Freedom of Information (FOI) requests

We are currently experiencing an unusually high volume of information requests and there may be a delay in acknowledging your request. Your patience is appreciated during this challenging period.

The Freedom of Information (FOI) Act 2000 gives you the right to request access to recorded information held by the Council. The Environmental Information Regulations (EIR) 2004 provides the same right of access for 'environmental' information.

The Information Commissioner's Office provides guidance about how to access information from a public authority, or you can read a guide to making a freedom of information request on GOV.UK.

We publish a great deal of information on our website. If you’re about to submit a new request, please take a moment to check whether the information is already available on our FOI disclosure log or website.

If you are using AI to generate your request, we would recommend reading the following guidance before submitting your request to us. This advice comes from the Information Commissioner’s Office, the regulator for FOIA and EIR in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Using AI to help draft information requests?

AI tools can be helpful, but they can also introduce errors or create overly complex requests that increase the burden on public bodies and cost to the taxpayer.

When using AI to help draft an information request, please make sure the final wording has been checked and reflects your actual information needs.

Before you submit a request or secondary correspondence, check that:

You are only asking for the information you are genuinely looking for

AI tools sometimes generate broad or excessive wording that goes beyond the information you actually want or need.

The request is clear, concise and focused

Short, straightforward requests are easier for us to process and usually lead to quicker, more accurate responses.

There are no obvious factual inaccuracies

AI can misrepresent legislation or misstate what organisations do. Please review the text of your request carefully and don’t assume AI is right. If it has referred to something you don’t understand, check what it is; and the tone is appropriate.

The tone is appropriate

AI-generated content can sometimes sound abrupt, or otherwise inappropriate. Please check the tone before sending.

Why does this matter?

We are seeing an increase in requests and secondary correspondence that appear to have been drafted by generative AI. These can require additional clarification because of inaccuracies or unnecessary complexity. This creates delays for both requesters and our teams.

Need guidance?

You can find advice on making effective information requests on the Information Commissioner’s Office website.

Check our Disclosure Log

We publish responses to our previous FOI and EIR requests on our disclosure log. Responses from the last three years are available, and the disclosure log is searchable by keyword, month and year.

Search the FOI disclosure log

You can find further information on the operation of the disclosure log in our Disclosure log policy and procedure

Check our website

We publish lots of information on our Open Data and TransparencyOpen Data and Transparency and FOI publication scheme pages, including our contracts register, expenditure, staff and organisational information. You can also find information by using the keyword search at the top of this page or by using the A-Z site index.

Make a new FOI request

To make an FOI or EIR request, please use our online form.

Make a new FOI or EIR request

If you would like to receive the information in another format, for example, braille or large print, please let us know when you submit your request.

If you cannot make your request in writing, please contact us. We will help you to make the request another way - for example over the phone.

How we deal with your request

We have up to 20 working days to respond to requests, but we will respond as soon as we can. If your request is unclear, we will contact you to find out exactly what information you are looking for.

If there is a reason why we need to refuse or partially refuse your request, we will clearly explain why in our response. More information about why a request may be refused, can be found in the Information Commissioners Office (ICO) guidance.

Our FOI and EIRs Policy and Procedure - (PDF, 951KB) provides further details of our approach to handling requests. Details of how we process your personal data when you make a request, can be found on our privacy notice.

The FOI and EIRs Policy and Procedure above is currently under review. If you have any queries, please contact the Information Rights team at informationrequests@cheshireeast.gov.uk.

What to do if you’re not satisfied with our response

If you are dissatisfied with our response, you can ask us for an internal review. A senior officer not previously involved with your request will take a fresh look at the case, review whether the council made the correct decision initially, and address any concerns raised.

We aim to respond to all Internal Reviews within 20 working days. However, it may be necessary to extend the deadline by up to a further 20 working days where cases are complex or require consultation with third parties. If that is the case, you will be informed, and a new deadline will be confirmed (which will not exceed a total of 40 working days).

If you are not satisfied with the outcome of the Internal Review, you can then complain to the Information Commissioner.

Fees and charges

Some information is only available in hard copy or only available for inspection. Most requests are free, but you might be asked to pay a small amount for photocopies or postage. You will be told in advance if there will be a fee.

Other ways to make a request

Our online form is the most efficient way to make your request. However, you can also make requests by the following methods:

by email to informationrequests@cheshireeast.gov.uk

EIR requests can be made verbally – but we would recommend that you make your request in writing

by post to Information Rights Team, Cheshire East Council, Delamere House, Delamere Street, Crewe, CW1 2LL. This is the slowest and least environmentally friendly way to correspond with us, and we ask that you do not make requests via post, if possible.

Further information