Our commitment to transparency
ActionAid UK believes that timely, free-flowing information in accessible language, form and format is essential for ensuring accountability to our stakeholders, learning, trust and good performance.
To this end we have decided to publicly publish a number of internal strategies, plans, reports and staff information, among others.
Our decision to do this is guided by our commitment to transparency, and to sharing information with the general public. We are also directly accountable to our staff, partners, donors and the UK government.
Our Open Information Policy describes exactly how and what minimum information ActionAid UK will share proactively with the general public, and informs exactly what information you can demand we make public.
Information to be shared freely and openly
The following sets of information in various categories will be shared freely, openly and proactively:
- General Information
- Governance
- Organisational policies
- Work plans and strategies
- Performance
- Staff
- Funds and finance
- Relationships
Ways and means of sharing information
- All email requests will be dealt with promptly and all information shared will be dated to indicate how current the document is
- ActionAid UK website will be the main venue for sharing information proactively to a wider audience. ActionAid UK, within the limits of its resources, will also send information as requested (as per this policy) in electronic or printed form to an authentic address of the person or the organisation requesting information.
- Anonymous requests for information may not be responded to.
- The AAUK Executive Director will be the custodian of this policy but the day to day responsibility of implementation and management will be the responsibility of the person appointed by them.
- Reviewing compliance of this policy will be the function of such staff and units responsible for the ActionAid UK Accountability, Learning and Planning System (Alps). These review reports will be presented and discussed in Senior Management Team meetings at least once year and at the time of annual reviews and three-year plans.
Confidentiality
ActionAid UK shall not disclose the following kinds of information:
- Personal details of staff: address, family details, income, property, sexual orientation, illness and similar information.
- Intellectual property or other information which has been disclosed or provided to ActionAid UK under any obligation of confidentiality or which is subject to legal disclosure restrictions, or intellectual property of ActionAid UK, unless consent of such disclosure has been obtained from the owner of such intellectual property.
- Legal advice and matters in dispute or under negotiation including disciplinary and investigative information generated in or for ActionAid UK.
- Information dealing entirely with internal administration or operating systems which have no direct effect outside the organisation, or internal documents written by staff to their colleagues, unless those documents are intended for public circulation.
- The sharing of fundraising information could jeopardise ActionAid UK’s competitiveness in fundraising capacity.
- It is only in exceptional cases and circumstances that ActionAid UK can temporarily suspend part or whole of this policy. Such suspension will require approval from ActionAid UK’s Executive Director. Suspension of the policy will be clearly explained with reasons to the people we work with and the general public through the mechanisms mentioned above.
- In unusual situations (e.g., war, insurgency) of insecurity, threat and vulnerability to the organisation, staff or partners. ActionAid UK may choose not to share any or selected information for a specified period.