Number of entries recorded at core Scottish Government buildings: FOI release

Information requested

For each of the four core SG buildings - St Andrew’s House, Victoria Quay, Saughton House and Atlantic Quay – please can you tell me the following:

The number of unique building pass users recorded entering each facility every day, Monday to Friday, in the following months of 2024 – July, August, September, October, November, December. I’ve used this FOI response - https://www.gov.scot/publications/foi-202400446281/ - to shape my request but the key difference is I would like this data for every working day, not just sample days.

Response

You requested a large amount of complex information over a considerable period of time. As such, and to ensure that our FOI obligations were met, we provided you with a holding response to inform you as to when any information, if applicable, could be provided. However, upon researching your request, some of the information you requested we do not hold, therefore we are now able to provide you with the information that we do hold, quicker than expected.

You will know that Public Authorities are not required to create information in order to answer a request.

There is however a distinction between creating new information, and compiling information. Where a request can be answered by compiling information from readily-available resources held by the public authority, this is not the same as creating new information. However, if collation of the information would require skill and complex judgement, the information is not held.

To that end, we are applying s.17 (information not held) with regards to your request for the Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday of each the last 6 months of 2024, as to obtain this information would be, in effect, to create new information for the purposes of answering this FOI request.

However, we do hold data that was used for reporting purposes, namely for each Tuesday in the 2nd half of 2024 please see the table below.

AQ5	%	SAH	%	SH	%	VQ	%	Daily Total %
02-Jul	41.40%	02-Jul	24.90%	02-Jul	19.67%	02-Jul	14.00%	21.00%
09-Jul	36.77%	09-Jul	27.10%	09-Jul	17.42%	09-Jul	16.22%	21.24%
16-Jul	37.57%	16-Jul	27.83%	16-Jul	21.27%	16-Jul	15.15%	22.20%
23-Jul	42.59%	23-Jul	32.06%	23-Jul	20.19%	23-Jul	17.34%	24.22%
30-Jul	46.83%	30-Jul	33.63%	30-Jul	18.40%	30-Jul	19.17%	25.20%
06-Aug	34.79%	06-Aug	27.83%	06-Aug	21.83%	06-Aug	16.73%	22.67%
13-Aug	43.92%	13-Aug	32.68%	13-Aug	18.59%	13-Aug	19.92%	25.02%
20-Aug	56.08%	20-Aug	37.80%	20-Aug	24.18%	20-Aug	20.39%	29.25%
27-Aug	47.75%	27-Aug	34.59%	27-Aug	28.31%	27-Aug	19.49%	28.48%
03-Sep	41.53%	03-Sep	32.11%	03-Sep	23.00%	03-Sep	19.31%	25.67%
10-Sep	48.15%	10-Sep	33.86%	10-Sep	21.41%	10-Sep	20.50%	26.75%
17-Sep	44.31%	17-Sep	28.34%	17-Sep	23.00%	17-Sep	18.13%	24.61%
24-Sep	43.78%	24-Sep	37.75%	24-Sep	21.92%	24-Sep	18.27%	26.55%
01-Oct	37.43%	01-Oct	31.83%	01-Oct	23.52%	01-Oct	20.39%	25.74%
08-Oct	50.00%	08-Oct	33.69%	08-Oct	24.27%	08-Oct	20.71%	27.80%
15-Oct	38.10%	15-Oct	22.20%	15-Oct	21.13%	15-Oct	16.26%	21.28%
22-Oct	54.10%	22-Oct	33.80%	22-Oct	25.77%	22-Oct	17.66%	27.53%
29-Oct	49.60%	29-Oct	38.70%	29-Oct	26.34%	29-Oct	20.24%	29.37%
05-Nov	48.28%	05-Nov	36.34%	05-Nov	22.91%	05-Nov	19.85%	27.54%
12-Nov	41.01%	12-Nov	37.52%	12-Nov	23.33%	12-Nov	19.35%	27.02%
19-Nov	56.35%	19-Nov	40.17%	19-Nov	23.94%	19-Nov	20.28%	21.00%
26-Nov	45.24%	26-Nov	38.99%	26-Nov	20.47%	26-Nov	18.20%	26.55%
03-Dec	53.84%	03-Dec	34.59%	03-Dec	20.89%	03-Dec	17.48%	26.23%
10-Dec	54.23%	10-Dec	37.58%	10-Dec	22.35%	10-Dec	18.77%	27.88%
17-Dec	43.52%	17-Dec	33.01%	17-Dec	20.28%	17-Dec	20.93%	25.92%
24-Dec	2.65%	24-Dec	2.70%	24-Dec	1.74%	24-Dec	1.87%	2.11%
31-Dec	2.38%	31-Dec	2.03%	31-Dec	1.41%	31-Dec	1.58%	1.72%

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