Funding for Freedom of Information

Some super news just in. mySociety has been awarded funding by the JRSST Charitable Trust to build our Freedom of Information Filer and Archive(FOIFA), the winner of our 2006 call for proposals. This means that we will be able to start work relatively early in the New Year.

At £24,500 this is our largest ever donation from a philanthropic source of any kind. We’re very grateful to the good people at the various Rowntree trusts involved in supporting us in this way. Not only will it enable us to start relatively swiftly on the FOIFA project, but it also represents a mark of confidence in mySociety by a major player in the UK foundation world. Thank you to the JRSST, and thank you again to the developers and volunteers who have made mySociety a project worth trusting :).

7 Comments

  1. Tom, this is terrific news. Well done! Great to see that confidence in the MyS project is growing. Looking forward to the beta of FOIA.

  2. The Green Party in Northern Ireland’s Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly would like to promote the deposit of NI related FOI-released documentation. Please keep us informed on progress and let us know if you are happy to jointly promote the facility in Northern Ireland.

    You may wish to launch the facility at Parliament Buildings with a reception etc. The Belfast press, notably the Belfast Telegraph, have made good use of the FoI legislation.

  3. just the ticket and another quality JRF investment

    What we are especially interested in is for this to also work for Local Authority FOI requests as well as those to government departments and agencies.

  4. Great idea! V important to get the use and value of the FOIA firmly lodged in the public mind before the Government gives in to scared civil servants and scraps it!