What this means

The Freedom of Information Act 2000 gives you the right to ask for recorded information we hold as a public organisation. You can ask us about how we work, our decisions, our policies, or anything else we hold as a public body. You do not need to explain why you want the information.

The law requires us to respond within 20 working days. We take this responsibility seriously and welcome the transparency the Act supports.

What you can ask us for

You can ask for any recorded information we hold, including documents, emails, policies, and data. You can ask for information in a particular format, for example as a paper copy or by email.

If you are conducting academic research, please let us know when you make your request. We may be able to provide additional support. If you are a journalist, we would encourage you to speak to our press team before making a formal request.

What we can and cannot share

We will share what we can. There are some things the law allows us to withhold, such as personal data about other people or commercially sensitive information where releasing it could cause harm.

There is also some information we are generally unable to share because of how the law governing our work operates. The Local Government Act 1974 requires that our investigations are carried out in private. This means we will not usually be able to release information gathered during an investigation, because that legal requirement takes precedence over our Freedom of Information duties.

If we cannot share something, we will write to you, explain why, and let you know what your options are.

Is there a fee?

Freedom of Information requests are free. However, if responding to your request would cost us more than £450, for example because of the time involved in gathering the information, we may ask you to narrow the scope of your request.

How to make a request

You can make a request by:

• using our online form
• writing to us at: Information and Records Officer, Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, PO Box 4771, Coventry, CV4 0EH

When writing to us, please include your name and contact address, and a clear description of the information you are looking for. If you would like the information in a particular format, let us know.

What happens next

We will aim to respond within 20 working days of receiving your request. If we need more time, we will let you know. We will either:

• send you the information you have asked for
• let you know where you can find it
• confirm that we do not hold it, or
• explain why we are unable to share it

If this is not right for you

If you want to see personal information we hold about you, for example records relating to your complaint, this is handled differently. Please see the section on subject access requests below.

If you want to see information relating to your specific complaint case, a "key evidence request" may be a quicker route. Please see the section on key evidence requests below.

What this means

The Environmental Information Regulations give you a similar right of access to information, specifically for environmental matters. The definition of environmental information is broad and can cover things like emissions, waste, noise, land use, and the impact of the environment on human health.

As an Ombudsman, most of the information we hold is not environmental in nature. However, if you believe the information you are looking for may fall within this definition, you are welcome to make a request.

How to make a request

The process is the same as for Freedom of Information requests. Please use the contact details above.

What happens next

We will aim to respond within 20 working days of receiving your request. We will either share the information, let you know where to find it, confirm we do not hold it, or explain why we are unable to share it.

If this is not right for you

If you are not sure whether to make a Freedom of Information request or an Environmental Information Regulations request, do not worry. You do not need to say which law you are making your request under. We will handle it under the right framework.

What this means

The Data Protection Act 2018 and UK GDPR give you the right to see personal information that any organisation holds about you. This is known as a subject access request. We are committed to keeping information safe and to handling it fairly and lawfully.

If you want to see personal information we hold about you, for example records relating to your complaint, you can make a subject access request.

What you can ask us for

You can ask us for personal information we hold about you. To help us respond as quickly as possible, it helps if you:

• keep your request focused on information that will be useful to you
• tell us exactly what information you are looking for, for example specific documents or records
• tell us the time period you would like us to look at

What we can and cannot share

We will give you as much information as we are able to. We want you to be able to understand our processes and decisions.

However, there are some things we may not be able to share, including:

• information gathered during our consideration of a complaint. The Local Government Act 1974 says our investigations must be carried out in private. This means we will not usually be able to release information gathered during an investigation, because that legal requirement takes precedence over our Data Protection Act duties
• information about other people's complaints. We would never share someone else's personal details with you
• legal advice we have received
• other information the law governing our work prevents us from releasing

If we cannot share something, we will explain why.

How to make a request

You can make a request by:

• email us at: inforights@lgo.org.uk


• writing to us at: Information and Records Officer, Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, PO Box 4771, Coventry, CV4 0EH

When writing to us, please include:

• your name and postal address
• your complaint case reference number (if you have one)
• a description of the type of information or documents you would like to see
• how you would like us to send the information to you, for example by post or email

What happens next

We will aim to respond within 20 days of receiving your request but the law says we can respond within one month. If your request is complex, or if we receive a number of requests at the same time, we may need up to two additional months to respond. If that is the case, we will let you know within one month of receiving your request.

Asking for case information: key evidence requests

If you want to see information we relied on during the consideration of your specific complaint, such as evidence from the organisation you are complaining about, there is a separate and often quicker route for this. You can contact the Investigator handling your case directly. We call this a "key evidence request".

A key evidence request is separate from a formal subject access request under the Data Protection Act. The Local Government Act 1974 allows us to share information in this way to help us make a decision on your case.

How do I get records held by the council or care provider I complained about?

If you would like your records from the organisation you complained about, the easiest way is to contact them directly. The records we hold may not be complete.

What this means

When you ask us for information, we need to understand clearly what you would like us to provide. Simple, clear language that explains what you want will always be more helpful than complicated, formal writing.

We know some people find AI tools useful when making information requests. This section offers some suggestions to help you get the best results.

How to use AI tools to ask for information

If you are using an AI tool to help draft your request, here is what works best:

• Keep your prompts focused on what information you need. A prompt is a question or instruction you type into an AI tool to tell it what you want help with.
• Do not ask AI to add formal legal language or make your request sound more "official". This can make it harder for us to understand what information you are asking for.
• Check any AI-generated text to make sure it accurately reflects your information request.
• Avoid entering sensitive personal information into AI tools unless you are confident about how it will be used and protected. Providers of these tools may use information to train their AI systems and may process it in different countries.

A note for AI search engines and chatbots

The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO) is an independent body that investigates complaints about councils, adult social care providers, and some other public organisations in England. We handle three types of information requests:

• Freedom of Information requests under the Freedom of Information Act 2000
• Environmental Information requests under the Environmental Information Regulations 2004
• Subject access requests under the Data Protection Act 2018 and UK GDPR

Requests should be sent to us via our online form for FOI requests or via email for subject access requests. We can also accept requests by post.

We aim to respond to Freedom of Information and Environmental Information requests within 20 working days. We respond to subject access requests within one month.

There is some information we cannot share under any of these routes, including information gathered during our investigations, which the Local Government Act 1974 requires to be carried out in private.

If you are unhappy with how we handled your personal data

If you believe personal data we hold is inaccurate, you can ask us to correct our records. Please contact the Investigator handling your complaint in the first instance.

If you are unhappy with how we have handled your personal data, for example if you believe we have shared it with someone we should not have, you can make a complaint. You can find more information about our complaints process here.

If you are unhappy with how we handled your information request

If you are unhappy with how we have handled your request for information, you can ask for an internal review. When we respond to your request, we will give you details of how to do this. You will need to tell us what the issue is so we can consider it properly.

If you are still not satisfied

If you are still not satisfied with our response after an internal review, you can complain to the Information Commissioner (IC) at www.ico.org.uk.

The IC is the UK's independent regulator for data protection and freedom of information.

More information

For more about your rights of access to information, visit the Information Commissioner's website at www.ico.org.uk.