vstorm-co Handling an information request
A request for recorded information is a statutory process from the day it arrives, whatever it is called and whichever inbox it lands in.
Recognise one
Any written request for recorded information. It does not need to name the legislation, and it counts if it arrives in a complaint or a social media message.
Log immediately
Date received · requester and contact route · what is asked for, verbatim · whether it is for their own personal data or for recorded information generally — because the regimes and the clocks differ.
Clarify narrowly
Only where genuinely unclear, and in one message listing every ambiguity. Serial clarification requests read as obstruction and the clock does not always stop.
Route for decision
Exemptions, redaction, cost limits and public-interest tests are decided by the information officer. Assemble the material and the timeline; decide nothing.
Never
Refuse, apply an exemption, release without review, or let the request sit because it looks unreasonable.