Request for information - Ref No: FOI21992
Request
Thank you for your email of 15 March 2021, requesting information from Ordnance Survey in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 2000, as set out in the extract below:
“Please can you provide the following information under the 2001 Freedom of Information act. A list of ponds in Great Britain including the 6 digit easting and northing coordinate. In the case of Northern Scotland this should be a 7 digit easting and northing.”
Our response
I confirm that Ordnance Survey does hold the information that you have requested, however, we are unable to comply with your request and provide the information, as we consider the information to be exempt from disclosure under section 21 (Information reasonably accessible to the applicant by other means) of the FOIA, as explained below: -
Ponds are captured in OS Master Map Topography layer and therefore available in our premium products from one of our licenced partners. You can obtain the requested information by contacting one of our licenced partners and paying the appropriate fee; section 21(2)(a) states that information may be regarded as reasonably accessible to the applicant even though it is accessible only on payment.
Under the duty to provide information and assistance in accordance with section 16 of the FOIA, the following partners would be best placed to deal with your request and will be able to confirm the costs involved. Contact details are available at the links below: -
This is an absolute exemption and therefore not subject to the public interest test.
We also consider the information to be exempt under section 43(2) of the FOIA, which exempts information where disclosure would, or would be likely to, prejudice the commercial interests of any person (including the public authority holding it) although we are not relying on this exemption in this response.
Internal review
Your enquiry has been processed according to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 2000. If you are unhappy with our response, you may request an internal review with our Internal Review Officer by contacting them, within two months of receipt of our final response to your Freedom of Information (FOI) request, as follows:
Internal Review Officer
Customer Service Centre
Ordnance Survey
Adanac Drive
Southampton
SO16 0AS
Please include the reference number above. You may request an internal review where you believe Ordnance Survey has:
- Failed to respond to your request within the time limits (normally 20 working days)
- Failed to tell you whether or not we hold the information
- Failed to provide the information you have requested
- Failed to explain the reasons for refusing a request
- Failed to correctly apply an exemption or exception
The Internal Review Officer will not have been involved in the original decision. They will conduct an independent internal review and will inform you of the outcome of the review normally within 20 working days, but exceptionally within 40 working days, in line with the Information Commissioner’s guidance.
The Internal Review Officer will either: uphold the original decision, provide an additional explanation of the exemption/s applied or release further information, if it is considered appropriate to do so.
Appeal to Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO)
If, following the outcome of the internal review you remain unhappy with our response, you may raise an appeal, within three months of receiving our response, with the Information Commissioner’s Office.
Further information can be found on the ICO website (ico.org.uk) under ‘Report a concern’ or you may wish to call the ICO helpline on 0303 123 1113.