Guide to information available through the Commissioner's publication scheme

The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (the Act) requires Scottish public authorities to produce and maintain a publication scheme. Authorities are under a legal obligation to:

• publish the classes of information that they make routinely available;
• tell the public how to access the information and what it might cost.

The Scottish Information Commissioner has adopted his Model Publication Scheme 2011.  He has approved this scheme until 31 May 2015.  You can see this scheme by clicking on the following link: Model Publication Scheme 2011

or by contacting us at the address below if you prefer a copy to be provided to you in another format.

The purpose of this Guide to Information is to:

• allow the public to see what information is available (and what is not available) in relation to each class;
• state what charges may be applied;
• explain how to find the information easily;
• provide contact details for enquiries and to get help with accessing the information; and
• explain how to request information we hold that has not been published

The Guide is split into the following six sections:

• Availability and formats
• Exempt information
• Copyright
• Charges
• Contact us
• The classes of information that we publish

If you prefer you can contact us on 01334 464610 to ask for a hard copy of the Guide to be posted to you.

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Availability and formats

The information we publish through the model scheme is, wherever possible, available on our website. We offer alternative arrangements for people who do not want to, or cannot, access the information online or by inspection at our premises.  For example, we can usually arrange to send information to you in paper copy (although there may be a charge for this - see charges below).

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Exempt information

We will publish the information we hold that falls within the classes of information below.  If a document contains information that is exempt under Scotland's freedom of information laws (for example sensitive personal information or a trade secret), we will remove or 'black out' the information before publication and explain why.

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Copyright

Where the Scottish Information Commissioner holds the copyright in its published information, the information may be copied or reproduced without formal permission, provided that:

• it is copied or reproduced accurately;
• it is not used in a misleading context; and
• the source of the material is identified.

Where the Scottish Information Commissioner does not hold the copyright in information we publish, we will make this clear.

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Charges

This section explains when we may make a charge for our publications and how any charge will be calculated.  There is no charge to view information on our website or at our premises.

We may charge for providing information to you, but we will charge you no more than it actually costs us to do so. We will always tell you what the cost is before providing the information to you.

Our photocopying charge per side of paper is shown in the tables below:

Black and White Photocopying

Size of paper	Pence per sheet
A4	10p

 Colour photocopying

Size of paper	Pence per sheet
A4	20p

 

Information provided on CD-Rom will be charged at 50p per computer disc.

Postage costs will be recharged at the rate we paid to send the information to you.  Our charge is for sending info by Royal Mail First Class.

When providing copies of pre-printed publications, we will charge no more than the cost per copy, pro rata, of the total print run.

We do not pass on any other costs to you in relation to our published information.

Please note that this charging schedule does not apply to our commercial publications (see Class 8 below). These items are offered for sale through retail outlets such as book shops, academic journal websites or museum shops and their price reflects a 'market value' which may include the cost of production.

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Contact us

You can contact us for assistance with any aspect of this publication scheme:

The Scottish Information Commissioner

Kinburn Castle

Doubledykes Road

St Andrews

Fife

KY16 9DS

 

Tel: 01334 363610

Fax: 01334 464611

Email: enquiries@itspublicknowledge.info

We will also advise you how to ask for information that we do not publish or how to complain if you are dissatisfied with any aspect of the publication scheme.  If you wish to make a request for information not contained in the publication scheme, you could also click on this link: .

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 The classes of information that we publish

We publish information that we hold within the following classes. Once information is published under a class we will continue to make it available for the current and previous two financial years.

Where information has been updated or superseded, only the current version will be available.  If you would like to see previous versions, you may make a request to us for that information.

The classes are:

• Class 1: About the authority
• Class 2: How we deliver our functions and services
• Class 3: How the authority takes decisions and what it has decided
• Class 4: What the authority spends and how it spends it
• Class 5: How the authority manages its human, physical and information resources
• Class 6: How the authority procures goods and services from external providers
• Class 7: How our authority is performing
• Class 8: Our commercial publications

Class 1: About the authority
Description:  Information about the authority, who we are, where to find us, how to contact us, how we are managed and our external relations.
The information we publish under this class Our enabling legislation  The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002  Overview of the EIRs  Description of the INSPIRE regulations About us Commissioner's role Commissioner's biography Commissioner's team Governance and accountability   The Commissioner's governance arrangements - October 2012 (PDF - 212 kB) The Commissioner's governance reporting arrangements Governance and finance overview Risk Management Policy - July 2012 (PDF - 335 kB) Scheme of Delegation (PDF - 37.9 kB) The Advisory Audit Board Relationship between Commissioner and the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body Managing the organisation - including minutes of management team meetings   External relations/working with others Strategic agreements with other bodies Centre for FOI in Scotland Complain about us Contact us/where to find us Contact the media team Keeping others informed News Releases The Scottish Information Commissioner's Newsletter Decisions Round-up 5 Years of FOI Campaign 2010 Forthcoming events diary Scottish Information Commissioner's presentations and articles Visit the Commissioner's Facebook page

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Class 2: How we deliver our functions and services
Description: Information about our work, our strategy and policies for delivering functions and services and information for our service users.
The information we publish under this class Strategic and operational plans The Commissioner's Enforcement and Investigations Procedures The Commissioner's Enquiry Procedures: General enquiries and information requests Commissioner's practice assessment checklist for authorities  Information on rights, and how to make requests Overview of your rights How to apply to the Commissioner How do I ask? What might it cost? Unhappy with the response? Response Calculator - when can you expect a response The Commissioner's investigations: A guide for applicants "Your Right to Know" - a guide to freedom of information law in Scotland (PDF - 4.4MB) Find a Scottish public authority Guide to FOI for voluntary organisations Resources for elected members FOI resources for journalists including training presentation Accessing personal information Common questions the public ask us Guidance for public authorities Guidance on responding to a request Common questions public authorities ask us Briefings on legislation e.g. including: Briefings on legislation e.g. exemptions, key concepts Guidance on EIRs Comparison between legislation The Commissioner's Investigations: A Guide for Scottish Public Authorities Assessing and improving practice Guidance on publication schemes including: Model Publication Scheme 2013 Model Publication Scheme Self-Assessment Checklist (PDF - 146 kB) Guidance on how to adopt a publication scheme Bespoke publication schemes List of approved sectoral model publication schemes Downloadable resources Download logos and guidance on using them correctly Download videos and audio podcasts Download images

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Class 3: How the authority takes decisions and what it has decided
Description:  Information about the decisions we take, how we make decisions and how we involve others.
The information we publish under this class Governance and finance overview since 1 January 2005 Research reports which inform policy decisions e.g public awareness research, public authority research, civil society research Consultations Enforcing Scotland's FOI legislation Current applications for a Decision Commissioner Decisions Practice recommendations, practice assessment reports and associated action plans - see Guidance on preparing for a practice assessment

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Class 4: What the authority spends and how it spends it
Description: Information about our strategy for, and management of, financial resources (in sufficient detail to explain how we plan to spend public money and what has actually been spent).
The information we publish under this class How the Commissioner is funded (process by which budget is agreed with Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body) Budgets and expenditure, including monthly reports  Financial reporting - including annual statements of expenditure as required by the Public Services Reform (Scotland) Act 2010  Annual reports and audited accounts Cost of court appeals (PDF - 63.7 kB)

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Class 5: How the authority manages its human, physical and information resources
Description: Information about how we manage the human, physical and information resources of the authority.
The information we publish under this class Not all of these items are currently published on our website, but copies are available on request. Office policies and staff policies - see bottom of page at Managing the organisation - including minutes of management team meetings Employee Handbook (PDF - 511 kB) Equality Policy (PDF - 308 kB) Unacceptable Actions Policy (PDF - 198 kB) Recruitment policy Records Management Policy Records Management Policy - Retention Schedule (PDF - 20.6 kB) Our publication scheme

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Class 6: How the authority procures goods and services from external providers
Description: Information about how we procure goods and services, and our contracts with external providers.
The information we publish under this class Commissioner's procurement policy (Pdf - 132Kb) Current invitations to tender  Value of contracts let by the Commissioner (PDF - 106 kB)

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Class 7: How our authority is performing
Description: Information about how the authority performs as an organisation, and how well it delivers its functions and services.
The information we publish under this class Annual reports and audited accounts Online Annual Report 2010 Online Annual Report 2009 Operational Performance information including: Quarterly progress reports on the operational plan Monthly reports on caseload statistics and investigation performance Sickness and absence statistics (not currently available online- contact us on the details above)

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Class 8: Our commercial publications
Description: Information packaged and made available for sale on a commercial basis and sold at market value through a retail outlet e.g, bookshop, museum or research journal.
The information we publish under this class We do not hold or publish any information under this class.

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