FOI release

FOI202500029S IT Services

Published 10 November 2025

1.1 FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT 2000 - REQUEST REF: FOI2025/00029S 

Thank you for your email of 20 October 2025 asking for information under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 2000. You asked: 

“Specifically, I would like to know: 

1. The total number of internal services offered within FCDO Services’ Technology Department (i.e. services provided to other parts of FCDO Services or the wider FCDO). 

2. The total number of external services offered by the Technology Department (i.e. services provided to clients or organisations outside FCDO Services/FCDO). 

3. The number of public cloud–hosted services currently operated or managed by the Technology Department (for example, services hosted on AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud). 

If available, please also include: 

• A brief categorisation or description of each service type, and 

• Any publicly releasable documentation or definitions used internally to distinguish between “internal,” “external,” and “public cloud–hosted” services.” 

I am writing to confirm that we have now completed the search for the information which you requested.   

I can confirm that FCDO Services does hold information relevant to your request, as set out below: 

1. 93. 

2. 36. 

3. 5. 

 A brief categorisation or description of each service type: Your request falls under the exemption in section 43(2) of the FOIA. See below for further information. 

Definitions: FCDO Services consider ‘Internal’ as any services delivered to directorates within FCDO Services. All other engagements are considered as ‘External’, including services provided to the FCDO. Due to the varied nature of offerings, FCDO Services’ external website is used as the framework for sales supported by detailed requirement gathering and customised documentation per customer. Our public facing website provides further information on a hosting services - Cloud hosting - FCDO Services. 

Section 43  

Section 43(2) of FOIA exempts from disclosure information, which would be likely to prejudice the commercial interests of any person. It is a prejudice-based exemption, so the test for exemption is whether the individual’s commercial interests would be prejudiced by disclosure and it is subject to balancing the public interest. It is recognised that there is a general public interest in the disclosure of commercial information to ensure, for example: transparency in the accountability of public funds; proper scrutiny of government action; and the effective use of public money. However, where disclosure would make it less likely that companies or individuals would approach FCDO Services to conduct commercial transactions, or have future dealings with public bodies, without fear of suffering commercially as a result, these are factors that may weigh in favour of non-disclosure.     

Once an FOI request is answered, it is considered to be in the public domain.  To promote transparency, FCDO Services may now publish the response and any material released on GOV.UK in the FOI releases section.  All personal information in the letter will be removed before publishing.  

Where copies of information have been supplied to you they will continue to be protected by the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.  You are free to use it for your own purposes, including any non-commercial research you are doing and for the purposes of news reporting.  Any other re-use, for example commercial publication, would require the permission of the copyright holder.  Most documents supplied by the FCDO will have been produced by government officials and will be protected by Crown Copyright.  To re-use Crown Copyright documents please consult the Open Government Licence v3 on the National Archives website. 

Information you receive which is not subject to Crown Copyright continues to be protected by the copyright of the person, or organisation, from which the information originated. You must ensure that you gain their permission before reproducing any third party (non-Crown Copyright) information. 

If you would like to request a review of our decision, you should write to the Data Protection Officer (DPO), Knowledge and Information Management (KIM) Team, FCDO Services, Hanslope Park, Milton Keynes, England, MK19 7BH (e-mail: FCDOServices.DataProtectionOfficer@fcdo.gov.uk).  Please note you have 40 working days to do so from the date of this letter. Please quote the reference number above in any future communications. 

If you are not content with the outcome of your complaint, you may then apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a decision.  Generally, the Information Commissioner cannot make a decision unless you have exhausted the complaints procedure provided by the FCDO. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at: Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF, or online at: https://ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint/  

Yours sincerely, 

FOI Officer 

Knowledge and Information Management (KIM) Team 

FCDO Services