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National Audit Office: striving for excellence whilst handling complex, sensitive requests

ICO comment: what this case study means

In March 2024, the National Audit Office (NAO) won Team of the Year at the eCase FOI24 awards. They had also achieved 100% compliance in handling FOI requests.

This case study shows the advantages of collaborating effectively with internal stakeholders and embedding continuous improvement into ways of working.

Background

The NAO established their FOI and Correspondence Team in 2015 with only three staff members. The team manage around 1,100 enquiries a year, including:

  • MP concerns;
  • whistleblowing disclosures;
  • complaints; and
  • FOI and EIR requests.

The requests are often complex and of a high profile nature, requiring careful consideration of the public interest test and consultation with information asset owners.

In 2018-2019, the team had been achieving around 83% compliance, but wanted to improve further. They already had a robust framework in place to gather, process and distribute information securely, mitigating the risk of inadvertent wrongful disclosure. But the team identified that they could improve the compliance and transparency culture across the organisation, including FOI knowledge and communication. They also wanted to improve the organisation’s approach to proactive publication.

What the team did

  • FOI advisers (staff champions) were initially appointed. They helped the team with the volume of requests and supported the directors responsible for relevant information. The advisers attended meetings and were available to answer questions whilst the team were embedding the new processes.
  • The team obtained feedback and insight from requesters and worked to improve the quality of their responses.
  • The team devised workshops and training sessions for all new employees and interns, to raise awareness and improve understanding of the legislation.
  • The team also reviewed and improved the internal guidance on FOI, in response to a survey of internal stakeholders. This includes clear flow charts to illustrate processes including FOI.
  • The team began to highlight new FOI cases in the weekly staff newsletter and drew attention to the guidance and resources.
  • The team regularly engaged with colleagues by networking and attending meetings, to foster a culture of transparency, raise awareness and improve people’s understanding of FOI.
  • The team produce a six-monthly report for senior leaders. The report includes FOI requests, trends and challenges, as well as reporting on performance.
  • Having researched good practice in publishing FOI responses, the team made recommendations to the Executive Team (ET), and now publish a disclosure log which is updated twice a year. This required support and investment from the ET, as well as planning and consultation with the digital and communications team.

Positive impact

  • The NAO receives fewer requests for internal review and complaints are rarely escalated to the ICO.
  • Staff knowledge of FOI has increased across the organisation. Staff can identify requests easily and usually share them with the team straight away. This has helped to process requests quickly and efficiently.
  • Highlighting the team’s decisions and request patterns in internal communications has improved understanding. The team finds they can gain access to information more quickly.
  • Staff now seek to incorporate FOI principles into policy and decision-making and will ask the team for advice and information. They are more focused on transparency and more forthcoming about sharing information.
  • Staff readily help people gain access to data via other sources.

Continuous improvement

Last year, the team created a continuous improvement plan to consider further ways to enhance the service. They’re now working on the following points:

  • Having made significant improvements in logging and assigning FOI cases, the team now aim to enhance their technology and case management systems.
  • They’re designing additional training to roll out across the organisation.
  • After publishing the disclosure log and reviewing the publication scheme last year, the team recognise they still need to make more information easily accessible to the public. They’re focused on publishing more contract data and policy information.