FOI reference - FOI-70
Date - 10 January 2023
Request
I have split your request for information into two parts.
Part 1 requests:
“…the number of staff working at the organisation.
Please include the information for each of the following financial years; 2019/20, 2020/21, 2021/22:
- The number of staff working at the organisation in each of these financial years
- The total wage bill for each of these years…”
Part 2 requests:
“…the current headcount of staff.”
I can confirm that we hold the information you have requested in both parts of your request. However, we are unable to supply some of the information requested for the reasons set out below.
Response
Information we are able to supply
I can confirm that as of the date of your request, the 7 December 2022, TPR total headcount was 965.
This number has been calculated by taking the total number of staff on our payroll at the date of your request. It includes staff who are on loan or seconded and paid by TPR. It does not include staff seconded to or on loan from TPR where they are paid by another organisation. It also does not include non-executive board members, of which there are currently 7; Determination Panel members, of which there are currently 8; agency staff or contactors.
Information we are not able to supply
Section 21 - Information accessible to applicant by other means
Section 21 of the FoIA exempts information from disclosure where it is already reasonably accessible to the applicant by means other than an FoI request.
In this instance, part 1 of your request – for historic information on staff headcount and wage spending – engages section 21 as the information published in TPR’s annual reports and accounts.
The exemption contained in section 21 of the FoIA is absolute and, therefore, does not require a public interest test.