Extracted transcript

IR 44184: review decision and service responses

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Aberdeenshire Council  
Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2022 (“The Act”) 
Decision Notice – Section 21(5) 

Application by K. Forbes 
Information Request: 44184 

Dear Mr. Forbes,  

In accordance with section 21(1) of the Act, the review panel of Aberdeenshire Council has 
considered your application for a requirement for review received on the 22nd of August 2026.  

In accordance with section 21(5) of the Act, the review panel herewith gives notice in writing 
that the decision notice complained about dated the 19th of August 2026, required amendment 
to reflect the fact that further information is now provided.   

A statement of the reasons for the decision as required by section 21(5) of the Act is appended.  

Application for a decision by the Scottish Information Commissioner:   

By virtue of section 47 of the Act, a person who is dissatisfied with a decision notice issued 
under section 21(5) or (9) of the Act, may apply to the Scottish Information Commissioner for 
their decision as to whether, in any respect specified in that application, the request for 
information under section 1(1) of the Act, has been dealt with in accordance with Part 1 of the 
Act.  

An application to the Scottish Information Commissioner must be made in writing (or in another 
form having some permanency e.g. a video / tape recording) within six months of receipt of a 
section 21 decision notice from Aberdeenshire Council’s review panel. When applying to the 
Scottish Information Commissioner to make a decision with respect to a section 21 decision 
notice, you must state your name and address for correspondence.  

You must also specify:  

(a) The request for information to which the requirement for review was made to 
Aberdeenshire Council relate. 

(b) The matter which gives rise to your dissatisfaction and your request for review; and 

(c) The matter which gives rise to your dissatisfaction pertaining to the decision given in 
the section 21 decision notice. 

An appeal can now be made online at the following address: 

https://www.foi.scot/appeal 

Yours sincerely,  

Clerk to the Review Panel 
Aberdeenshire Council 
18th September 2026 

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Further Information:   

The Scottish Information Commissioner can be contact at: -  

Scottish Information Commissioner 
Kinburn Castle 
Doubledykes Road 
St. Andrews 
Fife 
KY16 9DS 

Telephone:  [telephone number redacted for this public copy]Fax: [telephone number redacted for this public copy]Email: [email address redacted for this public copy] 
Web: https://www.foi.scot/appeal 

   
Appeals against a decision of the Scottish Information Commissioner:   

Section 56 of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (“The Act”) provides an appeal 
on a point of law may be made to the Court of Session.  

(a) Against a decision of the Scottish Information Commissioner (under subsection (2) of 
section 49 – i.e. where the Commissioner determines that a decision does not require 
to be made) by the person who applied to the Scottish Information Commissioner to 
make such a decision (i.e. an applicant); 

(b) Against a decision of the Scottish Information Commissioner (under subsection 3(b) of 
section 49) by an applicant or by the Scottish Public Authority in respect of which the 
decision was made; or 

(c) Against a decision which resulted in the giving of an information notice or an 
enforcement notice to a Scottish Public Authority.  


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Statement of Reasons - 44184 
The Review Panel had before it the initial request, the service response, the request for review 
and further submissions from both parties. 
The Review Panel noted that the service had provided responses to the points raised in the 
request for review. The Review Panel agreed that the service responses should be forwarded 
to the requester, including the audit forms.  
The Review Panel agreed that the further question posed by the applicant in terms of any fixed 
infrastructure ought to be treated as a new request and that this would be lodged and 
processed accordingly.  
The Review Panel agreed that the original decision notice required to be amended to reflect 
that further information had been provided to the requester albeit in relation to questions raised 
in the review process rather than to the initial request. 


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Further Information and Answers Provided - 44184 


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FOI REVIEW 44184 
Response to Initial Review Request 
We note that the applicant has included 7 points within his initial review request, 
many of these would seem to be statements in respect of the initial response, rather 
than detailing any grounds for review.  
Please see our answers in respect of these below.  
1.  We can confirm that the items listed are those which were removed. 
2. This is stated.  
3. This is stated. 
4. This is a statement with the process being outlined within Appendices 1, 2 
and 3 which provided alongside the initial response.  This is normal 
operational procedure as part of the decant arrangements.   
5. This would be the general position and the statement was provided to aid the 
applicant’s understanding in terms of the effect / impact.  
6. This is the case as no information in respect of this is held.  
7. This would seem to be the applicant’s own assessment of the response and 
our position, we have provided the information which we hold in respect of the 
request as per duties under the Act and the purpose of the review is to assess 
the handling of the applicant’s request and not the removal process.  
We also note that the applicant has asked the panel to consider whether adequate 
searches have been carried out in this case and we attach the relevant audit forms 
for your information.  
We are satisfied that no further information is held in respect of this case.  
Response to Applicant’s Further Submission 
We also note the following points in terms of his further submission in this case, 
again some of these would seem to represent statements rather than review 
grounds, our answers are provided below. 
1. The decant checklist appears to require specific permission  

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This has been dealt with in terms of our answer to point 4 above, as this 
would seem to echo his concerns raised at the time his initial review. 
2. The volume of items removes was significant   
The initial part of the applicants submission in this regard would seem to be a 
statement of his views, we note that he feels that our response does not 
adequately explain the following: 
 Who authorised the removals – This is explained in our response.  
 Which removals were temporary – This would not appear to have 
been requested in the initial request. Appendix 3 already identifies the 
current location of the relocated items. A statement has also previously 
been provided that all equipment removed was fully mobile, easily 
transportable and can be returned if required. 
 Which items are now required by receiving schools – see answer 
above. 
 What can be returned – see answer above.  
 Whether any items have been permanently redeployed - see 
answer above. 
 Whether reinstatement has been properly considered – see answer 
above.  
3. Fixed equipment and kitchen equipment 
This seems to be a new request in relation to the status of any smart boards, 
projectors, fixed screens, fixed furniture etc. which seems to have been taken 
from the statement within the decant list provided as part of our initial 
response. 
4. Reopening and reinstatement   
We note that our response stated that no discussions had taken place in this 
regard as a result no such information is held, we are happy for the applicant 
to be provided with confirmation of this if he does not feel that our initial 
response was sufficient in this regard.  
5. Risk of prejudicing consultation  


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Again we note that this would seem to be a statement by the applicant relating 
to the removal process rather than the handling of his request, in our view it 
would not be in the remit of the panel to make such a statement as part of 
their decision notice.  
That being said we note that he seeks reassurance in terms of the searches 
carried out and we have attached copies of the relevant audit forms for 
consideration by the panel.  
We are satisfied that no further information is held in respect of this case.  
6. Outcome requested 
 We appreciate that this is a matter for the review panel. 

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FOI audit form v1.2 March 2022 Page 1 of 7 

FOI audit form 
- To be completed detailing 

the 
actions and decisions taken 

in 
responding to an FOI request.  
This form should be saved into the AXLR8 Files relating to the request before closure, along with all emails and other 
correspondence. 

AXLR8 reference 
AbdnShireIR:  

Check here if no search carried out / no search required. 

Name of system searched 
Search criteria 
Searched by 
Date searched 

    

    

    

    

    


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Exemption(s) Applied See Appendix 1 Reason for exemption application 
FOI audit form v1.2 March 2022 Page 2 of 7 

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Public Interest Test 
Scottish Information Commissioner’s briefing 
If using any of the following exemptions, then you must go on to consider the public interest test to determine whether 
the information should be disclosed: 
• Section 27 – Information intended for future publication
• Section 28 – Relations within the United Kingdom
• Section 29 – Formulation of Scottish Administration policy etc.
• Section 30 – Prejudice to effective conduct of public affairs
• Section 31 – National security and defence
• Section 32 - International relations
• Section 33 - Commercial interests and the economy
• Section 34 – Investigations by Scottish public authorities and proceedings arising out of
• such investigations
• Section 35 – Law enforcement
• Section 36(1) – Confidentiality
• Section 38(1)(b) – Personal information:
• Either read with section 38(2b): i.e., disclosure of personal data would contravene Article 21 of the GDPR
general processing: right to object to processing)
• Or read with section 38(3a): i.e., if the subject of the information were to ask to see their own information
under Article 15(1) of the GDPR (or under section 45(1)(b) of the DPA 2018) the information would be
withheld
• Section 39 – Health, safety and the environment
• Section 40 – Audit functions
• Section 41 – Communications with Her Majesty etc. and honours
Outcome of Public 
Interest Test 
FOI audit form v1.2 March 2022 Page 3 of 7 

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Substantial Prejudice Test 
There is no definition of ‘substantial prejudice’ under FOISA, but the damage caused by disclosing the information must be of real 
and demonstrable significance, rather than simply marginal. 
Outcome of Substantial 
Prejudice Test 
Exemptions 
Applied by Reviewed by 
(if applicable) 
Redactions 
Applied by Reviewed by 
(if applicable) 
FOI audit form v1.2 March 2022 Page 4 of 7 

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Appendix 1 – Exemptions 
Absolute Exemptions / Refusal Notices 
Exemption Link to guidance Indicate here if applied 
Section 12 - Fees and excessive cost of compliance (See Appendix 2) OSIC guidance 
Section 14 (2) - Vexatious requests OSIC guidance 
Section 14 (1) - Repeated requests OSIC guidance 
Section 17 - No Information held OSIC guidance 
Section 25 – Information otherwise accessible OSIC guidance 
Section 26 - Prohibitions on disclosure OSIC guidance 
Section 36 (2) – Confidentiality – actionable breach of confidence OSIC guidance 
Section 37 (1)(a)(i) – Court records OSIC guidance 
Section 38 (1) (a) - Personal information OSIC guidance 
Section 38 (1) (d) A deceased person’s health records OSIC guidance 
FOI audit form v1.2 March 2022 Page 5 of 7 

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Non-Absolute Exemptions Link to 
guidance 
Substantial 
Prejudice Test 
Public Interest 
Test 
Section 27(1) – Information intended for future publication within 12 
weeks of the request 
OSIC guidance N/A 
Section 27(2) - Research information from a programme of 
research, due to be published and where prior publication would 
cause substantial prejudice 
OSIC guidance N/A 
Section 30 Prejudice to the effective conduct of public affairs OSIC guidance 
Section 33(1)(a) Trade Secrets OSIC guidance N/A 
Section 33(1)(b) Commercial interests where disclosure would be 
likely to substantially prejudice the commercial interests of any 
person or organisation 
OSIC guidance 
Section 34(1)(a) Information held for the purposes of an 
investigation which the Council has a duty to conduct in order to 
ascertain whether a person should be prosecuted for an offence or 
whether a person prosecuted for an offence is guilty 
OSIC guidance N/A 
Section 35(1)(a) Law Enforcement, where disclosure could 
prejudice the prevention and detection of crime 
OSIC guidance 
Section 36(1) Legal Professional Privilege OSIC guidance N/A 
Section 38 (1) (b) Personal information about someone other than 
the applicant 
OSIC guidance N/A 
Section 39(1) Health and Safety OSIC guidance N/A 
Section 39 Environmental Information OSIC guidance N/A 
Section 40 Audit Functions, where disclosure would prejudice 
effective audit 
OSIC guidance 
FOI audit form v1.2 March 2022 Page 6 of 7 

--- PDF PAGE 14 ---

 

  

    

 

 

    

 

     

 
Appendix 2 – Section 12 cost calculations 
Details of activity Estimated time 
(hr) 
Cos
t per hour 
(max. £15 p/h) 
Cost 
(time x cost per hour) 
Locating, retrieving and 
providing information 
Scanning, photocopying, 
etc. 
Redaction 
TOTAL 
FOI audit form v1.2 March 2022 Page 7 of 7 
£
£
£
£

--- PDF PAGE 15 ---
FOI audit form v1.2 March 2022 Page 1 of 7 

FOI audit form 
- To be completed detailing 

the 
actions and decisions taken 

in 
responding to an FOI request.  
This form should be saved into the AXLR8 Files relating to the request before closure, along with all emails and other 
correspondence. 

AXLR8 reference 
AbdnShireIR:  

Check here if no search carried out / no search required. 

Name of system searched 
Search criteria 
Searched by 
Date searched 

    

    

    

    

    


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Exemption(s) Applied See Appendix 1 Reason for exemption application 
FOI audit form v1.2 March 2022 Page 2 of 7 

--- PDF PAGE 17 ---

 

   

 

     

     

     

       

     

     

 

 

    

 

 
Public Interest Test 
Scottish Information Commissioner’s briefing 
If using any of the following exemptions, then you must go on to consider the public interest test to determine whether 
the information should be disclosed: 
• Section 27 – Information intended for future publication
• Section 28 – Relations within the United Kingdom
• Section 29 – Formulation of Scottish Administration policy etc.
• Section 30 – Prejudice to effective conduct of public affairs
• Section 31 – National security and defence
• Section 32 - International relations
• Section 33 - Commercial interests and the economy
• Section 34 – Investigations by Scottish public authorities and proceedings arising out of
• such investigations
• Section 35 – Law enforcement
• Section 36(1) – Confidentiality
• Section 38(1)(b) – Personal information:
• Either read with section 38(2b): i.e., disclosure of personal data would contravene Article 21 of the GDPR
general processing: right to object to processing)
• Or read with section 38(3a): i.e., if the subject of the information were to ask to see their own information
under Article 15(1) of the GDPR (or under section 45(1)(b) of the DPA 2018) the information would be
withheld
• Section 39 – Health, safety and the environment
• Section 40 – Audit functions
• Section 41 – Communications with Her Majesty etc. and honours
Outcome of Public 
Interest Test 
FOI audit form v1.2 March 2022 Page 3 of 7 

--- PDF PAGE 18 ---

 

  

   

 

 

   

 

 

 

Substantial Prejudice Test 
There is no definition of ‘substantial prejudice’ under FOISA, but the damage caused by disclosing the information must be of real 
and demonstrable significance, rather than simply marginal. 
Outcome of Substantial 
Prejudice Test 
Exemptions 
Applied by Reviewed by 
(if applicable) 
Redactions 
Applied by Reviewed by 
(if applicable) 
FOI audit form v1.2 March 2022 Page 4 of 7 

--- PDF PAGE 19 ---

 

  

 

     

     

     

    

    

    

        

    

 

 

  
Appendix 1 – Exemptions 
Absolute Exemptions / Refusal Notices 
Exemption Link to guidance Indicate here if applied 
Section 12 - Fees and excessive cost of compliance (See Appendix 2) OSIC guidance 
Section 14 (2) - Vexatious requests OSIC guidance 
Section 14 (1) - Repeated requests OSIC guidance 
Section 17 - No Information held OSIC guidance 
Section 25 – Information otherwise accessible OSIC guidance 
Section 26 - Prohibitions on disclosure OSIC guidance 
Section 36 (2) – Confidentiality – actionable breach of confidence OSIC guidance 
Section 37 (1)(a)(i) – Court records OSIC guidance 
Section 38 (1) (a) - Personal information OSIC guidance 
Section 38 (1) (d) A deceased person’s health records OSIC guidance 
FOI audit form v1.2 March 2022 Page 5 of 7 

--- PDF PAGE 20 ---

 

 

 

 

 

    

 

    

   

   

 

   

 

      

   

    

 

 
Non-Absolute Exemptions Link to 
guidance 
Substantial 
Prejudice Test 
Public Interest 
Test 
Section 27(1) – Information intended for future publication within 12 
weeks of the request 
OSIC guidance N/A 
Section 27(2) - Research information from a programme of 
research, due to be published and where prior publication would 
cause substantial prejudice 
OSIC guidance N/A 
Section 30 Prejudice to the effective conduct of public affairs OSIC guidance 
Section 33(1)(a) Trade Secrets OSIC guidance N/A 
Section 33(1)(b) Commercial interests where disclosure would be 
likely to substantially prejudice the commercial interests of any 
person or organisation 
OSIC guidance 
Section 34(1)(a) Information held for the purposes of an 
investigation which the Council has a duty to conduct in order to 
ascertain whether a person should be prosecuted for an offence or 
whether a person prosecuted for an offence is guilty 
OSIC guidance N/A 
Section 35(1)(a) Law Enforcement, where disclosure could 
prejudice the prevention and detection of crime 
OSIC guidance 
Section 36(1) Legal Professional Privilege OSIC guidance N/A 
Section 38 (1) (b) Personal information about someone other than 
the applicant 
OSIC guidance N/A 
Section 39(1) Health and Safety OSIC guidance N/A 
Section 39 Environmental Information OSIC guidance N/A 
Section 40 Audit Functions, where disclosure would prejudice 
effective audit 
OSIC guidance 
FOI audit form v1.2 March 2022 Page 6 of 7 

--- PDF PAGE 21 ---

 

  

    

 

 

    

 

     

 
Appendix 2 – Section 12 cost calculations 
Details of activity Estimated time 
(hr) 
Cos
t per hour 
(max. £15 p/h) 
Cost 
(time x cost per hour) 
Locating, retrieving and 
providing information 
Scanning, photocopying, 
etc. 
Redaction 
TOTAL 
FOI audit form v1.2 March 2022 Page 7 of 7 
£
£
£
£