Freedom of Information

An application for access to our document(s):

• must be in writing;
• must specify that it is made under the FOI Act;
• must be accompanied by the application fee;
• must contain information reasonably necessary to enable the document(s) to be identified;
• must specify an address in Australia which notices under the FOI Act should be sent;
• must be lodged by post, email or in person, and may request that access to the document be given in a particular way.

If you’re unhappy with our determination for either access to a document or amendment of your personal records, in most cases, you’re entitled to apply for an internal review of that determination.

If the original application determination was made by our CEO (rather than our accredited FOI Officer) you cannot apply for an Internal Review. You can however apply for an External Review by the Ombudsman SA or apply for a review by the South Australian Civil and Administrative Tribunal.

An Internal Review application must be made to the CEO.

There is an application fee of $44.70 that must be paid when you lodge your Internal Review application if your review request is for access to documents.

There is no application fee for an Internal Review of an FOI application for amendment to your personal records.

Internal Review application form

You may apply to amend records accessed through this process if:

• the document contains information concerning your personal affairs;
• the information is available for use by the Council in connection with its administrative functions; and
• the information is, in your opinion, incomplete, incorrect, out-of-date and misleading.

Applications must be in writing and contain the information specified in the Request for Amendment Application form.

Request for Amendment application form

Yes, you may be able to access information without making a request for access under the FOI Act. Some documents may already be publically available, located on our website or in a register.

If you’re seeking copies of development documents, we have a process called Application to Inspect Development Documents, which enables you to view/request copies of development documents held by Council.

Before you submit an FOI request, it may be worthwhile contacting one of our Accredited Freedom of Information Officers who will be happy to provide advice.

We will send you an acknowledgement letter to confirm receipt of your request and payment.

Before we can start to process it, we need to ensure that the scope is clear enough for us to identify any relevant documents. If we need more information about the request or need to clarify the documents or information you are seeking, we will contact you.

Yes, there is an application fee of $44.70 when a request is submitted and there may be additional charges that are outlined in our Schedule of Fees and Charges.

These costs may or may not apply based on the nature of the request. For example, if the request requires access to a large number of documents, this may result in additional charges.

We have up to 30 days after we receive a valid application to make a decision.

The decision period may be extended if we need to consult with other parties.

If the due date of the decision falls on a non-business day, by default it will be considered due on the following business day.

Once we have reached a decision, we will send you a Determination Letter advising you of the decision. We may decide to:

• release the relevant documents in their entirety;
• release some of part of the documents;
• refuse access; and/or
• defer access until such a time.

Documents identified will be listed in the letter with a Document Schedule to explain our reasoning in relation to the FOI Act, as records may be subject to exemptions. We also include information on what you can do if you’re dissatisfied with the decision.