Freedom of Information Officer

National Audit Office; City of Westminster; Hybrid; GBP 42,000; Full time

Job summary

A UK public sector organization is seeking a Freedom of Information & Correspondence Officer. The role involves managing correspondence and FOI requests, ensuring timely responses, and maintaining professionalism with MPs and the public. Candidates must possess experience in customer service and strong attention to detail. This permanent position in London offers a salary of around £42,000 and requires a minimum of 2 days a week in-office presence.

Benefits

Civil service employer pension contribution of 28%

Potential for a higher base salary for exceptional applicants

Qualifications

• Proven ability to manage FOI, EIR, SAR, and complaints.
• Able to draft clear, accurate responses and handle sensitive calls professionally.
• Demonstrates a proactive, methodical approach to managing workload.

Responsibilities

• Log and acknowledge all correspondence and assign to relevant teams.
• Monitor progress on correspondence cases and support teams.
• Respond to telephone calls, including whistle-blower inquiries.

Skills

FOI and correspondence experience

Strong communication skills

Judgement and risk awareness

Organisation and process management

Education

Experience in customer service or similar roles

Job description

Freedom of Information & Correspondence Officer Contract Type: Permanent Location: London Salary: London c£42,000 plus civil service employer pension contribution of 28%. A higher base salary may be available for exceptional applicants. A minimum of 2 days a week based in the office is expected. The freedom of information (FOI) and correspondence team is responsible for coordinating and assisting with all correspondence between MPs, the public and the NAO. This includes FOI requests, Environmental Information Regulations (EIR) and Subject Access Requests (SAR), general correspondence, complaints and whistleblowing. The NAO handles over 1000 pieces of correspondence and over 100 FOI requests each year. This function manages one of our direct contact points with key stakeholders. It is one of the main ways in which we uphold our reputation as an independent and transparent organisation, through communicating professionally with MPs and the general public and providing information, where appropriate, that is in the public interest to share. The function also provides a rich and invaluable source of intelligence with a key role to play in informing our audit work. The role is responsible for handling all forms of correspondence professionally, adhering to high standards and protecting our reputation through responding in a timely and proportionate manner in accordance with our statutory responsibilities and our own business processes. The role reports to the FOI and correspondence manager and sits within the NAO Communications team. The team also provide support to the Press Office, Private Office and the Parliament Relations team as and when required.. HOW TO APPLY Please apply with an up-to-date cv and a covering letter outlining your suitability for the role against essential criteria below: -FOI and correspondence experience - Proven ability to manage FOI, EIR, SAR, and complaints. Skilled in logging and tracking cases, advising teams, and handling sensitive or whistleblowing matters professionally. -Strong communication skills - Able to draft clear, accurate responses and engage professionally with MPs, the public, and internal stakeholders, including handling sensitive calls like whistleblower enquiries with empathy and professionalism. -Judgement and risk awareness - Able to identify reputational risks, apply FOI exemptions appropriately, and spot trends in enquiries and whistleblowing within the context of the organisation and current affairs. -Organisation and process management - Demonstrates a proactive and methodical approach to managing workload, tracking deadlines, maintaining secure records, and supporting process improvements. -Legislation and sector knowledge - Awareness of FOI, EIR, SAR, and Public Records Act is desirable, along with familiarity with Parliament, government, or audit sectors. Selection Process 1. Application Candidates are required to submit their CV and covering letter on the essential criteria above by 23:59pm Monday 25 August 2025. 2. Shortlisting An initial screening will be conducted to check the eligibility of candidates & based on the role. Only candidates who meet these criteria will proceed to the next stage. 4. Interview Candidates who pass the shortlisting will be invited for an interview. The interview will assess various competencies and skills relevant to the role. The interview will be face to face and looking to held week commencing 8th September. 5. Decision The final decision-making process will involve a moderation and review panel week commencing 15th September 2025. Equal opportunities and diversity Disability and Reasonable Adjustments Applicants with a disability who wish their application to be considered under the Disability Confident scheme should confirm this when submitting their application. Under this scheme we guarantee an interview to an applicant with a disability who meets the minimum requirements for the role. You should also let our HR team know if you wish us to consider any Reasonable Adjustments at any stage of the process (HR Service Desk ([e-mail]). Applicants will not be discriminated against on the grounds of any protected characteristic or any other extraneous factor. Nationality Requirement:

• UK Nationals Nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK Nationals from the EU, EEA or Switzerland with (or eligible for) status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) Please note, we are not able to sponsor work visas or accept temporary visas as we are looking to hire on a permanent basis. Please contact the HR Service desk ([e-mail]) should you have any questions on your nationality eligibility., Main responsibilities: This role includes the following main areas of responsibility: Correspondence Log and acknowledge all correspondence and assign to the relevant teams for a response. Monitor all progress on correspondence cases and follow-up with teams as response deadlines approach. Support teams with advice and guidance through the process and escalate issues and higher risk items to management. Respond to telephone calls, including the whistle-blower Hotline, ensuring calls are answered promptly and callers are taken seriously and recorded accurately. Use own resources and research to respond to straightforward enquiries and hot media topics and current affairs received by email, phone or voicemail. Handle sensitive personal cases professionally and compassionately Monitor and flag trends in enquiries and whistleblowing to internal stakeholders Log and allocate complaints and support those handling them with briefings and guidance as
required.
• Manage copyright and reuse enquiries for NAO content and material FOI/EIR/SAR Log, acknowledge and allocate FOI requests to relevant teams; monitor workload and progress to ensure requests are delivered to deadline and meet high quality standards. Work with line teams to identify information, consider use of exemptions and to progress requests; Draft consultation emails for teams to send to external third parties; Draft final response letters. Manage communications with requesters, providing good customer service and keeping them informed. Collate and prepare information for release in different formats, including redacting documents as required, send out final responses. Put together background minutes of FOI case histories for Directors undertaking FOI internal reviews, monitor progress, and draft/send final responses to internal reviews. Handle Subject Access Requests made under the Data Protection Act - work with teams to identify
information, monitor progress, extract/redact information in scope, secure documents, draft and send out SAR responses and documents. Business management and improvement
• Maintain good records management of team information to ensure audit trails, applying suitable security and deleting information in line with retention policies. Provide regular updates on Correspondence and FOI for seniors and stakeholders supported by management information and statistics against key performance indicators (KPIs) Develop and update guidance materials for staff and keep information up to date on intranet pages and external website. Maintain FOI publication scheme, disclosure log and compliance statistics on external website. Support the launch and analysis of business improvement projects as required Support and assist with internal stakeholder meetings as required. Regularly review and update internal information to reflect organisational changes Individual
Learning & Development
• Be responsible for managing and carrying out your own professional learning and development including mandatory training Carry out the minimum annual requirement of CPD learning Keep up to date with relevant legislations and subject expertise area
  
  Skills & knowledge required Essential Experience in FOI, correspondence, complaints, customer service or similar types of roles Strong attention to detail, and an organised, methodical approach. Good oral and written communication skills, including the ability to draft clear, accurate correspondence and communicate well on the phone Can understand an organisation's purpose and the current affairs landscape to spot potential issues and reputational risks and use good judgment to flag and escalate them Strong inter-personal skills with the confidence to communicate effectively at all levels. A flexible, proactive approach to manage their day-to-day work, responding quickly and positively to emerging issues Desirable Awareness of information legislation, such as the Public Records Act and FoI, EIR and SAR and Information Commissioner's Office guidance. Knowledge of Parliament, government or audit sectors