Scottish Forestry Grant Scheme information: EIR release

Information requested

I would appreciate a breakdown of organisation spend on 

a. improving existing woodland habitats

b. PAWS restoration

c. ancient woodlands

d. rainforests

e. rhododendron ponticum removal

f. and deer control

broken down by financial year from 2016 to present.

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.

Scottish Forestry does not hold some of the information you have requested. We are therefore refusing part of your request under Regulation 10(4)(a) of the EIRs (Information not held).

We can supply information related to Rhododendron, Deer Control and Improving Existing Woodland Habitats which, to ensure maximum transparency, we have interpreted to mean all spend on Woodland Improvement Grants, Sustainable Management of Forests grants and Tree Health grants. Information that we can release is attached to this response.

Work to improve the condition of PAWS woodland, Ancient Woodland and the Atlantic Rainforest is funded through the Woodland Improvement Grant - Habitats and Species option (shown in the Improving Existing Woodland spreadsheet attached).

We do not collate data on the specific type of woodland habitat being supported in a way that allows us to break down the funding allocated to each of these three categories individually. As such, an exception under Regulation 10(4)(a) of EIRs applies because, following a search of our records, we have confirmed that Scottish Forestry does not hold information on the specific breakdown of organisational spend for PAWS woodland, Ancient Woodland and the Atlantic Rainforest.

The exception in Regulation 10(4)(a) is subject to the public interest test. While we recognise there is a public interest in transparency regarding these habitats, we cannot provide information that we do not hold. We have therefore concluded that the public interest in maintaining the exception outweighs the public interest in making the information available.

Under our duty to provide advice and assistance (Regulation 9(1)), we would like to advise you that details of all available funding options are on the Rural Payments & Services website. We also publish regular updates on grant awards, with January 2026 being the latest statistics available.

It may also be useful to note the scope of the Woodland Improvement Grant - Habitats and Species option. This option provides support for capital work benefiting a range of priority habitats and species, as defined in the Scottish Biodiversity Strategy and European Directives, including:

•  Improving the condition of native woodlands and restoring Plantations on Ancient Woodland Sites (PAWS).
•  Restoration or conservation of non-woodland habitats (such as lowland raised bogs) within woodland boundaries.
•  Supporting species associated with woodland edges.
•  Woodland Designed Landscapes.

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.

EIR 202600503884 - Information Released - Annex

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