As members of a publicly-funded university, you may receive Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOI) or Environmental Information Regulation 2004 (EIR) requests about your research.
The University provides some useful and concise information for university members on its FOI pages and EIR pages. Note particularly:
- Once the university has received an FOI or EIR request, it has 20 working days to respond (Note: requests can come to any member of the university, not just the FOI officer).
- Both FOIA and EIR both include a number of exemptions and exceptions to protect information such as confidentiality or sensitive data or financially valuable information. If you are concerned, consult your department's FOI officer (if you have one) or the university FOI officer, or the Cambridge Environmental Office for help determining whether you have to release certain information.
Note: This page provides general guidance rather than legal advice - please follow the links provided for further support and advice.
Frequently Asked Questions
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What should I do when I receive an FOI request?
- you can provide the information yourself and it is part of your day-to-day activity (e.g. a prospectus or leaflet),
- or if you can provide the information, and you don’t believe there are any confidentiality or exemption issues.
First, note the date that you received the request for information. In many cases, you will be able to provide the information yourself without consulting an FOI officer.
You should provide the information yourself if:
Want more details? Consult the University's Guide for University Staff on the Freedom of Information Act 2000.
Have questions about your rights, responsibilities or ethics? Consult your departmental FOI officer (if you have one), or the University's FOI officer (contact information in FAQ below).
[ back to top ] - What is the difference between an FOI request and EIR request, and how do my responsibilities differ?
Rules for requests of environmental data are similar to regular FOI requests; however, in compliance with European requirements, publically funded bodies have greater responsibility to provide requested environmental data, so it is harder to meet the criteria for an exception (i.e. harder to avoid providing data).
In general, the rules and procedures are similar to those for responding to an FOI request (described above in 'What should I do when I receive an FOI request?').
If you think you have received a request for environmental information, please contact Cambridge's Environment Office for advice (contact details below).
[ back to top ] - What are my rights as a researcher for declining to provide data in response to an FOI or EIR request?
Much of the FOI/EIR rules pertaining to research data are still being solidified. If someone has requested information or data in writing/e-mail and you do not wish to provide it, contact the University FOI Officer immediately (contact information below). You may also wish to contact the FOI officer to discuss possible future requests for your data.
To give you a clearer idea of how the law pertains to research data, JISC has created this helpful fact sheet: Freedom of Information and Research Data: Questions and Answers
Chris Rusbridge, one of the authors of the fact sheet, gave a brief talk on this subject in a 2011 seminar hosted by CRASSH and the Incremental project:
[click to view]
'FAQ on Freedom of Information and Environmental Information Regulations requests for research Data' [14 mins 12 secs]. (PowerPoint slides).
He also participated in a short interview on key points:
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[click to view]
[3 mins 46 secs].
Mike Baillie (Queens University Belfast), who had to release tree ring data involuntarily under an ICO ruling, also provided some thoughts on the subject in a brief interview:
[click to view]
[1 mins 51 secs].
[ back to top ] - How do I contact the university's FOI officer?
phone: 01223 (3)64142
e-mail: foi@admin.cam.ac.uk
[ back to top ] - Who do I contact about requests for environmental data?
You should contact the Environmental Office with any questions about requests for environmental-related information.
phone: 01223 (3)39354 or 01223 (3)66758
e-mail: environment@admin.cam.ac.uk
[ back to top ] - How can I use the Freedom of Information Act to conduct my research?
While some high-profile cases have made many researchers nervous about their rights as data producers under the Freedom of Information Act (and similar requirements for Environmental Information Requests), the Act was primarily designed to help the public stay informed and to provide a formal route to accessing public records. Many researchers (in disciplines such as history, sociology, education, crimonology, government, etc) use FOI for this purpose, making research a bit easier and requesting data somewhat more clear cut.
Dr Michael Kandiah (Kings College London) provided some details and tips on this process in a 2011 seminar hosted byCRASSH and the Incremental project:
[click to view]
'Using the UK Freedom of Information Act – 'A Practical Guide for Academic Researchers' [20 mins, 51 secs] (PowerPoint slides)
[ back to top ] - Further Reading
- Information Commissioner's Office. The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) is the UK’s independent authority set up to uphold information rights in the public interest, promoting openness by public bodies and data privacy for individuals.
- The ICO's Freedom of Information Act page for organisations, including basic information and FAQs
- The ICO's Environmental Information Regulations page for organisations, including basic information and FAQs
- University of Cambridge Publication Scheme
- Freedom of Information Act 2000, Full Text
- Environmental Information Regulations (2004), Full Text
- Freedom of Information Act 2000 – Overview by JISC Legal Information. This overview paper describes the relevance of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA) for FE and HE.
- Freedom of Information Act 2000 – Essentials by JISC Legal Information. The FOI Essentials paper provides introductory guidance on the general right of public access to recorded information held by public authorities including colleges and universities.
[ back to top ]
- Related Links
- University of Cambridge FOI page
- University of Cambridge EIR page
- Information Commissioner's Office FOI page
- Information Commissioner's Office EIR page
- Downloads
- Guide for Cambridge Staff on FOI
- Video
- Chris Rusbridge: FAQ on FOI & EIR requests for research data (presentation)
- Michael Kandiah: Using the UK Freedom of Information Act (presentation)
- Chris Rusbridge: FOI/EIR requests for research data (interview)
- Mike Baillie: Unwelcome FOI/EIR requests (interview)