Any organisation is as good as the people who work for it. No matter what organisation you work for, it is the people who make the system work. So when I started this blog I started sending loads of FoI requests to try and obtain as much information as possible. As I started to do this, I started to realise that I was dealing with a wide variety of people who were compiling a lot of different information, and dealing with a lot of different departments. Why not ask the department directly what they think?
Sounds interesting isn't it? So, I asked all the council in wales “What was the most interesting thing that they have found”. I thought that this was an amazing question because it would “tip their hand”, in showing what is the most interesting thing in that area. Not only that but it was a total different question than anyone of them would have seen before. Champion idea!
Not quite. Now this “failed” for a number of reasons. The main one is that most FoI departments do not categorize subject to “interest” (as I got told by numerous councils, in a fialry shirty way). Thats fair enough; think about it. How can you categorize an entire filing system about what interests you and which ones don't. It is so subjective that there is no way. I find the length of how long you can keep a file for. Is anyone else going to agree this one?
Another reason that this “failed” was probably the sheer number of FoI requests I sent. If you think about it, as stated in another blog, the maximum amount of time that it takes to get a FoI request is 18 hours. By sending the sheer volume that I did probably clogged the system up, so having some moron saying “What is really interesting to you” probably didn't help. Again if someone sends 20 FoI requests in a month, and each take up to 18 hours to complete, that means 360 hours in a month. That's 15 days of work. Would you be happy to answer a weird questions after that?
That being said, there were a few that DID get back in touch on this matter. One of the guys from Monmouth stated that the most interesting thing that they found was how recycling had increased in his area. That is interesting! Link it into the recycling and landfill fines that welsh councils have and it shows that their councils scheme is working in his area! Most of the people who did get back in touch also stated that the most interesting thing that they found out was things that I asked for, which is a great thing for me because is shows I am unique (Your choice if this is a good thing or not).
A very honourable mention goes to the Vale of Glamorgan, on this one. They did say the basic same thing (Cant answer that one) BUT they went out found this! Now this shows me that they really are trying to help. They know that this is stupid but they are willing to honour section 16 to the letter of the law. Well done and well played Vale of Glamorgan.
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