Freedom of Information and Local Government – guest speakers Ben Worthy and Gabrielle Bourke, UCL Constitution Unit
13.00 – 14.30, Wednesday 9 November, 2011
LGiU, 22 Upper Woburn Place, London, WC1H 0TB
The UCL’s Constitution Unit are conducting the first systematic study of the objectives, benefits and consequences of FOI and English local government.
Local government in Britain has been a focus of more than two thirds of all FOI requests. Understanding the impact of FOI on local government is central to a wider understanding of how the Act is working.
The study will evaluate the impact of the legislation by speaking to selected officials who work with it across 15 different local authorities and conducting a survey of FOI officers in local authorities across England. The project will also survey requesters who use FOI and interview local journalists and analyse media articles that report FOI.
Preliminary findings can be found here.
On Wednesday 9 November, Ben Worthy and Gabrielle Bourke from the Constitution Unit will be running a special seminar at the LGiU on
– FOI
– openness
– the impact of the new transparency agenda and the publication of £500 spending.
We would like to open the event up to council officers and elected members. Tickets are free but numbers are highly limited due to space. To reserve a place, please email info@lgiu.org.
For more info on the Constitution Unit, please visit their website http://www.ucl.ac.uk/constitution-unit/
