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Why councils are a prime FOI target
Every local authority in the UK is a public authority under FOIA 2000 (or FOISA 2002 in Scotland). Councils control planning, housing allocation, social care budgets, waste contracts, parking income, and hundreds of millions of pounds of public spending. They employ large numbers of staff, commission external contractors, and make decisions that directly affect residents’ lives. Yet they also have strong institutional incentives to resist transparency — particularly on politically sensitive topics.
The key advantage for journalists is that councils are also subject to the Local Government Transparency Code 2015 — a separate set of mandatory proactive disclosure obligations that require councils to publish specific datasets without being asked. Check what is already public before filing a request. The Code requires publication of all expenditure over £500, all contracts over £5,000, organograms, senior salaries, parking data, fraud data, land assets, and grants to voluntary bodies.
For journalists, the most effective council FOI strategy is: check what is already mandatorily disclosed, search existing disclosure logs and WhatDoTheyKnow, file targeted statistical requests rather than broad narrative requests, and know which exemptions are most likely and how to challenge them.
High-value council FOI topics
- 1Planning: all applications from a named developer or on a named site; internal emails between officers and councillors about a planning decision; s.106 obligations and whether they were fulfilled.
- 2Housing: number of void council properties by duration; use of bed-and-breakfast for homeless families; housing waiting list numbers by bedroom size; enforcement actions against unlicensed landlords.
- 3Social care: adult safeguarding enquiry outcomes; delayed discharge from hospital data; direct payment recipients; complaints received and upheld against care providers.
- 4Waste and parking: contracts with named waste management firms; parking fine revenue; income from parking permits by zone.
- 5Council tax: exemption and discount statistics; enforcement agency contracts and fees; debt written off.
- 6Councillor expenses and allowances: Special Responsibility Allowances by post-holder; travel and subsistence claims by named councillor.
- 7Contracts: all contracts with a named supplier; procurement decisions for IT systems; agency and interim staff spend.
- 8Equality data: grievance and disciplinary outcomes by protected characteristic; pay gap by directorate.
Red flags in a council FOI refusal
- S.12 cost limit cited without a breakdown of how the cost was estimated — ask for a detailed cost estimate.
- S.40 personal data used to withhold statistics (not personal records) — aggregate data is not personal data.
- S.43 commercial interests cited for a contract that has already been awarded — post-award, commercial sensitivity is usually much lower.
- S.36 effective conduct of public affairs cited — check whether a "qualified person" gave the required opinion, and who they are.
- An exemption cited but no public interest test carried out for a qualified exemption.
- A broad claim that the information is "not held" when you know from other sources that it exists.
- A refusal to confirm or deny (s.1(1)(a)) where this is not supported by a specific statutory basis.
- An excessive delay in even acknowledging receipt of the request.
Council FOI request checklist
- Checked the Transparency Code mandatory publications on the council website before filing.
- Searched WhatDoTheyKnow and the council's own disclosure log for similar previous requests.
- Targeted statistics and records rather than asking officers to create a new analysis.
- Specified a date range narrow enough to stay well under the £450 cost limit.
- Identified the correct directorate and addressed the request to the FOI officer.
- If refused on s.12: drafted a narrowed follow-up request targeting the most newsworthy subset of data.
- If refused on s.40: challenged whether the information is genuinely personal data or aggregate statistics.
- If refused on s.43: assessed whether the contract is post-award and whether commercial sensitivity remains.
- Noted the 20-working-day response deadline and set a diary reminder for follow-up.
- Prepared the internal review template for a refused or late response.
Build your council FOI request in minutes
Use our FOI Request Builder to generate a well-structured, compliant request for any UK local authority. Includes council-specific wording and tips.
Open FOI Request BuilderCommon mistakes
- Asking for "all emails about X" — this almost always triggers a s.12 cost limit refusal. Ask for statistics or specific documents instead.
- Not checking what is already mandatorily disclosed under the Transparency Code before filing.
- Filing one large request when four smaller targeted ones would each stay under the cost limit.
- Accepting a s.43 commercial refusal on an already-awarded contract without challenging it.
- Not requesting an internal review before going to the ICO — the ICO expects you to have exhausted internal routes first.
- Allowing a s.36 refusal to stand without asking who the "qualified person" is and what opinion they gave.
- Forgetting that councillors' allowances and council officers' salaries are mandatory Transparency Code publications — they should not be behind an FOI request.
Related guides
EIR vs FOIA
When to use EIR for council environmental data — planning decisions, contaminated land, flood risk.
Central Government FOI
Departments, Cabinet Office, and arm's-length bodies — cost limits, s.35, and s.36.
Covering Local Government
Council meetings, public access rights, and scrutiny under the Local Government Act 1972.
FOI Request Builder
Generate a compliant, targeted FOI request for any UK public authority.
Primary sources
- Freedom of Information Act 2000 (legislation.gov.uk)
- Local Government Transparency Code 2015 (gov.uk)
- ICO — Section 12 cost limit guidance (ico.org.uk)
- WhatDoTheyKnow — council disclosure logs (mySociety)
- ICO — Section 40 personal data guidance (ico.org.uk)
- Local Government Act 1972 — public access to meetings (legislation.gov.uk)
Frequently asked questions
Is every UK council subject to FOIA?
Yes. All local authorities in England, Wales, Northern Ireland, and Scotland are public authorities under FOIA 2000 (or FOISA 2002 in Scotland). This includes county councils, district councils, unitary authorities, metropolitan borough councils, London boroughs, the City of London, parish councils (though requests to very small parish councils may face practical limitations), combined authorities such as Mayoral Combined Authorities, and fire and rescue authorities.
What is the Local Government Transparency Code and what must councils publish proactively?
The Local Government Transparency Code 2015 (applicable to English councils) requires mandatory proactive publication of: all expenditure over £500 (transaction-level); all contracts and purchase orders over £5,000; organisation charts (to at least two levels below chief executive); councillor allowances and expenses; senior officer salaries (by grade, not name, unless they consent); parking account data; fraud data; grants to voluntary organisations; and land and building assets. Check these before filing an FOI — the data may already be there, and you can target your request for what is missing.
How does the s.12 cost limit work for council requests?
Under s.12 FOIA, a council can refuse a request if the estimated cost of complying exceeds £450 (the limit for local authorities — £600 applies to central government). The cost is calculated at a notional rate of £25/hour, so £450 = 18 hours of officer time. Councils sometimes overestimate. You can challenge by narrowing your request to specific date ranges, specific officers, or specific contract types. Alternatively, split a broad request into several smaller focused ones filed on different dates — each must be under the limit independently, though councils can aggregate requests from the same requester over a 60-day period.
Can I get the names of council officers involved in a decision via FOI?
Partly. Senior officers' names and job titles are usually public (organograms are a mandatory Transparency Code disclosure). For lower-grade officers, s.40 (personal data) will often be cited. You can challenge this where the officer was acting in an official capacity — the ICO has found that the names of officers exercising public functions are not necessarily exempt under s.40. Ask for the grade, role, and department of the officer if not the name, or request redacted versions of documents that identify the officer by post.
What is a disclosure log and how do I use it?
Many councils maintain a disclosure log — a list of previously answered FOI requests and their responses, usually published on the council website or on WhatDoTheyKnow. Before filing your own request, search the disclosure log. If the same information was released to someone else recently, the authority must release it to you too (under the principle of equal access). Disclosure logs also show you what questions other journalists and campaigners have already asked — useful intelligence about what topics have been investigated.