Freedom of information (FOI) releases from TWBC

This is a disclosure log of Tunbridge Wells Borough Council's responses to freedom of information (FOI) or environmental information regulations (EIR) requests that might be of wider public interest.

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328 disclosures

  1. Print Room, External Print and Mail room (Inbound and/or Outbound)

    Please answer the following questions: Print Room 1. Do you have a print room equipped with one/more high-speed production device/s to handle large volume printing? 2. Is this run by your own staff or outsourced to a third-party provider? 3. If run internally, how many full-time equivalent (FTE) run this facility? 4. Number of devices & model type/s? 5. Name of incumbent supplier? 6. Contract start / end date and length of any option to extend? 7. If outsourced, please advise contract start / end date and length of any option to extend? 8. Was this contract awarded through a framework? If yes, which one used? 9. Annual spend (ex VAT) covering non-pay and staff costs or total outlay if this service is outsourced? External Print 1. Do you outsource any print requirements to external suppliers - for example to print forms, booklets, leaflets, manuals, posters, banners etc - but excluding print / mailing arrangements covering other areas such as revenue-related demands, housing benefit letters, electoral registrations, parking penalty notices etc? 2. Name of incumbent supplier/s? 3. If this arrangement is provided under contract, please advise start / end date and length of any option to extend? 4. Was this contract awarded through a framework? If yes, which one used? 5. Alternatively, was this awarded through a DPS arrangement? 6. Annual spend (ex VAT) for this service over the past 12 months? Mail Room (Inbound and/or Outbound) 1. Do you have your own in-house Mail Room operation? 2. If yes, how is the service run - physical or digital mail distribution? 3. Is this run by your own staff or outsourced to a third-party provider? 4. If run by your own staff, how many full-time equivalent (FTE) staff run this facility? 5. If outsourced, please advise name of current provider, contract start / end date and length of any option to extend? 6. Was this contract awarded through a framework? If yes, which one used? 7. Annual spend (ex VAT) covering non-pay and staff costs or total outlay if this service outsourced? 8. Do you use a Hybrid Mail service / solution? 9. If yes, please (a) name supplier (b) contract start / end date (c) framework through which this awarded? Finally, who is responsible for these arrangements at the Council?

    Published: 1 June 2026

  2. Static caravans/park homes

    This is a request under the Freedom of Information Act. I am seeking information about housing benefit payments where the claimant is living in a static caravan or park home. Q1: Can you tell me how many of your housing benefit claimants live in this type of accommodation and how much the council paid out in housing benefit for their homes in each of the last five years? Q2: Also how many housing benefit claimants did you have in total in each of these years - so I can understand the proportion that lived in static caravans/park homes? Q3: Lastly, is it possible to also identify how much was paid (directly or indirectly) to each of the three landlords of this type of accommodation who received the largest sums?

    Published: 1 June 2026

  3. Staffing and businesses

    The information requested is as follows: 1. Staffing: 1.1: Number of full-time equivalent (FTE) staff (including, if possible, agency or contractor staff working in equivalent roles) in your environmental health dept, unit or team in 2019/20 and 2025/26. 1.2. Of the total FTE in your environmental health team, please indicate, for both 2019/20 and 2025/26, the approximate FTE allocated to the following functions: * Food hygiene/food standards inspections and enforcement * Pest control * Infectious disease control (including outbreak investigation, liaison with health protection bodies, etc.) Note: I appreciate that some staff work across multiple areas. Where possible please apportion their FTE by time spent (e.g. a 1.0 FTE officer spending half their time on food safety and half on housing should be counted as 0.5 in each category). If exact data is not held, please provide the best available estimate used for internal planning, monitoring or statutory reporting - rather than create a new data set. 2. Businesses: 2.1: Number of food businesses (including restaurants and takeaways) registered in the local authority in 2019/20 and 2025/26. 2.2: Number of food businesses (including restaurants and takeaways) inspected in 2019/20 and 2025/26. 2.3: Number of registered food businesses that are eligible for inspection, but which have never been inspected. 2.4: Number of food businesses (including restaurants and takeaways) that failed inspections in 2019/20 and 2025/26. 2.5: Number of enforcement visits to food businesses in the local authority in 2019/20 and 2025/26. 2.6: Number of incidents involving pests (vermin, insects etc) at food businesses in 2019/20 and 2025/26. 2.7: Number of closures of food businesses in 2019/20 and 2025/26 due to enforcement action through a Hygiene Emergency Prohibition Notice. 2.8: Number of prosecutions of food businesses in 2019/20 and 2025/26.

    Published: 29 May 2026

  4. Second home premium

    Between April 1, 2025 and March 31, 2026: 1. How much council tax did the council collect through the second home premium? Please give this figure to the nearest £1 and only include the amount specifically collected through the premium element of second home owners' council tax bill. 2. How many homes did the council collect a second home premium from?

    Published: 22 May 2026

  5. Planning Committee

    Please could you supply the following information for the time period May 2020 – May 2026 (could you please supply for years running May-May as this will line up with any changes as a result of elections): 1. The number of Members on your Planning Committee for each year 2. The political composition of the Planning Committee for each year (i.e. how many Members there are for each political party) 3. The number of planning applications determined at Planning Committee for each year 4. The number of each decision type at Planning Committee for each year (grant/refuse/defer) 5. The number of decisions made in line with the officer recommendation, and the number made against officer recommendation for each year.

    Published: 22 May 2026

  6. Waste Compliance and Enforcement for Short-Term & Holiday Lets

    1. The number of properties which are registered for Business Rates as “Self-Catering Holiday Units” (or similar classification).

    2. The number of Fixed Penalty Notices (FPNs) or formal warnings issued to owners of holiday lets or short-term rental properties for unauthorised use of domestic bins (i.e., using domestic waste collections for commercial business waste). If the data is not recorded by property type, please provide the total number of FPNs issued for unauthorised use of domestic bins for commercial waste generally.

    3. The number of Section 34 (Duty of Care) notices or Section 47 notices issued to holiday let owners requesting proof of a commercial waste contract.

    4. The number of reports or complaints received by the council regarding holiday lets/short-term rentals incorrectly using domestic bins in residential areas.

    5. The total monetary value of fines collected from holiday let owners related to waste offences in the requested periods.

    Published: 21 May 2026

  7. Security planning in response to the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act

    1. Has the council undertaken any internal assessment or planning in relation to the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act?

    2. Has the council identified any council-owned or operated premises that may fall within the scope of the Act? If yes, please indicate the number of locations.

    3. Has the council already got effective Hostile Vehicle Mitigation Measures (HVM) securing key locations?

    4. What percentage of identified locations still need to be secured with HVM measures?

    5. The full amount (in £) the council has spent to date implementing the aforementioned measures as well as the amount of money (in £) assigned in relation to responding to the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act.

    6. If you have not yet assigned a budget or implemented measures, do you expect to do so in the next 6 months? (please answer either Yes, No or N/A)

    7. Has any internal guidance documents, briefings, or training materials been produced relating to the Act?

    8. Has the council engaged with private businesses to educate them on the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act?

    9. Does the council have plans to support private businesses financially in implementing relevant security measures to ensure compliance?

    10. Has the council received guidance or communications from central government or regulators regarding the Act?

    Published: 14 May 2026

  8. CCTV Cameras

    What is the total number of (working) CCTV cameras operated by the council as of 2026?

    Published: 13 May 2026

  9. Traveller sites/pitches

    1 How many permanent residential caravan sites are in your local authority? Of these sites, how many are set up and available for travellers to move to?

    2 How many permanent residential pitches are in your local authority? Of these pitches, how many are available and set up for new traveller tenants?

    3 How many transit caravan sites are in your local authority? How many are available and set up for travellers to move to?

    4 How many households are on your waitlist for a suitable pitch on a traveller site?

    5 Did you apply for funding to build traveller pitches as part of the 2016 - 2023 Affordable Homes Programme? If so, how much funding did you receive? And how many pitches did you build?

    6 Have you applied for funding for new traveller pitches under the Strategic Partnership route of the new Social and Affordable Homes Programme (SAHP) 2026 to 2036?

    Published: 11 May 2026

  10. Council tax arrears

    Under the Freedom of Information Act, and with relation to your local authority, can you please provide me with the following information? 1. The total amount owed to the council in council tax arrears within your local authority on the latest date which figures were available. 2. The total number of people who are currently in arrears of payment of their council tax to your local authority (arrears defined as having missed at least one payment)? 3. The total number of people who currently have debt management procedures commenced against them by your authority for non-payment of council tax (including those under any escalation process in debt recovery, receiving e.g. automated reminders, letter before action and referral to debt collection agency)? 4. The total number of people who have had court proceedings begun against them relating to non-payment of council tax in your local authority in 2023/24 and 2024/25?

    Published: 11 May 2026