Guide to Our Publication Scheme
You are here:- Home / Your Fire and Rescue Service / Guide to Our Publication Scheme
What a Publication Scheme is and why it has been developed
One of the aims of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (which is referred to as FOIA in the rest of this document) is to ensure that public authorities are clear and proactive about the information they will make available to people. To achieve this they must produce a Publication Scheme setting out the following:
- The classes of information they publish or intend to publish.
- The manner in which the information will be published.
- Whether the information is available free of charge or if a payment is required.
Our Publication Scheme complies with these requirements. Everything contained within it is either available for you to read, to download from our website using the links in this document, or is available in traditional document form.
Not all information that we hold is available to the public; for example, information about national security or court records.
The person responsible for maintenance of this scheme is the Head of Democratic and Administrative Services.
How to apply for Information
You can request information by contacting any of the sources found in the listings. The following symbols are used throughout this document to identify the availability of the information:
The Publication Scheme guides you to information which we currently publish or will publish in the future.
The following detailed information is available, and is divided into seven categories as follows:
- Category 1: Who we are and what we do
- Category 2: What we spend and how we spend it
- Category 3: What our priorities are and how we are doing
- Category 4: How we make decisions
- Category 5: Our policies and procedures
- Category 6: Lists and registers
- Category 7: The services we offer
Category 1: Who we are and what we do
The Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Combined Fire Authority was constituted under the Leicestershire Fire Services (Combination Scheme) Order 1996. It comprises 17 Elected Members that have been selected as follows:
- Leicester City Council: five members
- Leicestershire County Council: eleven members
- Rutland County Council: one member
Representative members of each Council sit on the Authority which then oversees the Service’s finances, strategies and operations.
The Combined Fire Authority’s vision is to ‘help create safer communities in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland’. The services provided to the communities are delivered through four Directorates which are Corporate Resources, Community Safety, Organisational Development, and Finance and Corporate Risk Management.
The Combined Fire Authority is responsible for carrying out a range of duties to comply with various pieces of legislation. These include:
- To plan and provide arrangements for fighting fires and protecting life and property from fires.
- To secure the provision of sufficient personnel, services and equipment to deal with all normal circumstances, as well as adequate training.
- To ensure arrangements are in place to receive calls and summon members of the fire and rescue service
- To gather information on the character of buildings and water supplies.
- To secure arrangements to minimise damage to property caused by firefighting.
- To make provision for rescuing persons from road traffic collisions.
- To carry out a wide range of activities to promote community fire safety with the aim of preventing deaths and injuries in the home and reducing the impact of fire on the community as a whole.
- To enforce laws providing for fire safety within its area.
- To deal with spillages and accidental release of substances endangering life or the environment e.g. chemical or toxic substances inadvertently released.
- To respond to a wide range of other emergencies, such as flooding and terrorist incidents.
The following detailed information is available:
Category 2: What we spend and how we spend it
Category 3: What our priorities are and how we are doing
Category 4: How we make decisions
Category 5: Our policies and procedures
Policies and procedures about the employment of staff:
Category 6: Lists and registers
Registers open to public inspection:
Category 7: The services we offer
Will I have to pay for the Information?
A single copy of any information included in this Publication Scheme will be provided free of charge.
Can't find what you are looking for?
If you cannot find what you are looking for, it might be because the type of information you require will need to be retrieved from our files, or, that it is exempt or contains personal data which is covered by the Data Protection Act 1998.
How to apply for information not included in the Publication Scheme
You are able to ask the Authority for information which is not already published elsewhere nor exempt under the FOIA.
Under the FOIA you will have the right to ask for information to be provided in a particular way and we will try to meet your needs. You will be able to ask for assistance if you have any difficulty in making an application.
We will help you as much as possible but we are not required to look for the information unless you have requested it in writing (Including email or fax). The request must:
- Be clear and understandable with enough detail to help us locate the information
- State your name and address so that we can respond directly to you
- Identify the form in which you want to receive the information
This will ensure that your application is dealt with as quickly as possible. Some documents may include exempt information so you will only be provided with the information which is not exempt. You only have a right to information and not necessarily to documents.
However, in some instances the information you require may take a little longer to retrieve or cost more to copy, so you may be charged to cover administration costs. If a fee is required, you will be informed about how much you will have to pay and who the payment should be made to. We will only provide you with the information upon receipt of the payment.
Any fee charged will be calculated by looking at the costs directly and reasonably incurred for locating the information and providing it to you. If a fee is to be charged, you will be sent a 'fees notice' which you will have to pay within three months of your request. You will not receive the information requested until you have paid the fees notice.
If the estimated cost of providing the information is above the appropriate limit set by the Government, then we will not be under a duty to provide it. However, the Combined Fire Authority will inform you if the limit will be exceeded and we will try to let you know what can be provided within the limit.
Despite not being obliged to provide information which exceeds the limit, the Fire Authority will still be under a duty to advise and assist.
In order to protect the Combined Fire Authority there will be rules which govern multiple applications for information which are clearly trying to avoid the financial limits set by the Government. However, at all times, we will try to help you as much as possible to get the information you want.
Finally, you do not have to tell us why you want the information.
