A group of journalists are launching a not-­for­-profit company to push for greater transparency and better access to information in Ireland.

Malachy Browne, who joined the New York Times’ video team earlier this year and Gavin Sheridan, a former Irish Examiner journalist, will become directors of Right to Know. The pair were both previously at Storyful, the social news agency bought by News Corp in 2013.

They are being joined by Tom Lyons, business editor and associate editor of the Sunday Business Post, Karrie Kehoe, investigative data journalist for The Times and Sunday Times, London and Ken Foxe, assistant lecturer at the DIT School of Media.

It plans to publish documents obtained through FoIs, appeal questionable refusals, and train citizens and journalists to access information. It also plans to link up with news organisations and NGOs to investigate issues in the public interest. It is seeking donations to run without advertising or a paywall.

The new organisation is an expansion of a freedom of information blog thestory.ie, which was set up in 2009. The pro­bono site, set up by Sheridan and Mark Coughlan, received occasional donations from the public.

Successes include an FoI request in 2010 for data on loans controlled by Nama, a government organisation founded to operate as a “bad bank” to support the country’s banking industry, which led to a ruling against the business in the supreme court. It also helped secure the release of the “Trichet letters” to former finance minister Brian Lenihan following a three-year appeal process.

Sheridan said: “A website like this, run entirely on good will by volunteers in their spare time can only last so long. We have therefore decided that rather than shut it down and get on with our lives­we will try and move the needle even further.”

In 2003 the Irish government amended the Freedom of Information Act, restricting its powers. Controversially, fees were introduced, costing €15 for an initial application rising to €150 for an appeal to the Information Commissioner.

Thestory.ie campaigned against FoI fees, particularly the upfront €15 fee, which has since been scrapped. The act was last amended in 2014, opening up its application to the Irish police force, public financial bodies and the Central Bank of Ireland.