Thorpe St Andrew Town Council

The complainant requested governance records and an internal investigation report from Thorpe St Andrew Town Council (the Council). The Commissioner’s decision is that, beyond information about meetings published on its website, the Council holds no further information and has therefore complied with its obligations under section 1(1) in regards to part one of the request. Based on evidence available to the Commissioner, by the date of this notice the Council has not issued a substantive response to part two of the request. Therefore, the Commissioner finds a breach of section 10. The Commissioner’s decision is that the Council has failed to carry out adequate searches for the information requested in part three of the request, and therefore, on the balance of probabilities, has not determined if all information in scope of the request is held. The Commissioner’s decision is that the council was entitled to rely on section 40(2) of FOIA to withhold the information in scope of part four of the request. The Commissioner requires the Council to take the following steps to ensure compliance with the legislation:
•    Provide a substantive response to part two of the request, clarified on 21 February 2025, in accordance with its obligations under FOIA. 
•    Issue a fresh response to part three of the request following further searches. 
The Council must take these steps within 30 calendar days of the date of this decision notice. Failure to comply may result in the Commissioner making written certification of this fact to the High Court pursuant to section 54 of the Act and may be dealt with as a contempt of court.