Public-meeting minutes are the record a body posts after a session. FOIA 2000 s.40 exempts personal data whose release would breach the data protection principles. anonym.plus marks that PII on your own device, so the draft stays inside the body while you prepare it.
When this applies
A council posts its minutes. The text names residents who spoke, a staff complainant, and personal contacts that s.40 protects.
How anonym.plus handles it
- Open the minutes in anonym.plus on your device.
- The tool flags speaker names, contacts, and IDs.
- Keep officials acting in their elected role.
- Mark private residents' and staff PII for removal.
- Black out or swap each one, then review the page.
- Save the posted version on your machine.
What you need to provide
- The minutes (DOCX, PDF, or TXT).
- An operator: Replace keeps the text readable.
- An allow-list for officials' names and titles.
PII entity types detected
| Category | anonym.plus entity type | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Names | PERSON | resident speaker → [PERSON] |
| Contact | EMAIL_ADDRESS | personal email → [EMAIL] |
| Contact | PHONE_NUMBER | home phone → [PHONE] |
| Location | LOCATION | home address → [ADDRESS] |
| Identifiers | NATIONAL_ID | case ref → [ID] |
| Names | PERSON | named complainant → [PERSON] |
Compliance achieved
- Supports a withholding under FOIA 2000 s.40 (personal data).
- Hides private PII while elected officials stay named.
- Offline work keeps the draft inside the body.
- 340+ entity types catch contacts and IDs, not just names.
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Limitations & cautions
Section 40 turns on a data-protection and fairness test. The tool flags PII; the call is yours. Local-government openness rules may require more disclosure than FOIA for some decisions. Apply the rule that governs your body.
Frequently asked questions
Should officials' names stay in minutes?
Usually yes. An elected official acting in their role is disclosable. Use an allow-list to keep their names while you redact private residents.
What private PII comes out?
Personal contacts, home addresses, health or complaint details, and similar data whose release would be unfair. anonym.plus flags each.
Is anything uploaded?
No. The app runs offline, so the draft minutes stay on your device through the review.