deadline. Requests must be responded to within 20 working days and the Council will send you an acknowledgement letter once a request has been received to inform you of this deadline. For more, please see the Council's Freedom of Information Policy: Freedom of Information Policy [228.67KB]

The Council's Publication Scheme is available in the web pages listed below.

Is there a charge for accessing information?

The council does not normally charge for providing information under the Freedom of Information Act, Environmental Information Regulations or the Data Protection Act. The council will normally provide information in an electronic format via email free of charge, but is able to make a reasonable charge in certain circumstances, such as printing additional copies or converting information held in a physical format to a digital format. This will be done on a cost recovery basis only, and all charges below £10 will normally be waived. For more information on charging see the Freedom of Information, Environmental Information and Data Protection Access to Information Charging Policy:  FOI EIR and DPA and FOI Access to Information Charging Policy [208.97KB]