Scottish Government Directorate structure: FOI release
Information request and response under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002.
Information requested
1. Can you confirm that the Scottish Government is split into directorates, and that all employees, capital, or other things attached to the Scottish Government are categorised under one or more directorates?
2. Please list the directorates of the Scottish Government.
3. Is there a standard substructure for each Scottish Government directorate?
4. Please list the sub-departments of each Scottish Government directorate.
5. Please list the sub-departments of each subdepartment of each Scottish Government directorate.
Response
The answer to your questions are:
1. I can confirm that the Scottish Government is split into Directorates, and that all employees are categorised into each Directorate, with the exception of a small number of employees that are categorised at the Director General level. Accountability for capital and financial resources operate along a portfolio structure aligned to Cabinet Secretary portfolios. These operate in addition to the Scottish Government accountability structures of Directors General and Directorates.
2. The list is detailed on the accompanying spreadsheet.
3. There is not a standard substructure for each Scottish Government directorate. These will vary significantly depending on the purpose and duties of the business area, for example between operational and policy teams.
4. The sub-departments of each Scottish Government directorates are referred to as Divisions. These are detailed in the accompanying spreadsheet.
5. The sub-departments of each Division are referred to as Branches. These are detailed in the accompanying spreadsheet.
Please find attached a spreadsheet which details the directorate structure as detailed on the HR management information systems from 31 January 2025. The information provided on directorate level includes some units that are not full divisions or branches because of the way in which resources in some instances are allocated to the Directorate but not a specific Division, or resources are allocated to a Division but not a specific Branch, and how this dynamic is captured on the HR system.
About FOI
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Contact
Please quote the FOI reference
Central Correspondence Unit
Email: contactus@gov.scot
Phone: 0300 244 4000
The Scottish Government
St Andrew's House
Regent Road
Edinburgh
EH1 3DG