Scottish Fuel Poverty Advisory Panel Guide to Information

Introduction

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

Publish the classes of information that they make routinely available
Tell the public how to access the information and whether information is available free of charge or what it might cost

The Scottish Fuel Poverty Advisory Panel has adopted the Model Publication Scheme which was produced and approved by the Scottish Information Commissioner in March 2021. You can read this scheme on the Scottish Information Commissioner website, or you can get a copy by contacting us at the address below.

The purpose of this Guide to Information is to:

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

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).

If you require adjustments to make information physically accessible, such as information in a larger script or different format, we will do this where it is practicable to do so. The costs of this will be met by us.

Exempt information

Our aim is to be as open as possible. 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 redact the information before publication and explain why.

Copyright and re-use of information

The information that the Panel produces may be copied or reproduced without formal permission, under the terms and conditions of the Open Government Licence, 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 Panel does not hold the copyright in information we publish, we will make this clear.

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 or download information on our website or at our premises.

We aim to provide information free of charge whenever possible, but we may sometimes charge for providing published information to you e.g., photocopying and postage.

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.

Where charges are applied, photocopied or printed information will be charged as a standard rate of 10p per A4 side of paper (black and white copy) and 30p per A4 side of paper (colour copy).

We may recharge any postage costs at the rate we paid to send the information to you.

Contact us

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

Scottish Fuel Poverty Advisory Panel
c/o 7th Floor,
Atlantic Quay,
150 Broomielaw,
Glasgow,
G2 8LU

Email: enquiries@fuelpovertypanel.scot

Visit our Contact us page

We can 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 this publication scheme.

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.

Classes of Information

Class 1: Information about Scottish Fuel Poverty Advisory Panel

Description:

Information about the Scottish fuel Poverty Advisory Panel, 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	How to access it
Contact details The name, address and contact details for the Panel Our opening hours Contact details for any enquiries	Contact Us - Fuel Poverty Scotland
About the Panel Details of our Panel members, the structure and responsibilities of the secretariat and names of the secretariat staff The legislation under which we are established and our Framework Document Details of any working groups set up by the Panel	Who We Are - Fuel Poverty Scotland What We Do - Fuel Poverty Scotland Governance - Fuel Poverty Scotland
Governance The Panel’s Code of Conduct The Panel’s Register of Interests	Governance Page on website Who We Are - Fuel Poverty Scotland
Accessing information Our publication scheme and Guide to Information Charging schedule for information Contact details and advice about how to request information from the Panel	Freedom of Information - Fuel Poverty Scotland

Class 2: How we deliver our functions and services

Description:

Information about our work, our strategies and policies for delivering our functions and services and information for our service users

As the Scottish Fuel Poverty Advisory Panel is an advisory NDPB it does not provide services to service users.

The Information we publish under this class	How to access it
About the Panel A description of the Panel’s functions, including the statutory basis for them Our workplan this will be published annually.	What We Do - Fuel Poverty Scotland

Class 3 How we take decisions and what we have decided

Description:

Information about the decisions we take, how we make decisions and how we involve others

The Information we publish under this class	How to access it
Our publications Agendas and minutes of Panel meetings The Panel’s advice to Scottish Ministers and other publications that it produces under its functions of monitoring the Scottish Government’s progress towards meeting its 2040 fuel poverty targets and advising on issues related to fuel poverty in Scotland.	Our Meetings - Fuel Poverty Scotland Our Publications - Fuel Poverty Scotland

Class 4 What we spend and how we spend 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 Panel does not have body corporate status and therefore does not hold a budget. The Scottish Government has a budget available that is used to support the work of the Panel. The secretariat staff are also employed by the Scottish Government. The Panel is not required to publish annual accounts but intends to publish a statement about how it has spent this money through its annual reporting process.

The Information we publish under this class	How to access it
Budget The budget made available by the Scottish Government to support the work of the Panel Panel remuneration rates.	Governance - Fuel Poverty Scotland

Class 5 How we manage our human, physical and information resources

Description

Information about how we manage our human, physical and information resources.

The Panel does not employ staff or hold land or property assets.

The Information we publish under this class	How to access it
Information resources Our freedom of information policies and procedures Our privacy policy.	Freedom of Information - Fuel Poverty Scotland Privacy Policy - Fuel Poverty Scotland

Class 6 How we procure goods and services from external providers

Description

Information about how we procure works, goods and services, and our contracts with external providers.

The Panel is not able to enter into contracts and therefore does not directly procure goods and services.

In order to support the Panel to operate the Scottish Government enters into contracts for the goods and services that the Panel needs.

The Information we publish under this class	How to access it
Procurement and contracts Details of how goods and services are procured for the Panel Links to the Scottish Government’s procurement policies and procedures Details of any Invitations to Tender Details of any contracts awarded by the Scottish Government on behalf of the Panel.	Procurement and Contracts - Fuel Poverty Scotland

Class 7 How we are performing

Description

Information about how we perform as an organisation, and how well we deliver our functions and services.

The Information we publish under this class	How to access it
Annual report. The Panel’s annual report.	Our Publications - Fuel Poverty Scotland

Class 8 Our commercial publications

Description

Information packaged and made available for sale on a commercial basis and sold at market rate through a retail outlet e.g., bookshop, museum, or research journal

The Information we publish under this class	How to access it
The Panel does not publish any commercial publications.	Not applicable

Class 9 Our open data

Description

Open data made available by the authority as described by the Scottish Government’s Open Data Resource Pack

The Information we publish under this class How to access it	How to access it
The Panel does not make available open data.	Not applicable

How to make a Freedom of Information request

If the information you are looking for isn’t covered above, you can make a request to us to release it.

For non-personal information, please email your request to enquiries@fuelpovertypanel.scot including your name and as much detail as possible about the information you are seeking.

For guidance on how to make a request, please see the Scottish Information Commissioner’s website:

Scottish Information Commissioner Freedom of Information

Once we receive your request, we will acknowledge it and respond within 20 working days.

We will not normally charge for responding, but if we consider your request likely to cost more than £600, we may refuse your request and advise on how your request can be modified to come under this threshold.

We may also charge if you request hard copies of the information.

Last reviewed: 27/04/2023