How to File an FOI Request in the UK — Step-by-Step Guide

The Freedom of Information Act 2000 is one of the most powerful tools available to UK journalists. It gives anyone the right to request information held by public authorities, including government departments, local councils, the NHS, police forces, schools, and universities. Thousands of major news stories each year originate from FOI requests, from expense scandals to public health failings.

What the Freedom of Information Act Covers

The FOI Act applies to over 100,000 public authorities in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Scotland has its own legislation — the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 — which operates similarly but with some differences in exemptions and timescales. The Environmental Information Regulations 2004 (EIR) provide additional rights to access environmental data.

You can request any recorded information held by a public authority. This includes documents, emails, spreadsheets, databases, meeting minutes, reports, CCTV footage, and more. You do not need to explain why you want the information, and the authority cannot refuse simply because they do not like the reason for your request.

Step 1: Identify the Right Authority

Before filing your request, make sure you are sending it to the correct body. Information is held by the authority that created or received it. For example:

NHS spending data — the relevant NHS Trust or Clinical Commissioning Group
School inspection reports — Ofsted or the school itself
Police complaint statistics — the relevant police force or the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC)
Government policy documents — the relevant government department
Local planning decisions — the local council

Step 2: Draft Your Request

Your FOI request must be in writing (email is fine), include your real name, and describe the information you want clearly enough for the authority to identify it. Here are key principles for writing effective requests:

Be specific: "All spending on consultants by the Department of Health between January 2025 and December 2025" is better than "information about government spending."
Be reasonable in scope: Overly broad requests may be refused on cost grounds. Authorities can refuse if the request would cost more than £450 to process (£600 for central government).
Ask for data in a usable format: Request spreadsheets rather than PDFs where possible. You have the right to specify the format under Section 11 of the Act.
Avoid jargon: Use plain language that a non-specialist can understand. FOI officers may not be experts in the subject area of your request.

Step 3: Template for Your Request

Here is a template you can adapt for your own FOI requests:

Dear [Authority Name],
Under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, I am writing to request the following information:
[Describe the information clearly and specifically]
I would prefer to receive this information electronically, in spreadsheet format where applicable.
If any part of this request is unclear, please contact me for clarification before refusing any element. If the cost of complying with the full request exceeds the appropriate limit, I would be grateful if you could advise me on how to narrow the request to bring it within the cost limit.
I look forward to your response within 20 working days, as required by the Act.
Yours faithfully,
[Your name]

Step 4: Understand the Timescales

Public authorities must respond to FOI requests within 20 working days. If they need to consider the public interest test (for qualified exemptions), they may extend this period, but they must tell you why and give you an estimated response date. In practice, many authorities breach these deadlines, particularly for complex requests.

Step 5: Dealing with Refusals

Authorities can refuse FOI requests under various exemptions. The most commonly cited include:

Section 12 (Cost): The request exceeds the cost limit. Consider narrowing your request or splitting it into multiple smaller requests (but be aware of Section 12(4) aggregation rules).
Section 14 (Vexatious): The authority considers the request vexatious or repeated. This exemption is frequently misused and can be challenged.
Section 36 (Prejudice to effective conduct of public affairs): A qualified exemption requiring a public interest test.
Section 40 (Personal data): Information that would identify individuals. Consider whether you can request the data in anonymised or aggregated form.
Section 43 (Commercial interests): Information that would prejudice commercial interests. This exemption is often over-applied by authorities.

Step 6: Internal Review and the ICO

If your request is refused, you have the right to request an internal review. The authority must reconsider its decision, ideally by someone who was not involved in the original response. If the internal review upholds the refusal, you can complain to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO).

The ICO can order the authority to disclose the information. Its decisions can be appealed to the First-tier Tribunal (Information Rights), and from there to the Upper Tribunal and the courts. While this process can take months, some of the most significant FOI stories have resulted from successful appeals.

Advanced FOI Techniques

Experienced FOI journalists use several strategies to maximise their success rate:

Round-robin requests: Send the same request to multiple authorities (e.g., all 43 police forces) to build a national picture. Use WhatDoTheyKnow.com to manage multiple requests.
Follow-up requests: When you receive a partial disclosure, use the information to craft more targeted follow-up requests.
Disclosure logs: Check the authority's disclosure log for previous FOI responses that might contain the information you need, saving you the time of filing a new request.
EIR requests: Environmental Information Regulations have fewer exemptions than FOI and no cost limit (though authorities can charge a reasonable fee). If your request relates to the environment, consider filing under EIR instead.
Subject Access Requests: If you are investigating a specific individual's treatment by a public body (and have their consent), a Subject Access Request under GDPR may yield information that FOI would not.

Useful Resources

WhatDoTheyKnow — Track and manage your FOI requests online
Information Commissioner's Office — Appeal refused requests
Download our FOI request template
Read our guide to the best free tools for UK journalists