Scottish Connections Fund information: FOI Review

Information requested

Original request 202400441287

The following information in respect of the Scottish Connections Fund 2024-25:

1. Judging Panel:

• Please provide a list of the names of all individuals who served on the judging panel for the 2024/2025 round of the Scottish Connections Fund.

2. External Input:

• Please provide a list of any organizations or individuals, not on the judging panel, who were consulted or approached to provide additional input or advice on applications to the Scottish Connections Fund for 2024/2025.

3. Assessment Criteria:

• Please provide details of the specific criteria and weighting used to assess applications for the 2024/2025 round of the Scottish Connections Fund.
• Please explain how these criteria were applied to the assessment of individual applications.

4. Adjudication Process:

• Please provide a detailed description of the adjudication process used to determine the successful applications for the 2024/2025 round of the Scottish Connections Fund.
• Please specify who was involved in the adjudication process, at what stage, and what level of oversight was applied by the Scottish Government.
• Please identify the individual(s) within the Scottish Government who had the final authority to approve or reject applications.

5. Decision-Making:

• Please clarify the process by which the final decisions on successful applications were made, including the role of the judging panel, external advisors, and Scottish Government officials.

Response

I have now completed my review of our response to your request under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA) for:

The following information in respect of the Scottish Connections Fund 2024-25:

1. Judging Panel:

• Please provide a list of the names of all individuals who served on the judging panel for the 2024/2025 round of the Scottish Connections Fund.

2. External Input:

• Please provide a list of any organizations or individuals, not on the judging panel, who were consulted or approached to provide additional input or advice on applications to the Scottish Connections Fund for 2024/2025.

3. Assessment Criteria:

• Please provide details of the specific criteria and weighting used to assess applications for the 2024/2025 round of the Scottish Connections Fund.
• Please explain how these criteria were applied to the assessment of individual applications.

4. Adjudication Process:

• Please provide a detailed description of the adjudication process used to determine the successful applications for the 2024/2025 round of the Scottish Connections Fund.
• Please specify who was involved in the adjudication process, at what stage, and what level of oversight was applied by the Scottish Government.
• Please identify the individual(s) within the Scottish Government who had the final authority to approve or reject applications.

5. Decision-Making:

• Please clarify the process by which the final decisions on successful applications were made, including the role of the judging panel, external advisors, and Scottish Government officials.

You asked for a review of the following aspects of our response:-

1. A review of whether anonymized or aggregated information about the judging panel and external input can be disclosed, particularly regarding professional roles or areas of expertise.

2. Clarification on why no documentation of the adjudication process exists and whether this aligns with governance standards for public funding.

3. A reconsideration of whether detailed procedural explanations about the application of assessment criteria can be provided, particularly where anonymization is possible.

During my review I have established that some additional information – specifically a submission from officials to the Cabinet Secretary for Culture and External Affairs outlining the application process, considerations and recommended decisions on funding allocation - should be released to you to better respond to your request. This information can be found at Release Annex A. While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance some of the information you have requested remains subject to exemptions under FOISA. The exemptions and why they apply is set out at Release Annex B.

I have considered each part of your review separately for ease.

1. I have concluded that the original decision should be confirmed, with modifications. Your request asked for the names of the individuals who served on the judging panel and the names of individuals, not on the judging panel, who were consulted or approached to provide additional input or advice on applications. I can confirm that no external input was received and therefore there are no names of external individuals or organisations to release.

However within the document released at Release Annex A is a submission of advice from Scottish Government officials to the Cabinet Secretary for Culture and External Affairs who ultimately approved the process of adjudication set out and the subsequent allocation of funding. Within this document, some of the names of individuals involved remain subject to exemption under section 38(1)(b) after my review because they are the names of officials below Senior Civil Service level. However my review has found that 38(1)(b) was, in other instances, applied too broadly in our response to your original request. As such, within Release Annex A, at paragraph 10, released is an aggregated description of Scottish Government officials who formed part of the application assessment process and, visible at paragraph 30, I have released the name of the responsible Senior Civil Servant, Deputy Director of International Relations, who approved the submission advice which ultimately the Cabinet Secretary for Culture and External Affairs, Angus Robertson MSP, agreed with and approved.

2. I have concluded that the original decision should be overturned. My review has identified that there is relevant information held by the Scottish Government regarding the adjudication process of the Scottish Connections Fund as per your original request, and that the initial application of section 17(1) should be overturned. The information at Release Annex A remains subject to some exemptions under sections 38(1)(b) personal data of a third party; section 30(c) the effective conduct of public affairs; section 36(1) claim to confidentiality of communications, and section 25(1) information otherwise accessible. The reasons why these exemptions apply can be found at Release Annex B.

3. My review has concluded that procedural information relating to the process of assessment and allocation for the Scottish Connections Fund should be released to support our response to your request. This information can be found in full at Annex C within Release Annex A.

About FOI

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

FOI 202500449434 - Information released - Annex A

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PDF

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386.7 kB

FOI 202500449434 - Information released - Annex B

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PDF

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298.4 kB