Making a request to access information

Table of Contents

Freedom of Information Requests

Freedom of Information Act 2000, is an Act of Parliament that allows public access to information held by public bodies such as The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead Council.

Before you start

  1. We already publish large amounts of information as part of our publication scheme. You may find the information you are looking for here, so please check first. 
  2. If you are unhappy with something, you can make a complaint or Contact your local Councillor

We process Freedom of Information requests in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and our policy. You have the right to request access to any information held by the council. 

How to make a request

You can make a request by filling out our online form.

Alternatively you can contact us by:

  • Email: foi@rbwm.gov.uk
  • Post: FOI Request, Information Governance Team, Town Hall, Saint Ives Road, Maidenhead SL6 1RF.

What to include

  1. Try to be as clear and specific as possible regarding the information you are requesting. You can specify names, date ranges and specific departments. 
  2. Think about whether you are looking for a record or if you need help with a query which might be better directed to customer services. 
  3. Please specify if you would like information in a particular format. We will follow your preference as far as reasonably practicable.

Timings

We will respond to your request within 20 working days of when we have received the request. Please make sure your request is as specific and detailed as possible to enable us to provide you with the information you are looking for. If we need further clarification, we will contact you for more details and the 20 day response time will not start until we have received your clarifications.

We request that you give us enough time to respond to your request before submitting a new FOI for the same information.

Charge

There is no charge to make an FOI request. However, should the request take more than 18 hours to process, we have the right to charge a fee or refuse it. If this is the case, we will contact you to see if you can be more specific regarding the information you require and may provide you advice on how you can narrow the search so that we are able to fulfil your request for information. 

Exemptions and Refusal 

There are 23 exemptions in the Freedom of Information Act. These include information which is commercially sensitive or has been provided in confidence. If your request for information falls into a category, we may refuse to provide you with the information. If this is the case, we will tell you the reason why and what exemption we have applied.

We can also refuse to provide you with information which would cost over £450 or take over 18 hours to collate. 

We cannot provide you with records which we do not, or no longer hold.

Additional content block

Environmental Information

We process requests for information relating to the elements in accordance with the Environmental Information Regulations 2004. You have a right to request access to any information held by the council that is related in any way to the elements (fire, water, air and land).

Information requested under EIR does not need to be in the form of a written request but can be requested verbally by calling our Information Management team on 01628 796029. However we recommend that you write or email with a request so that you have your own record of it.

You will receive the information (unless an exception applies) within 20 working days.

Complaints

If you are unhappy with a response, you can request an internal review. You should request the review by email within two months of receiving your response. We will then review the information and provide a response, usually within 20 working days. There is no charge for carrying out a review.

You can make a request by emailing: foi@rbwm.gov.uk

Independent Review

If you are still unhappy with our response following our internal review, you can contact the Information Commissioners Office. 

Website: Information Commissioners Office

Phone: 0303 123 1113.

Information governance team : Contact details

For further information, please contact us by:

Information Governance Team - Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead
Town Hall, St Ives Road
Maidenhead SL6 1RF