The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) provides the public with a general right of access to information recorded and held by public authorities.
Our publication scheme and this website may provide you with the information you require, so please check this first.
To be valid under FOIA the request must:
be made in writing (for example by letter or email).
have a full contact name and return address (or email address).
clearly and legibly describe what information is required.
contain details of the format in which you would like the information to be sent to you.
You can make your request by post to:
Knowledge and Information Officer
Corporate Programme and Intelligence
Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service
Headquarters
Garstang Road
Fulwood
Preston
PR2 3LH
Or by email to: dp&foi@lancsfirerescue.org.uk
We will respond to FOIA requests within 20 working days of receiving the request. If we are unable to do this we will contact you to explain why there is a delay and to let you know when you can expect a response.
If you are requesting details of information that we may hold about yourself (your personal data) you will need to make a Subject Access Request.
For more information about the Freedom of Information Act 2000 go to these external websites: www.informationcommissioner.gov.uk or www.justice.gov.uk
If you have recently made an FOIA request and you are unhappy with the information that you have received, you may wish to request a review of our decision. If you wish to do this, you should write to the Knowledge and Information Officer at the address above or by email to dp&foi@lancsfirerescue.org.uk
The Environmental Information Regulations 2004 give individuals the right to access environmental information that public authorities hold and requires the authorities to make such information available to the public by electronic means which is easily accessible; and take reasonable steps to organise the information relevant to its functions with a view to the active and systematic dissemination to the public of the information.
If you wish to make a request for Information under the Regulations, you can do so in the following ways:
by letter, to:
Knowledge and Information Officer
Corporate Programme and Intelligence
Lancashire Fire & Rescue Services
Service Headquarters
Garstang Road
Fulwood
Preston
PR2 3LH
by email: dp&foi@lancsfirerescue.org.uk
You should make your request clear and legible, and you should try to be as specific as possible about the information you want.
You should provide an address for us to send any documentation or information back to, an email address is acceptable.
If you are not content with the outcome of your complaint, you may apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a decision. Generally, The ICO cannot make a decision unless you have exhausted the complaints procedure provided by Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service. The Information Commissioner can be contacted as follows:
The Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF
Telephone: 08456 306060 or 01625 545745
www.ico.gov.uk (opens in a new tab)
At a glance
Individuals have the right to access their personal data and supplementary information, this right is known as Subject Access.
The right of access allows individuals to be aware of and verify the lawfulness of the processing of any data held about them.
What information is an individual entitled to under the Data Protection Act 2018 (subsequently referred to as the Act)? Under the Act, individuals will have the right to obtain:
Confirmation that their data is being processed;
access to their personal data; and
other supplementary information – this largely corresponds to the information that is provided in the relevant privacy notice.
Lancashire Fire and Rescue Services (LFRS) Privacy Notices are available below.
The Act clarifies that the reason for allowing individuals to access their personal data is so that they are aware of and can verify the lawfulness of the processing.
Information must be provided free of charge. However, LFRS maintain the right to charge a ‘reasonable fee’ when a request is manifestly unfounded or excessive, particularly if it is repetitive.
If you are a solicitors, insurance company, fire investigators, forensics, loss adjusters or commercial enterprises who is acting on behalf of an owner/occupier, or directly involved individual, you can apply for a copy of the incident report as follows:
For a request to be valid, the following criteria must be met:
An Incident Report Request Form must be completed and submitted by post or email.
Upon receipt of a completed Report Request Form, payment of £132.00 (which includes VAT) is required in advance for us to process this request. This charge relates to the cost of producing the relevant incident report. BACS details will be sent, and once payment has been received, we will then release the incident report in due course within 40 working days.
Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service aims to release Fire Reports within 40 working days of receiving a valid request.
Information must be provided without delay and at the latest within one month of receipt.
LFRS will be able to extend the period of compliance by a further two months where requests are complex or numerous. If this is the case, we must inform you within one month of the receipt of the request and explain why the extension is necessary.
Please note: Fire Reports by their very nature can be complex and require Quality Assurance to ensure their accuracy. LFRS may on occasions use the above mentioned extension for this purpose.
Where requests are manifestly unfounded or excessive, in particular because they are repetitive, LFRS can:
charge a reasonable fee taking into account the administrative costs of providing the information; or
refuse to respond.
If LFRS makes the decision to refuse to respond to a request, we must explain why, informing the applicant of their right to complain to the Information Commissioners Office (ICO) and to a judicial remedy without undue delay and at the latest within one month.
The Information Commissioner can be contacted at:
Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire SK9 5AF
Telephone: 08456 306060 or 01625 545745
LFRS must verify the identity of the person making the request, using ‘reasonable means’. As such the Applicant will be asked to provide relevant forms of identification.
If the request is made electronically, we will endeavour to provide the information in a commonly used electronic format.
Alternately we will provide the requested information in hard copy.
Where LFRS processes a large quantity of information about an individual, the Act permits us to ask the individual to specify the information the request relates to.
The Data Protection Act 2018 does not include an exemption for requests that relate to large amounts of data, but LFRS may consider whether the request is manifestly unfounded or excessive.
LFRS have created a form which can be used to aid you in requesting data from us, and to assist us in finding the relevant data.
We have also created a guidance document to help you fill in the form.
Other agencies, such as social Services or Local Authorities who require Personal and/or Sensitive information from Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service should complete a DP2 Data Protection Form
The completed form should be submitted to: infogov@lancsfirerescue.org.uk
Should you require any assistance with the completion of this form, please contact the Knowledge and Information Officer using the email address above.
The following dataset, relating to Lithium-Ion Batteries is published due to the number of Freedom of Information Requests received by the Service relating to this subject. If you wish to make an FOI request relating to Lithium-Ion Battery Fires, please see if this dataset meets your needs prior to contacting us.
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