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Last revised: 1 October 2008

Freedom of Information Publication Scheme


Under the Data Protection Act 1998 individuals have a right of access to certain information about themselves subject to certain exemptions.
The Freedom of Information Act 2000 is wider than the Data Protection Act 1998 because it allows members of the public access to “information” the Council holds under this document known as the “Publication Scheme”.
Councils now have to adopt and maintain a Publication Scheme setting out what, how and when that information will be published and whether a fee is charged. The scheme is intended to provide guidance on finding categorised information held by the Council – not just printed material but also that on the website.
In deciding what information should be included, the Council had particular regard to the public interest in making information available to the community.
Not all information held by the Council is available because an exemption may apply. This will be made clear in the Publication Scheme.
Copies of this Scheme are available electronically from the Council’s website at  update coming soon e-mail kennet@kennet for details, or copies can be obtained from the Council offices, at Browfort, Bath Road, Devizes, Wilts. during the office hours from 9.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. free of charge, from the Solicitor to the Council, who is also the Freedom of Information Officer.
If you have any suggestions about this scheme or the information the council publishes then please contact the Council’s Freedom of Information Officer

BACKGROUND


Kennet District Council

The Council serves a population of under 85,000 within a rural area of 96,661 hectares.

The District naturally falls into four distinct areas : Devizes, Marlborough, Pewsey and Tidworth/Ludgershall. The Council is responsible for a number of services such as:-
Street cleaning
public toilets
litter collection
Environmental Health  
Refuse collection
Recycling
Car parks and resident parking permits
Housing benefits
Council Tax
Business Rates collection
Electoral Register and election administration
Local Land Charges

Leisure (including Culture, sports pitches and sports development )
Full details of the Council’s services can be found here on the Council’s website under the A –Z of Services.
The current position with regard to the Publication Scheme The Scheme is currently being put together and is very much in its infancy. It is an evolving process, so any relevant suggestions will be considered.
The classification of the Information mirrors that which is currently on the Council’s Website , which is freely available and is shown below:
Contact Information – Addresses and telephone numbers of Council offices, leisure centres, information centres, etc. Includes email addresses and location map links.
Building Control – This section contains pages relating to:
Access and Facilities for Disabled People – Notes on the role of the Section and advice available.
Building Regulation Applications – Guidance to applicants, downloadable forms, and list of charges.
Control of Dangerous Structures – Guidance on action to take if a building is considered to be in a dangerous condition.
Control of Demolition Works - Guidance to applicants and downloadable form.
Street Naming and Numbering – Notes on the role of the Section, and downloadable form and guidance notes.
General information on the Building Control Team and contact details.
Business Rates Information on payment of Business Rates on-line.
Payments by Direct Debit, including downloadable mandate form.
Notes explaining Business Rates bills.
Employment and Jobseekers - Link to job vacancies at Kennet DC page. This holds details of current vacancies, with facility to view job packs and download application forms. Also deals with speculative job applications.
Essential Information – Mainly for people considering moving into the District.
Brief description of the main towns.
Communication distances.
Details of schools, colleges and universities.
Industries in Kennet
Labour and skills availability.
Leisure and recreation facilities.
House prices.
Population figures.
Estate Agents – Contact details for estate agents marketing commercial property.
Publications – Information on current initiatives, including a newsletter for businesses.
News & Events – Kennet News and Press Releases.
Community Liaison – These pages provide details of:
Community Strategies and Local Strategic Partnerships.
Marlborough Area Development Trust.
Devizes Area Community Plan.
Market & Coastal Towns Project
Tidworth Regeneration.
Conservation Advice – Describes the role of the Conservation Team, and has guidance notes for a range of topics including Conservation Areas, Historic Farm Buildings, Listed Buildings, Landscape Conservation Grants and works to trees and hedges.
Council Tax – Information for Council Tax payers
Download a Direct Debit form.
Accepted methods of payment.
Council Tax Charges for the Current Year (and previous years) by Parish.
Explanatory notes for Council Tax bills.
E-Info – Pages of links for local Internet access facilities, information about web sites for local towns and villages, and the Wiltshire & Swindon Community Portal.
Elections & Voting – Information for those wishing to register to vote (including downloadable form), and notices relating to future elections and results of recently contested ones.
Housing – Contains an explanation of the Council’s responsibilities regarding Housing. Also contains details of the Homes at Kennet service, and guidance for potential private sector landlords.
Leisure – There is a substantial volume of information in this section, although much of the event-related material is created and expired within fairly short periods of time.
What’s On – a diary of events viewable by date, town, category, etc. Also allows the public to register their own events on-line.
General information on the Leisure Centres at Devizes, Marlborough and Tidworth.
Details of Sports Clubs in the District, searchable by location or sport.
The Council’s role in Arts Development, and contact details for Arts Groups.
Several pages detailing the Active Sports programme.
Parking – Information relating to on- and off-street parking
Excess Charge Appeals Process.
Current Excess Charge amounts.
Explanation of various parking offences.
Location of lorry and coach parks.
Current car parking charges.
Location of car parks.
Details of cost and availability of season tickets.
Planning Applications – Details of Planning Applications received and determined.
Downloadable planning application forms and guidance notes.
Undetermined Applications – listed by parish and updated every night.
Application decided in the last 3 months, with details of decision and updated every night.
Weekly list of applications received (for last 4 weeks).
Refuse Collection – General information relating to waste, including on-line request forms.
Description of the services provided, including types of waste, frequency of collection, collection times, bulky household items and contact details.
Collection days by town/village/street.
Bank Holiday arrangements.
On-line submission of comments and complaints.
On-line forms relating to abandoned vehicles, backdoor collections, clinical and commercial waste, special collections, street cleaning and tagged bins.
Twinning – Information on twinning activities and funding within the District.
Tourism – Pages of information for tourists and visitors
View accommodation and book on-line.
Activities and places of interest (categorised).
Characteristics of the area.
Events.
Guides and walks.
Eating-places listed by town/village.
Tourist feedback and requests for leaflets.
Contact details for TICs.
Web Cams at Devizes Market Place and Avebury.
A-Z of Services – Brief descriptions of the Council’s services with contact details.
The Council’s Constitution – Detailed information relating to the Constitution.
Summary, explanation and general matters
Articles
Powers and Duties of Council and Committees.
Powers and Duties of the Standards Committee.
Schedule of Delegation to Officers.
Rules of Procedure for Council and Committee Meetings.
Access to Information Procedure Rules.
Budget and Policy Framework.
Overview and Scrutiny Committees.
Financial Regulations.
Contracts.
Officer Employment Procedure Rules.
Appeals Hearings Procedure Rules.
Members’ and Officers’ Codes of Conduct.
Member officer Protocol.
Monitoring Officer Protocol.
Member Guidance Planning Matters.
Whistleblowing Code.
Scheme of Members’ Allowances.
Management Structure
Council Information – General information relating to the Council, including details of:
How the Council works.
Attending meetings of the Council and Committees.
Making complaints about the Council.
Disagreement with the Council’s actions
Complaints to the Ombudsman.
Council Structure – Describes the current organisation of the Council’s Directorates.
Grants – Information on type and availability of grants from the Council, including examples of suitable projects, the grants policy and application forms.
Kennet Voice – Information on how the public can participate in the Council’s consultations.
Political Structure – Details of the current political structure of the Council, including:

Committee chairman and vice-chairman.
Council Members by name and ward.
Committee membership.
Meetings by date and committee.
Town and Parish Councils – details of Chairmen and Clerks.
Wiltshire CC Members for the Kennet District.
Member of Parliament.
Strategies & Plans – Links to all the Council’s policy and strategy documents, including:
Community Safety Strategy for Kennet.
Crime & Disorder Strategy for Kennet.
Best Value Performance Plan 2001-2002.
Best Value Performance Plan 2001-2002 Auditors Report.
Best Value Performance Plan 2002/3 (incorporating the 4-year strategy).
Wiltshire & Swindon Performance Summary 2002.
Economic Development Strategy.
Draft Stage 2 Review & Assessment of the Air Quality within Kennet District
Archaeological Research Agenda for the Avebury WHS.
Archaeology in the Avebury Area.
Avebury World Heritage Site Management Plan.
Flood Defence Policy.
Local Agenda 21 in Kennet.
Kennet Contaminated Land Strategy.
Waste, Recycling and Reduction Strategy.
Register of Charges.
Modernising Your Council – Consultation Results.
Housing Strategy 2000 – 2004 (Summary).
Kennet Local Plan Review 2011 – Update on progress, Second Deposit Period.
Planning Services Charter.
Data Protection Policy Statement.
Greening Kennet District Council Policy.
Human Resource Strategy.
Racial Equality Policy.
Four Year Strategy 2000 – 2004.
Your Information – Our Commitment [Data Protection].
Community Voice Wigglybus Report, and Wigglybus Mid Term Review.
This Publication Scheme will be included on the Council’s website as soon as possible in the New Year 2003). Please note - The Scheme may be amended from time to time as it evolves and the classes of information may change.
Exempt Information Some information will not be made available because they contain personal or commercially sensitive information. Also any information that may prejudice or relate to any of the following exemptions, will not be published:
Legal privilege
Audit functions
Law enforcement, investigations or proceedings
Health and Safety
Where publication might prejudice effective conduct of public affairs
Further exemptions are set out in the Freedom of Information Act 2000 which can be viewed on the HMSO website at www.legislation.hmso.gov.uk (External link)/
Charges
You can freely view and download any of the documents covered by this scheme and available on our website. However please note that your Internet provider may make a charge for some services)
Most paper publications will also be free of charge for personal use but the Council may charge you for photocopying, postage and packaging if it has to copy a larger document for you. Other documents may attract a charge, for example:
Planning related documents such as development briefs, decision notices, lists of planning applications
Kennet Local Plan
For full details of the Council’s fees and charges please see the Council’s Register of Charges on the Council’s website under Plans and strategies.
NOTE Some documents or publications will be subject to copyright and therefore reproduction is restricted. The copyright may be held by the Council or by other organisations, for example, most maps are subject to copyright by the Ordnance Survey.
Evolving process The Council distributes a number of leaflets which are updated frequently within the District . The leaflet stands can be found at a number of Council sites.
Further details are available from Lucy Handstock, Publicity Assistant, Kennet District Council, Browfort, Bath Road, Devizes, Wiltshire SN10 2AT.
OTHER PUBLIC REGISTERS
The Freedom of Information Officer is currently compiling a list of Public Registers held by the Council and the Publication Scheme will be amended accordingly.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
It is intended to include this within the scheme to assist the Community
PLEASE LET US HAVE YOUR VIEWS

e-mail kennet@kennet for more details