Overview
An overview of the Freedom of Information Act as it affects the British Library.
The British Library
The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom and one of the world’s greatest libraries. Our collections include more than 150 million items, in over 400 languages, to which three million new items are added every year. We house books, magazines, manuscripts, maps, music scores, newspapers, patents, databases, philatelic items, prints and drawings and sound recordings.
The Freedom of Information Act
The Freedom of Information Act 2000 gives a general right of access to recorded information held by public authorities and obliges them to disclose information, subject to a range of exemptions. Applicants have the right:
- To be told whether the information exists
- To receive the information within 20 working days.
Update to The British Library’s Freedom of Information Policy
The British Library has updated its Freedom of Information Policy which you can read in full here. Please note the following:
- The British Library will no longer comply with requests that cost more than £450 to handle. However, we will ensure wherever possible that we help applicants in breaking down requests to bring them under the threshold.
- The British Library will charge for disbursements (charges for photocopying, printing, postage, etc) over £35.
- The British Library will not handle complaints or appeals received more than two months after its initial response.
Making a request for information
One of the aims of the Act is that all public authorities should be clear and proactive about the information they make available. Section 19 of the Act requires the preparation of a Publication Scheme. The British Library's publication scheme can be viewed online or made available in hard copy from pages printed from the website
Under the Freedom of Information Act you can apply to see information that is not listed in the Publication Scheme. Send us a letter, fax, or email requesting the information and, provided it is not covered by one of the exemptions in the Act, we will provide you with that information as soon as possible, or in any event within 20 working days.
When making a request for information include the following details:
- Your name and address
- The information would you like to see
- The format you would prefer to have the information in. While we will make every effort to send you the information in the requested format, we may not always be able to do this.
Please email us at FOI-Enquiries@bl.uk
Exemptions under the Act
Although you may request any information we hold, there are a few exemptions under the Act that mean that we may not be able to disclose the information you need. If we decide that we cannot release the information requested, we will explain which exemption is relevant in this case.
Feedback
We should be grateful for any comments you may have about our Publication Scheme. Please email us at FOI-Enquiries@bl.ukor contact us at the address below:
Freedom of Information
The British Library
96 Euston Road
London
NW1 2DB
United Kingdom
Tel: +44 (0)870 444 1500
Complaints and appeals procedure
If you are dissatisfied with the response you have had to an enquiry or with any aspect of the Publication Scheme, you should appeal to us directly by contacting:
The Chief Executive
The British Library
96 Euston Road
London NW1 2DB
If you are dissatisfied with the outcome or the handling of the internal review conducted by the Library, you may appeal directly to the Information Commissioner by contacting:
FoI Compliance Team (complaints)
Information Commissioner
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire SK9 5AF
