FOI/202500496856 · FOI · partially withheld
Occupancy figures and staff attendance at Scottish Government buildings: FOI release
Information requested
Current and pre-pandemic average occupancy figures for St Andrews House (SAH) and Victoria Quay (VQ) in Edinburgh.
Please also provide the actual average staff numbers attending SAH and VQ on a weekly basis compared to the number based there on your HR records, and the annual costs of providing offices at SAH and VQ.
If possible can I add to that FOI request a breakdown of average occupancy figures at Victoria Quay for each of the last five years (2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025).
Response
While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance we are unable to provide all the information you have requested because an exemption under section S.39(1) Health and safety of FOISA applies to some of that information, specifically actual staff numbers attending or based at specific government offices.
However, the information requested regarding staff in your second sentence above can be provided in an alternate comparative percentage format. The number of staff attending St Andrew's House on 11 November, 2025 compared to the number of full-time equivalent staff recorded as based there on HR records was 48.30%. The figure for Victoria Quay was 24.92%. The table below contains the information requested regarding the annual cost of providing offices:
1.10.24 to 30.09.25 annual office cost* Victoria Quay £2,046.852.82 St. Andrew’s House £1,119,608.58
*Annual costs of providing offices across the Scottish Government Facilities Management contract year. The total figures above also include utilities costs.
Scottish Government data regarding average occupancy only started to be collected from March 2020, immediately prior to the full impact of COVID19. The table provided below is intended to respond to both the first and third sentences of your request above. The table includes a figure from the second week of March in 2020 and each subsequent March, with a further sample data figure from the month immediately prior to your request by way of comparison.
10.3.2020 10.3.2021 9.3.2022 14.3.2023 12.3.2024 11.3.2025 11.11.2025 Victoria Quay occupancy percentage* 88.17% 1.26% 10.37% 22.16% 27.44% 23.19% 22.83% St. Andrew’s House occupancy percentage* 57.38% 3.28% 11.12% 27.91% 26.98% 34.82% 57.52%
*Based on average building users divided by number of available workstations.
NB Reported workstation numbers decreased at St Andrew’s House and increased at Victoria Quay in March 2025.
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.
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
Detected exemption language
Response While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance we are unable to provide all the information you have requested because an exemption under section S.39(1) Health and safety of FOISA applies to some of that information, specifically actual staff numbers attending or based at specific government offices.
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