Youth Justice Agency freedom of information

The Freedom of Information Act 2000

The Freedom of Information Act 2000 came fully into force on 1 January 2005.  

The Youth Justice Agency is one of the public bodies covered by the terms of this Act.

The right to request information under this Act is not confined to citizens of the United Kingdom or from those resident in the United Kingdom. Requests can made by individuals of any nationality from anywhere in the world.

The request must be in writing and may be made by email, but the authority receiving the request has the right to confirm the address of the applicant. It must also relate to information that we already hold. The Act does not provide for the compilation of information.

Existing sources of information

The Youth Justice Agency provides information on many aspects of the work of the service on the Agency's website. Before making your request you may wish to view the Agency's website to see if the information you require has already been published. 

Making a request

If you believe that the information you require is not readily accessible (that is, it cannot be found on the web site for instance) applications for information can be made in one of two ways:

Via email: info@yjani.gov.uk

In order to provide an efficient service it would be helpful if you: 

• include your full postal address
• describe in as much detail as possible the information that you require - providing any relevant dates, events or subject-headings that will enable us to ascertain if we hold the information
• state if you have any preference for the format in which the information should be supplied (for example, electronic, paper, a summary or table of statistics and so on)

What happens next?

If the information you request is already reasonably accessible in the public domain (e.g. on the Agency web-site or published in a report) then we will point you to where you can obtain the information.  Similarly, if your request does not relate to the Youth Justice Agency then we will endeavour to provide you with the contact details of other authorities who may be able to help you. 

If your request relates to unpublished information held by the Youth Justice Agency then we will acknowledge your request and forward it to relevant business areas within the Agency to action accordingly.

We will provide you with a full response within 20 working days of receiving the request.

There are special circumstances when the 20 working day deadline can be extended. These include: 

1. If we write to you asking for clarification because we cannot understand exactly what information you are looking for.  The clock stops until we receive a response from you.
2. If legal advice is being sought in regard to applying the public interest test.  (i.e. If the Agency believes that the information requested is covered by an qualified exemption or exception it must apply the public interest test.  The public interest test favours disclosure where a qualified exemption or exception applies.  In such cases, the information may be withheld only if the Agency considers that the public interest in withholding the information is greater than the public interest in disclosing it) 

In all cases you will be kept informed if there is a delay.

Fees and exemptions

In the majority of cases there will not be a charge.

However the FOI Act makes provision for the Youth Justice Agency to charge fees where the total cost to provide information exceeds £600.  This equates to a charge of £25 per hour for 24 hours work and includes: 

• determining whether the Youth Justice Agency holds the information requested
• locating the information or document containing the information
• retrieving the information or a document which may contain the information
• extracting the information from a document containing it
• there may be cases where a request for information is so complex that it would exceed the cost threshold (in these instances you will be informed of the options open, such as refining your request so that it can be dealt with for free)

Can all information be released?

In some cases we will not be able to answer all or part of your request because the Youth Justice Agency does not hold the information.

In most cases the information that the Youth Justice Agency holds can be released but the FOI Act does include a number of exemptions covering such areas as national security and information provided in confidence.  If the Youth Justice Agency decides to apply an exemption you will be kept informed.

The supply if information under the Freedom of Information Act does not give the recipient or organisation that receives it the automatic right to re-use it in any way that would infringe copyright.  This includes, for example, making multiple copies, publishing and issuing copies to the public.

What about personal data?

Requests for personal data are covered by the Data Protection Act (1998).  If you would like a permanent copy of the data which you believe the Youth Justice Agency holds on you then a subject access request should be made in writing to: 

You will need to provide a cheque for £10 (made payable to the Youth Justice Agency) and provide adequate identification (e.g. copy of your birth certificate, driving licence, passports, etc) before your request is processed.  Once this has all been received a response will be issued within 40 calendar days.

What if I am dissatisfied with the response I receive?

The FOI Act makes provision for members of the public to appeal against the response given to a request for information, or to challenge the way in which their request was handled.

In the first instance, members of the public who are dissatisfied with either the response or the handling of their request should contact the relevant public authority. All complaints should be put in writing. For the Youth Justice Agency, any complaints or comments should be addressed to:

On receipt of a complaint we will contact you to acknowledge that it has been received. Your complaint will be handled by a panel made up of senior staff unconnected with the initial request. Where this is not possible you will be informed.

We will aim to complete the review of your request within 20 working days. Where this is not possible, you will be kept informed of progress and given a likely date for a reply.

The review of your request will consist of an analysis of the initial reasons for withholding the information and a consideration of how and why the Public Interest Test was applied. If necessary, the appeals panel will seek legal advice.

If the Complaints Panel overturns the original decision, the request will be processed and the information released to you, entirely or in part. If the panel upholds the original decision you will receive a letter detailing the reasons why we are unable to provide the information requested.

If you are not satisfied with our response to your complaint, you can contact the Information Commissioner.

Further information

• FOI Act
• The Data Protection Act 1998
• The Environmental Information Regulations 2004