Norfolk County Council reprimanded over data requests

Residents requesting personal data can also ask for the information to be changed or deleted, the ICO said

A council has been reprimanded for not responding to the public on time when asked for information held about them.

Norfolk County Council repeatedly failed to meet the legal deadline of one to three months, the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) said.

It has instructed the council to take steps to ensure that information is sent out within the statutory period.

"We fully accept the findings and are working hard to ensure the backlog is dealt with swiftly," the council said.

It pointed out that Subject Access Requests (SARs) to the council had almost doubled in the past five years.

The ICO said it found the council had only responded to 51% of requests on time between April 2021 and April 2022, meaning that 251 residents did not receive a response within the legal timeframe.

Director of investigations Stephen Eckersley said asking for information was a "fundamental right" and delays to the process could have a significant impact on people's lives.

The council had recruited staff to tackle the requests but the reprimand outlines further steps to improve compliance with data protection law, the ICO added.

It has asked for details of actions taken to address the recommendations within six months of the reprimand being issued.

A spokesperson for the council said: "As of the date of the reprimand, less than 12% of the SARs submitted during the period in question remain outstanding, and in line with ICO recommendations we had already increased the number of staff dealing with these requests and are grateful to the ICO for recognising and commending the progress we have made."