Taith is registered as a data controller with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). As a controller and processor of personal data we have obligations in relation to individuals’ personal information and to ensure that any sharing of personal data is undertaken responsibly in line with data protection legislation.
Additionally, Taith is a Welsh Government funded programme delivered by International Learning Exchange Programme (ILEP) Ltd, a subsidiary of Cardiff University. The University is a public authority for the purposes of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and the Environmental Information Regulations 2004. As such Taith must comply with valid requests from the public to provide information it holds unless that particular information is exempt from disclosure.
The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 2000 gives the public the right to access or request information held by public authorities.
We are committed to openness and transparency and publish a wide range of information on Taith’s activities on our website. We also maintain a publication scheme which sets out information routinely made available to the public.
If the information is not available through our website or publication scheme, you can submit a written request for information. Certain information is exempt from disclosure and we have a right to refuse to respond to vexatious and repeated requests. A full list of exemptions is available at the Information Commissioner’s Office.
The Environmental Information Regulations 2004 govern requests for environmental information. We publish information on Taith’s commitment to environmental sustainability on our website, and, where information is not published you can submit a request for environmental information.
Environmental information includes:
- the state of any water or air, the state of any flora or fauna, the state of any soil, or the state of any natural site or other land
- waste, emissions and discharges into the environment
- any activities or administrative or other measures (including any environmental management programmes) which are designed to protect these
- the state of human health and safety, including the contamination of the food chain.
It is not always possible to release environmental information. Details of exceptions to the duty to disclose environmental information are in the Environmental Information Regulations 2004.
UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018 set out the principles and other obligations that organisations have to follow to ensure that an individual’s personal data is collected, used and held responsibly. You can find more about how Taith approaches this responsibility on our Privacy policy page. We set out details on what personal data we collect, how it can be used and to whom we can disclose the data. We also give information on an individual’s rights and how they can exercise those rights, including the right of access.
Before submitting any request for information, we encourage you to check our publication scheme to ensure the information is not already publicly available to save time and resources.
For a request to be valid under FOIA it must:
- be made in writing;
- include your name and an address for correspondence;
- describe the information you are requesting.
Please email FOI and Environmental Information requests (EIR) to enquiries@taith.wales.
If it is not clear from your correspondence what information you are looking for, we will need to ask you for clarification, and this may affect the timeframe for providing a response. Information regarding the legal requirements for making a valid request under FOIA and EIR is available on the Information Commissioner’s website.
You can expect a response from us within 20 working days of the receipt of your request and our duty is to:
- confirm whether we hold the information and
- either provide a copy or summary of the information or tell you why the information has been withheld
There are a number of types of information that Taith holds which we are not required to release. These are referred to as exemptions and include:
- personal data covered under the Data Protection Act
- information that is to be published in the future
- information that would prejudice commercial interests
- security details and information that might endanger any person
- information that would prejudice the conduct of public affairs
- information that was originally provided in confidence and is still confidential in legal terms
- information available in our publication scheme.
In some cases, we are required to consider the public interest in disclosing the information and we will explain this to you in our response. Where Taith refuses to release information in response to a request we will state which exemption applies and normally provide an explanation. Further, in certain circumstances legislation we are not obliged to confirm or deny whether we hold the requested information, and our response will set out our reasons.
Taith reserves the right to refuse vexatious and repeated requests.
A full list of exemptions is available from the Information Commissioner’s Office.
Charges may be made where the costs of reproducing the information in the format requested and any postage/courier fees required total £10 or more. Usually, no charge will be made for staff time in responding to the request.
Under FOIA we are not required to respond to requests where it would cost us more than £450 in staff time to locate and retrieve the information.
If we choose to respond to such a request, a fees notice would be issued to the enquirer setting out the estimated costs involved. The work would only proceed when the fee had been collected. If the fee was not collected within 60 working days the request will be deemed to be withdrawn.
Further information can be found in our Information Charging policy.
If you are dissatisfied with the outcome of your request, or the process of handling your request, you can submit a request for an Internal Review in writing to:
email: enquiries@taith.wales
or:
Head of Operations
Taith
Units 5a and 5b
Spark
Maindy Road
Cathays
Cardiff
CF24 4HQYour submission for an Internal Review should be made within 40 working days of the issue of our initial response to your request. Please provide your unique reference number of your request, information on why you are dissatisfied and any detail you would like us to consider as part of the Internal Review process.
We will aim to provide you with a response to your request for an Internal Review within 20 working days. We will let you know if we expect the review to take longer than 20 days and provide you with an anticipated date by which you can expect to receive a response.
If you are dissatisfied with the outcome to your request for an Internal Review you have the right to apply to the Information Commissioner’s Office at:
Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF