Freedom of Information

We routinely publish information on our website about what we do. If you can’t find the information you are interested in you can make a request using our freedom of information request form. For details about how we handle FOI and Environmental requests please read our FOI Standard and Procedure.

For information about how many FOI requests we have had and how we have dealt with them you can visit the FOI request statistics page. These figures are updated every quarter.

FOI Archive by year:

Freedom of Information Responses

The following responses have been received by the bank. This page will be updated on a monthly basis.

Applications and Software

    FOI 25-008

    Reference FOI 25-008

    Received: 21/04/2025

    Responded: 20/05/2025

    Request: 

    Q1. Can you please list the number of devices deployed by your organisation for the following 

    Q2. Does your organisation have plans to procure any of the below services, if yes then please provide information  in the below format?  

    Q3. Does your organisation have any plans to procure the below services, if yes then please provide required  information in the below format?  

    Q4. Does your organisation have any plans to procure below services, if yes then please provide  information in the below format?  

    Q5. Has your organisation implemented any form of AI or Automation services, and if not, what is the reason for not implementing?

    Download our response (ODT, 15.98 KB) to case FOI 25-008

    FOI 25-015

    Reference FOI 25-015

    Received: 04/06/2025

    Responded: 17/06/2025

    Request: The information that we require is as follows:  

    1. Do you use a social media management platform?  
    2. If so, what tools do you use?  
    3. What is your annual spend on a Social media management tool?  
    4. What dates does your contract with your current supplier end (in the format of [month/year])? 
    5. Do you use a social listening / media monitoring platform?  
    6. If so, what tools do you use?  
    7. What is your annual spend on a social listening / media monitoring tool?  
    8. What dates does your contract with your current supplier end (in the format of [month/year]) 
    9. Who is the senior person responsible for managing these contracts? 
    Download our response (ODT, 13.38 KB) to case FOI 25-015

    FOI 25-016

    Reference FOI 25-016

    Received: 04/06/2025

    Responded: 02/07/2025

    Request: 

    1. Standard Firewall (Network): Firewall services that protect the organisation’s network from unauthorised access and other internet security threats. 
    2. Anti-virus Software Application: Programs designed to prevent, detect, and remove viruses, malware, trojans, adware, and related threats. 
    3. Microsoft Enterprise Agreement: A volume licensing agreement that may include: Microsoft 365 (Office, Exchange, SharePoint, Teams), Windows Enterprise, Enterprise Mobility + Security (EMS), Azure services (committed or pay-as-you-go), Microsoft Power BI, or any alternative business intelligence platform used for data connectivity, dashboards, and reporting.

    For each of the above areas, I kindly request the following: 

    1. Who is the existing supplier for this contract? 
    2. What is the annual spend for each contract? 
    3. What is the description of the services provided? 
    4. Primary brand (where applicable) 
    5. What is the start date of the contract? 
    6. What is the expiry date of the contract? 
    7. What is the total duration of the contract? 
    8. Who is the responsible contract officer? 
    9. Please include at least their job title, and where possible, name, contact number, and direct email address 
    10. How many licences or users are included (where applicable)? 
    Download our response (ODT, 23.31 KB) to case FOI 25-016
    Supplementary Documentation to FOI 25-016
    Download our attachment (PDF, 108.45 KB) to case FOI 25-016

    Decision making and governance

      FOI 25-007

      Reference FOI 25-007

      Received: 19/04/2025

      Responded: 13/05/2025

      Request: I refer to recent media reports that the Financial Conduct Authority permitted or instructed the destruction of over one million documents compiled by Promontory Financial Group in relation to its review of the Royal Bank of Scotland’s Global Restructuring Group (GRG). These documents are understood to have been destroyed one year after the Promontory review concluded, despite the FCA’s standard 25-year retention policy for regulatory materials. Accordingly, I request the following information:  

      1. Legal Basis & Authority: The internal and/or external legal advice received by your organisation justifying the document retention period of one year. Any policy exceptions or waivers granted to Promontory regarding record-keeping, data retention, or destruction of materials. The legal or contractual basis for allowing or instructing the destruction of the Promontory GRG files.  
      2. Decision-Making and Sign-Off: The names and positions of the FCA or relevant officials at your organisation who authorised or signed off on this destruction. Minutes, memos, or correspondence relating to internal discussions about whether the documents should be retained or destroyed. Details of any Treasury or British Business Bank involvement, consultation, or awareness of this decision. 
      3. Notification to Affected Parties: Any correspondence with affected SMEs, whistleblowers, legal claimants, MPs, or regulators informing them of the planned or completed destruction. Whether any Data Subject Access Requests (DSARs) or FOI requests were pending or anticipated at the time of destruction.  
      4. Data Protection Considerations: Whether a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) or other risk assessment was carried out prior to the destruction. Any correspondence with the Information Commissioner’s Office regarding this matter.s contracts that provides service support maintenance and upgrades separate to the main software contract, please also provide this information in the response following the requested data below.  
      Download our response (ODT, 12.37 KB) to case FOI 25-007

      FOI 25-009

      Reference FOI 25-009

      Received: 24/04/2025

      Responded: 04/07/2025

      Request: Regarding correspondence between Chief executive Louis Taylor of the British Business Bank and other individuals or organizations regarding the potential incorporation/merger/combining of the British Business Bank into the government’s National Wealth Fund. 

      Specifically, I would like to request the following: 

      1. Any correspondence (including emails, letters, and memos) between Taylor and any officials from the UK government, including but not limited to officials in the Treasury, the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS), or the Cabinet Office, relating to discussions on the potential incorporation of the British Business Bank into the National Wealth Fund. 
      2. Correspondence between Taylor and external organizations or individuals regarding the incorporation of the bank into the National Wealth Fund. 
      3. Any relevant meeting minutes or internal documentation that mentions discussions about the incorporation of the British Business Bank into the National Wealth Fund. 

      Please specify the date range for these communications (e.g., from January 2023 to the present). 

      Download our response (ODT, 37.49 KB) to case FOI 25-009
      Supplementary Documentation to FOI 25-009
      Download our attachment (PDF, 30.1MB) to case FOI 25-009

      What we spend and how we spend it

        FOI 25-004

        Reference FOI 25-004

        Received: 11/04/2025

        Responded: 06/05/2025

        Request: Please include the following information for the following financial years 2022/23,2023/24 and 2024/25:  

        • A list of all flights taken by employees and board members including the following details:  
        • The airline  
        • The class (e.g. economy, business, first)  
        • The departure airport and destination  
        • The cost  
        • The dates of travel  
        • The name of the hotels stayed at, if possible  
        • The cost of any other expenses. 
        Download our response (ODT, 14.92 KB) to case FOI 25-004
        Supplementary Documentation to FOI 25-004
        Download our response (PDF, 666.36 KB) to case FOI 25-004

        FOI 25-005

        Reference FOI 25-005

        Received: 11/04/2025

        Responded: 13/05/2025

        Request: Thank you for providing access to your organisation's expenditure over £25,000 data, available at the following page: https://www.british-business-bank.co.uk/about/governance/transparency/spendingover-25000  

        However, as I cannot find details on your expenditure for certain periods of time, I would like to make a request under the Freedom of Information Act for all of your entity's expenditure over £25,000 for the following period: 1. January 2016 to March 2023  

        Please could you include the date, value, and recipient of each transaction, along with the expenditure category if possible, and provide the data in a machine readable format, such as a CSV. 

        Download our response (ODT, 12.32 KB) to case FOI 25-005

        FOI 25-006

        Reference FOI 25-006

        Received: 17/04/2025

        Responded: 15/05/2025

        Request: I am doing a research project investigating call-off contracts in the public sector. I have identified a potential call-off contract awarded by British Business Bank, but I can't find details of the framework agreement it was awarded from.    

        I have attached an Excel file that contains the information I am looking at. The last two columns ("Title of framework used" and "Further framework info") is where I am missing information. Please could you provide the name of the specific framework agreement or DPS used here. If there is any further info which you think would help me locate the framework agreement (e.g., a link to the framework's Contract Finder or FTS listing, the framework provider, or a widely-used reference number such as CCS's RM codes), please use the final column for this.   

        Please note that I have identified this contract as a possible call-off contract, so there is a chance it is not a call-off. It could be, for instance, procured directly (without being called off from a framework agreement), or could be itself a notice of the establishment of a framework agreement. Therefore I would kindly ask you to specify in this instance what kind of procurement was used in the "Title of framework used" column.    

        I have provided the title, description, the publication date, and procedure type used to award the potential call-off, as well as a URL link to the call-off in question and a unique reference ID for the potential call-off. Please let me know if there is anything else you need to complete the request.

        Download our response (ODT, 14.73 KB) to case FOI 25-006

        FOI 25-020

        Reference FOI 25-020

        Received: 21/06/2025

        Responded: 21/07/2025

        Request: Completed procurement documents 

        For every procurement involving behavioural biometrics (e.g. keystroke dynamics, mouse-movement profiling, device-intelligence behavioural analytics) initiated or concluded between 1 January 2021 and 21 June 2025, please supply the final, completed Request for Proposal (or Invitation to Tender) pack, including: 

        • Statement of Requirements / specification 
        • Evaluation criteria and weightings 
        • Bidder Q&A logs or clarification questions 
        • All issued addenda or corrigenda 
        • Contract-award information 

        For each procurement above, please provide the associated award-stage documents showing: 

        • Name(s) of the successful supplier(s) 
        • Total contract value and, where available, the pricing schedule or rate card that formed the basis of evaluation 
        • Final evaluation scores (overall and by criterion) for each bidder 

        I confirm that this request does not relate to information held for the purposes of monetary policy, stability-support operations for financial institutions, or private-banking services, as excluded by Schedule 1 Part VI para 11 FOIA. 

        I prefer the material in searchable PDF or Word format under Section 11 FOIA. 

        Cost-limit advice 

        If fulfilling the request in full would exceed the £600 cost limit, please: 

        1. Confirm what information can be disclosed within the limit, and 
        2. Advise how I might refine the scope to fall within it. 
        Download our response (ODT, 11.16 KB) to case FOI 25-020

        FOI 25-021

        Reference FOI 25-021

        Received: 22/06/2025

        Responded: 15/07/2025

        Request: This is a request under FOIA for details of instances in which British Business Bank (including, where applicable, any agencies, bodies, or units for which it is ultimately responsible for supplier payments) has failed to pay its suppliers on time, thereby causing liabilities for late payment compensation and/or interest on late payments to be incurred for the public purse.  

        We request under FOIA that you provide, (preferably in Microsoft Excel or an equivalent machine-readable format) the following information in respect of suppliers which were not paid in within 30 days for the period starting 1 April 2019 to the date of this request: 

        • Supplier Name 
        • Invoice Date 
        Download our response (ODT, 28.45 KB) to case FOI 25-021

        Our products and programmes

          FOI 25-002

          Reference FOI 25-002

          Received: 08/04/2025

          Responded: 23/05/2025

          Request: Could you tell me the following please.  

          1. Total amounts advanced to businesses in the 90620 SIC within the BBL and CBILS Schemes, if possible grouped in turnover bandings.  
          2. The total amount outstanding for both schemes for the same SIC again by turnover banding if possible.  
          3. The total amount in arrears for both schemes for the same SIC again by turnover banding if possible.  
          4. The total amount written off by lenders for both schemes and claimed from the government for the same SIC again by turnover banding if possible.   
          Download our response (ODT, 24.67 KB) to case FOI 25-002

          FOI 25-010

          Reference FOI 25-010

          Received: 06/05/2025

          Responded: 02/07/2025

          Request: Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund Interim Evaluation Report 

          1. Summary of findings and conclusions 
          2. Key messages 
          3. Inputs, activities and outputs

            Overall, demand for NPIF finance has been strong and the offer was well aligned with SMEs’ needs. By June 2021, £281.2m of NPIF finance had been deployed via 1,206 investments in 913 SMEs. Of this, 55% was larger debt finance, 39% was equity and 7% was microfinance.

          Download our response (ODT, 24.7 KB) to case FOI 25-010

          FOI 25-011

          Reference FOI 25-011

          Received: 09/05/2025

          Responded: 06/06/2025

          Request: A breakdown of all funding disbursed through the Start Up Loans scheme in Northern Ireland in the financial years 2022 – 2023 and 2023 – 2024, including:  

          • The number of loans issued  
          • The total amount disbursed  
          • The average loan size  
          • The default rates  

          Whether there have been any instances where a single individual has received Start Up Loans for more than one company within the same or different time periods. If so, please provide:  

          • The number of such individuals  
          • The number of companies funded per individual  
          • The total value of loans issued to such individuals  
          Download our response (ODT, 14.51 KB) to case FOI 25-011

          FOI 25-012

          Reference FOI 25-012

          Received: 12/05/2025

          Responded: 08/07/2025

          Request: Could you please provide me with any guidance for lenders for the Bounce Back Loan (BBL) which was current at 12 June 2020. Could you also please provide the specific details in the guidance for borrowers where it states that a company not incorporated on 1 March 2020 would be ineligible for a BBL. The guidance refers to businesses, which can have different legal structures. Where does it state that the legal status of an existing established business could not have changed after 1 March 2020, in the guidance and information available at 12 June 2020. 

          Download our response (ODT, 147.76 KB) to case FOI 25-012
          Supplementary Documentation to FOI 25-012
          Download our attachment (PDF, 3.15MB) to case FOI 25-012

          FOI 25-013

          Reference FOI 25-013

          Received: 13/05/2025

          Responded: 12/06/2025

          Request: 

          1. A copy of the published assessment guidelines used by loan assessors for evaluating Start Up Loan applications  
          2. Any manuals, handbooks, or procedural documents that outline the criteria, scoring methods, or decision-making frameworks used by assessors to evaluate loan applications  
          3. Any risk assessment templates or checklists used in the loan application evaluation process 
          4. Training materials provided to loan assessors that explain how to evaluate applications and make lending decisions  
          Download our response (ODT, 23.56 KB) to case FOI 25-013

          FOI 25-018

          Reference FOI 25-018

          Received: 18/06/2025

          Responded: 30/06/2025

          Request: A bank loan of £50,000 was made to a company during the financial year ending 30th April 2021. Evidence of the same is already in the public domain as a result of accounts filed at Companies House under Registered Company Number 10124574.  

          We formally make a Freedom of Information request simply for confirmation as to whether that loan is, in fact, a "Bounce Back Loan".

          Download our response (ODT, 17.96 KB) to case FOI 25-018

          Staff and Recruitment

            FOI 25-001

            Reference FOI 25-001

            Received: 02/04/2025

            Response: 14/04/2025

            Request: Do you currently use any Contractors or external consultants within the Cyber Security function? (How many if so) If not, have you had any cyber security contractors previously? Do you have an allocated budget for Cyber Security?

            Download our response (.ODT, 11.19 KB) to case FOI 25-001

            If you require any of the documentation on the page in alternative accessible formats, please contact us at [email protected].