FOI/202600502083 · FOI/EIR · partially withheld
Planning & Environmental Appeals Division (DPEA) reporter training, internal guidance & case details on the matter of 'huts': EIR release
Information requested
Information relating to Reporter training and statistics on the matter of "huts"
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.
We have interpreted your use of the word "hut" throughout your request to mean the definition given to it in NPF4. “A simple building used intermittently as recreational accommodation (i.e. not a principal residence); having an internal floor area of no more than 30 square meters ; constructed from low impact materials; generally not connected to mains water, electricity or sewerage; and built in such a way that it is removable with little or no trace at the end of its life. Huts may be built singly or in groups.”
I enclose a copy of some of the information you have requested.
Does the DPEA have a Training Manual for its Planning Reporters akin to the English PINS one ‘Inspector Training Manual’?
Yes the DPEA has a manual akin to to the Inspector Training Manual. This is known as the Reporters Handbook.
If so, please can I have an extract of what it contains about how Reporters should approach their decision-making on ’huts’ as encouraged in Policy 30 (d) of the National Planning Framework 4?
There is no specific section in the reporter’s handbook relating to huts.
While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance the Scottish Government does not have the information you have requested. Therefore we are refusing your request under the exception at regulation 10(4)(a) of the EIRs. As the use of the information not held exception at regulation 10(4)(a) is conditional we have applied the 'public interest test'. This means we have, in all the circumstances of this case, considered if the public interest in disclosing information outweighs the public interest in applying the exception. We have found that, on balance, the public interest lies in favour of upholding the exception. While we recognise that there may be some public interest in information about huts, clearly we cannot provide information we do not have.
If not, have DPEA Reporters ever had any training on the topic of huts and is so, what form has this taken and can I have a copy?
DPEA does not keep an exhaustive list of all the Reporter training held over all its years. I have however searched the records we do have which includes training seminars and presentations which has returned no results.
While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance the Scottish Government does not have some of the information you have requested. Therefore we are refusing your request under the exception at regulation 10(4)(a) of the EIRs. As the use of the information not held exception at regulation 10(4)(a) is conditional we have applied the 'public interest test'. This means we have, in all the circumstances of this case, considered if the public interest in disclosing information outweighs the public interest in applying the exception. We have found that, on balance, the public interest lies in favour of upholding the exception. While we recognise that there may be some public interest in information about huts, clearly we cannot provide information we do not have.
If not, does the DPEA have any other internal guidance it has issued to its Reporters to help them interpret Policy 30 (d)? If so, can I have a copy?
I can confirm, having carried out a search of training manuals, guidance notes and internal reporter library items that such guidance does not exist. We do have various pieces of guidance on NPF4, however these do not specifically mention the interpretation of Policy 30(d)
While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance the Scottish Government does not have the information you have requested. Therefore we are refusing your request under the exception at regulation 10(4)(a) of the EIRs. As the use of the information not held exception at regulation 10(4)(a) is conditional we have applied the 'public interest test'. This means we have, in all the circumstances of this case, considered if the public interest in disclosing information outweighs the public interest in applying the exception. We have found that, on balance, the public interest lies in favour of upholding the exception. While we recognise that there may be some public interest in information about huts, clearly we cannot provide information we do not have.
How many appeals has DPEA deal with since 2015 for huts? What are the reference numbers for these?
DPEA does not have a specific category for dealing with "hut" related cases, we have instead undertaken a search of our case management system for any cases with a keyword or appeal reason that mentions huts. A total of 17 cases since 2015 has been received using this metric. I have attached this information to my response. If you require this information in an alternative format, please let me know.
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Detected exemption language
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. Therefore we are refusing your request under the exception at regulation 10(4)(a) of the EIRs.