Croft House Grant Scheme: EIR release

Information requested

1. Data/file information for the regulatory framework and standards for this scheme.

2. Data/file information for Policy Documents covering the scheme.

3. Data/file information for Application Management System is being used for the scheme.

4. Data/file information for applications, financial test applied in the scheme for applications.

5. Data/file information for of what safeguards are in place to ensure cases are considered fairly.

6. From 2000 to 2024, provide data/file information for the experts who consider the applications, their professional qualifications, accreditations, and experiences.

7. From 2000 to 2024, provide data/file information for of failed applications, complaints, and investigations in relation to these complaints and steps taken to deal with the complaints.

Response

As the information you have requested is ‘environmental information’ for the purposes of the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (EIRs), we are required to deal with your request under those Regulations. We are applying the exemption at section 39(2) of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA), so that we do not also have to deal with your request under FOISA.

This exemption is subject to the ‘public interest test’. Therefore, taking account of all the circumstances of this case, we have considered if the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exemption. We have found that, on balance, the public interest lies in favour of upholding the exemption, because there is no public interest in dealing with the same request under two different regimes. This is essentially a technical point and has no material effect on the outcome of your request.

Under regulation 6(2) of the EIRs, we do not have to give you information which is already reasonably accessible to you. If, however, you do not have internet access to obtain this information from the website(s) listed, then please contact me again and I will send you a paper copy.

Regulatory framework and standards.

The regulatory framework and standards for the Croft House Grant scheme are set out in SSI/2016/63 available at: The Croft House Grant (Scotland) Regulations 2016 (legislation.gov.uk). In addition, the Croft House Grant Guidance contains full eligibility, grant conditions and scoring information.

Policy Documents.

As above, the Croft House Grant scheme guidance contains full eligibility criteria, grant conditions and scoring information, and is available at Croft House Grant Guidance.

Application Management System.

The Crofters Building Grants Loans and Rents (CBGLR) is the system used to manage the application process and record approved contracts for the Croft House Grant. This system is also used to track claims. The team responsible for administering the Croft House Grant has a master spreadsheet on which all applications submitted are logged.

This is used keep track of an application’s progress, before being approved or rejected.

Financial Test.

The Croft House Grant is not means tested and there is no financial test for applicants to the scheme. The selection mechanism (scoring criteria) is designed to prioritise funding and target support to those who need it most, those who would not be able to build or improve their croft house without grant funding.

There are five scoring criterion, which are: current and proposed activity, any property on/off the croft which could be or has been sold to fund the new build, current accommodation, net income details and assignation details.

Full details can be found in the guidance, see link above.

Safeguards

With regard to safeguards to ensure cases are considered fairly, a selection mechanism is used as a key part of the of the process to identify those applicants who are most in need of grant funding. This process ensures all applications are assessed fairly and consistently. The scheme is reviewed annually, to ensure it continues to target support to those who need it most, those who would be unable to build or improve their home without grant funding. Officials regularly monitor the scheme, to ensure fairness and consistency.

Professional qualifications, accreditations, and experience.

When an application is submitted it is accessed by a Case Officers. Current Case Officers have between 5-16 years’ experience. Applications are then checked and considered by a Tranche Panel, which includes the Scheme Manager and their Senior Manager, who have between 6 months to 7 years’ experience administering the Croft House Grant scheme. Building Officers are also required to consider all applications for the CHG, and experience ranges from 2 to 39 years.

The Scottish Government takes all complaints seriously and treats all complaints, including anonymous complaints, seriously. The complaints procedure has two stages:

• 1. Stage one – frontline resolution
• 2. Stage two – investigation

Full information on the complaints procedure can be found at: https://www.gov.scot/publications/model-complaints-handlingprocedure/
About FOI

The Scottish Government is committed to publishing all information released in response to Freedom of Information requests. View all FOI responses at http://www.gov.scot/foi-responses.