Request for information - Ref No: FOI21987
Request
Thank you for your email of 1 March 2021 requesting information from Ordnance Survey in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 2000, as set out in the extract below:
“I am writing to request information under the Freedom of Information Act. I am looking for information about unconscious bias training. Please could you provide me with the following:
- How many staff have undergone unconscious bias training over the last five calendar years? Please could you break down the number by year for 2021 (up to and including the end of February), 2020, 2019, 2018 and 2017.
- How much money has been spent unconscious bias training for staff over the last five calendar years? Please could you break down the figure by year for 2021 (up to and including the end of February), 2020, 2019, 2018 and 2017.
- In each case where there has been expenditure on unconscious bias training, please could you state which company the money went to, how much, and the date of the payment.
- If unconscious bias training has been provided to staff, please could you provide details of the format of the training is - its title, how many hours/days the training lasts, and any other relevant detail which summarises what it entails.
- If possible, please could you provide a copy of any training material - documentation including, but not limited to, training packs, worksheets, fact sheets etc - distributed to staff as part of the unconscious bias training in any of the above years. Please note, if this is not possible, please proceed with the remainder of the request.“
Our response
I confirm that Ordnance Survey does hold some of the information you have requested. Where the information is not held this is stated. Taking each request in turn, I confirm the following:
1. How many staff have undergone unconscious bias training over the last five calendar years? Please could you break down the number by year for 2021 (up to and including the end of February), 2020, 2019, 2018 and 2017.
The table below shows the number of staff that have undergone some form of unconscious bias training in the past five years:-
| Year | Number of people |
| 2017 | 0 |
| 2018 | 0 |
| 2019 | 40 |
| 2020 | 187 |
| 2021 | 0 |
2. How much money has been spent unconscious bias training for staff over the last five calendar years? Please could you break down the figure by year for 2021 (up to and including the end of February), 2020, 2019, 2018 and 2017.
The table below shows how much money has been spent on unconscious bias training for OS staff over the last five calendar years: -
| Year | Money spent |
| 2017 | £0.00 |
| 2018 | £0.00 |
| 2019 | £0.00 |
| 2020 | £5,950 |
| 2021 | £0.00 |
In relation to the training which took place in 2019 for 40 people this training was delivered internally so there was no financial cost to Ordnance Survey.
3. In each case where there has been expenditure on unconscious bias training, please could you state which company the money went to, how much, and the date of the payment.
OS used Inclusive Employers for the delivery of the sessions in 2020, which all included an element of unconscious bias training. Fees of £5000 were paid in November 2020 and £950 was paid in July 2020.
4. If unconscious bias training has been provided to staff, please could you provide details of the format of the training is - its title, how many hours/days the training lasts, and any other relevant detail which summarises what it entails.
In 2019 the training was delivered by the Resourcing Manager at Ordnance Survey and the focus of training was helping hiring managers understand our recruitment and selection process, and the potential for unconscious bias within this.
In 2020 unconscious bias training formed part of broader diversity awareness workshops for several areas of our business. There were two webinars i) ‘Seizing the Moment for Inclusion’ and ii) Global Innovation Through Inclusion’. These were approximately hour-long webinars.
5. If possible, please could you provide a copy of any training material - documentation including, but not limited to, training packs, worksheets, fact sheets etc - distributed to staff as part of the unconscious bias training in any of the above years. Please note, if this is not possible, please proceed with the remainder of the request.
I confirm we do not hold any training material
Internal review
Your enquiry has been processed according to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 2000. If you are unhappy with our response, you may request an internal review with our Internal Review Officer by contacting them, within two months of receipt of our final response to your Freedom of Information (FOI) request, as follows:
Internal Review Officer
Customer Service Centre
Ordnance Survey
Adanac Drive
Southampton
SO16 0AS
Please include the reference number above. You may request an internal review where you believe Ordnance Survey has:
- Failed to respond to your request within the time limits (normally 20 working days)
- Failed to tell you whether or not we hold the information
- Failed to provide the information you have requested
- Failed to explain the reasons for refusing a request
- Failed to correctly apply an exemption or exception
The Internal Review Officer will not have been involved in the original decision. They will conduct an independent internal review and will inform you of the outcome of the review normally within 20 working days, but exceptionally within 40 working days, in line with the Information Commissioner’s guidance.
The Internal Review Officer will either: uphold the original decision, provide an additional explanation of the exemption/s applied or release further information, if it is considered appropriate to do so.
Appeal to Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO)
If, following the outcome of the internal review you remain unhappy with our response, you may raise an appeal, within three months of receiving our response, with the Information Commissioner’s Office.
Further information can be found on the ICO website (ico.org.uk) under ‘Report a concern’ or you may wish to call the ICO helpline on 0303 123 1113.