From the 1st January, 2005, the Freedom of Information Act (2000) provides anyone with a general right of access to all types of 'recorded' information held by public authorities. It puts a number of obligations on South Yorkshire Fire & Civil Defence Authority, as well as laying out a number of exemptions from the Act.

• We must supply information requested within 20 days of the receipt of a request.
• We must confirm or deny that we hold the information requested.
• We may levy a charge for the supply of information requested if we calculate that it will cost the Authority more than £450 to collate and provide the information you have requested, or, if we feel that the total of supplying the information would place too much of a financial burden on the Authority, we may decline to provide the information.
• We must provide a 'reasonable' level of assistance to applicants in gaining access to information.
• If we will not be releasing information, due to it being covered by an exemption, we must inform the applicant under which exemption we are withholding the information.
• We are required to adopt and maintain a publication scheme setting out the classes of information it holds, the manner in which we intend to publish the information, and whether a charge will be made for the information. The purpose of the Authority's publication scheme is to provide as much information as possible without the need to submit a specific request.

Any enquiries regarding the scheme
should be addressed to the
Freedom of Information Coordinator,
 Wellington Street, Sheffield, S1 3FG.
Telephone number 0114 2532252.