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Freedom of Information

Freedom of Information

In this section

The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 requires the National Library of Scotland to produce and maintain a publication scheme. We have chosen to adopt the Scottish Information Commissioner's Model Publication Scheme.

What follows is a guide to our information about who we are, what we do, and how we do it. We will tell you about:

Availability and formats

Here you can find information about the National Library of Scotland that we make available on our website without request. We offer alternative arrangements for people who do not want to, or cannot, access the information online. For example, we can usually arrange to send information to you in paper copy, although there may be a photocopying and postage charge for this. (See 'Charges' paragraphs'.)

You can make a request online for access to any information that we have on record that isn't in our publication scheme under the terms of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002.

If you prefer, you can write to:

Danny Gordon
National Library of Scotland
George IV Bridge
Edinburgh
EH1 1EW

Email: d.gordon@nls.uk

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Exempt information

We will publish the information we hold that falls within the classes of information below. If a document contains information that is exempt under Scotland's freedom of information laws (for example where personal data is involved), we will remove or 'black out' the information before publication and explain why.

Requests for information from our collections

Sometimes people make FOI requests for access to information in books and other items in our collections. These requests are nearly always exempt under section 25 of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act, because this information is already in the public domain.

If your request is for information from our collections rather than for information about the Library as an organisation, our 'Ask a Librarian' online enquiry service might be a better place to start.

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Copyright

Because of our role as a library, it is important to note that copyright applies to two different kinds of information in a different way:

  • Our own corporate information — that is, information that we produce about our business or in the course of our business
  • Material in our collections (books, manuscripts, maps and so on).

NLS corporate information

Without formal permission you can copy or reproduce NLS corporate information — reports, statistics, policies and procedures, corporate correspondence, and so on — where we hold the copyright, provided that:

  • It is copied or reproduced accurately
  • It is not used in a misleading context, and
  • The source of the material is identified.

Material in our collections

Copyright restrictions are likely to apply to material in our collections. Our website has information about:

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Charges

With the exception of our commercial publications in class 8, all of the information in our publication scheme is free and is usually available online. Hard copies of the information can also be provided on request to the Corporate Information Officer (contact details below).

You do not have to pay for:

  • Any information downloaded from our website
  • A single copy of any corporate document
  • Information sent in electronic format as an email attachment
  • Copies of any corporate publications which are already printed and available for free.

You may have to pay for:

  • Printing or photocopying costs of 10p per page (unless your request is for fewer than 50 pages or if it is a single document)
  • Information provided on CD-ROM (which will be charged at 50p per computer disc)
  • Postage or other delivery (Royal Mail first class).

You will have to pay for:

We will always tell you what the cost is before providing the information to you.

 

Contact us

If you are dissatisfied with the accessibility of information in the Publication Scheme, or in the way in which we have dealt with a request for information, you may raise the matter with us. Please contact:

Danny Gordon
National Library of Scotland
George IV Bridge
Edinburgh
EH1 1EW

Email: d.gordon@nls.uk

If we are unable to resolve your complaint, you have the right to complain to the Scottish Information Commissioner.

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Classes of information

The information in our publication scheme is grouped into 8 classes, which are as follows:

Although we hope that the classes of information below will help you find the information that you want quickly, we know that there are always other ways to classify information (we are librarians after all). On our website you will also find:

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Class 1: About the Library

General information about the Library

The National Library of Scotland is the successor to the historic library of the Faculty of Advocates, which opened off Edinburgh's Royal Mile in 1689. Today NLS is Scotland's foremost general research library and the world's leading repository for the printed and manuscript record of Scotland's history and culture.

We are the legal deposit library for Scotland, entitled to request a copy of all UK and Irish publications. Approximately 6,000 items a week reach us this way.

Three centuries after its foundation, the Library now holds 15 million printed books, seven million manuscripts items, almost two million maps, and 100,000 journal, magazine and newspaper titles.

Our principal address is:

National Library of Scotland
George IV Bridge
Edinburgh
EH1 1EW

Further general information about the Library:

Governance, legislation and legal status

The Library was established in 1925 by the National Library of Scotland Act 1925 (PDF) (103 KB; 8 pages). The governance of the Library was amended by the National Heritage (Scotland) Act 1985 (PDF) (77.4 KB; 6 pages). The Scottish Government passed the National Library of Scotland Act 2012 which further amended the governance of the Library.

We are governed by a Board of Trustees, and managed by a team of Directors under the leadership of the National Librarian and Chief Executive, Martyn Wade.

We are a non-departmental public body, funded by the Scottish Government, reporting to the Minister of Culture and External Affairs.

We are also a Registered Scottish Charity (Scottish Charity No. SC011086).

We benefit greatly from our status as a legal deposit library, and have done since the library of the Faculty of Advocates was given this status in 1710. This status is currently conferred on us by the Legal Deposit Libraries Act, which was amended to reflect the increase in non-print publishing output.

Key corporate documents

External relations

The National Library of Scotland works especially closely with the other copyright libraries covered by the legal deposit legislation, specifically:

In 2009 the Agency for Legal Deposit Libraries (ALDL) became a wholly owned subsidiary of the National Library of Scotland. The agency is jointly funded by the legal deposit libraries. It operates from the National Library of Scotland's Causewayside building.

We collaborate with other nationwide and local library organisations, and also work closely with other collecting organisations in Scotland, principally:

You can read further information on our collaborative partnerships:

As a charitable organisation, we conduct fundraising activities to help to develop our collections and services. You can read online about our fundraising activities and how you can support the Library.

Keeping others informed

There are a number of other ways that you can find out about what we are currently doing:

 

Class 2: How we deliver our functions and services

The Library collects, preserves, and makes available millions of items to customers in Scotland and across the globe, both in our buildings and on our website. To reflect the changing nature of publishing and to ensure that our collections continue to be relevant to contemporary audiences and future generations, in 2008 the Library developed an Integrated Collecting Strategy (PDF) (26 pages; 122 KB).

Mainly because of the physical scale of our collections and the way we store them, but also for reasons of security and preservation, customers are unable to browse our miles and miles of shelves. Instead, customers can search our catalogues online or in person at the Library. Many of our digital collections can also be accessed on our website.

One of our key functions is to preserve our collections for future generations.

Everyone is welcome to use the National Library of Scotland. You can register to become a reader either online or in person at our George IV Bridge Building in Edinburgh. Use of our reading rooms and collections is governed by our terms and conditions.

For more information about our collections and services, see:

The Library is committed to widening the diversity of those who work here and those who use our collections and services. The Equality Act 2010 and the related Public Sector Equality Duties require us to publish four documents in particular. These documents allow people to see what we have been doing and what we plan to do to deliver equality and encourage diversity and good relations between people and communities:

Although you are free to explore our collections for yourselves, you can also contact our collection specialists if you need help by using the 'Ask a Librarian' service, or by contacting a particular department.

The Library provides copying services and a limited inter-library lending service.

We have put together some guides on our website for groups of people who may have a particular relationship with the Library, or who may benefit from further information. There are guides for:

Visit the 'Using the Library' pages for further information

 

Class 3: How the Library takes decisions and what we have decided

The Library is governed by a Board of Trustees, and managed by a team of Directors under the leadership of the National Librarian and Chief Executive, Martyn Wade. Strategic decisions are made in line with the Library's strategy, 'Connecting Knowledge', and the Corporate Plan. Strategic decisions are recorded in the minutes of the Senior Management Team.

In 2009 NLS undertook a large piece of research into the future of national libraries and published a report called 'Thriving or Surviving'. This report has helped us to consider the opportunities and challenges that are likely to face the Library over the next 20 years. This research is augmented by customer and market research of a short-term nature which allows us to develop our services on an ongoing basis.

 

Class 4: What the Library spends and how we spend it

Our annual report and accounts give a detailed breakdown on the funding that we receive and the things that we spend it on.

Under the terms of recent legislation (the Public Services Reform (Scotland) Act), the Library now also publishes the following information on the following areas of expenditure:

  • Public relations activities
  • Overseas travel
  • External consultancy
  • Hospitality
  • Transactions over £25,000.

You can read details of our expenditure in these areas and information about the steps that we have taken to improve efficiency and effectiveness in the 2010-2011 expenditure disclosures document (PDF) (4 pages; 35 KB).

We group our staff into 10 different pay bands. As of August 2010, the salary ranges for the pay bands are:

Band 1 = £12,683-£12,683
Band 2 = £14,661-£14,661
Band 3 = £14,742-£17,090
Band 4 = £18,660-£21,632
Band 5 = £23,037-£26,707
Band 6 = £27,420-£31,788
Band 7 = £31,545-£36,569
Band 8 = £42,163-£48,878
Band 9 = £51,544-£59,754
Band 10 = £90,000-£94,999

We manage our finances and budgets in accordance with the following policies and supporting documentation:

  • Budget holder's handbook   (Not yet available)
  • Business Travel and Expenses Policy   (Not yet available)
  • Fraud Prevention Policy and Guidelines   (Not yet available)
  • Gifts, Fees and Hospitality Policy   (Not yet available)

 

Class 5: How the Library manages its human, physical and information resources

The Library employs approximately 300 people, and we publish our organisational structure online. We use an external recruitment system to advertise jobs online.

Find out more about how we manage our staff:

  • Annual Leave Policy   (Not yet available)
  • Attendance Management Policy   (Not yet available)
  • Bullying and Harassment Policy   (Not yet available)
  • Career Breaks Policy   (Not yet available)
  • Code of Conduct   (Not yet available)
  • Discipline and Grievance Policy   (Not yet available)
  • Equality Policy   (Not yet available)
  • Family Friendly Leave Policy   (Not yet available)
  • Induction and Probation Policy   (Not yet available)
  • Learning and Development Policy   (Not yet available)
  • Performance Management Policy   (Not yet available)
  • Recruitment Policy   (Not yet available)
  • Redeployment Policy and Procedure   (Not yet available)
  • Volunteers Policy   (Not yet available)
  • Whistleblowing Policy   (Not yet available)

The Library has eight buildings in total. Five are occupied by staff, and the other three are used for storage.  We have four buildings in central Edinburgh, two buildings at Sighthill on the outskirts of Edinburgh, one building at Hillington, and one at Kirkintilloch. We manage our estate in accordance with our Property Asset Management Plan.

In 2010 the Library made a commitment to reduce its carbon footprint by 30% over five years and produced a Carbon Management Plan (PDF) (58 pages; 670 KB). After our second year we have made a reduction of 28%.

You can read a report on recent progress we have made:

Health and Safety at the Library is managed in accordance with three policies:

In addition to our collections, we also hold corporate information about our business, our staff, and our customers. We manage these information resources in accordance with:

 

Class 6: How the Library procures goods and services from external providers

As a public funded body, the National Library of Scotland has to procure its goods, services and construction-related activities sustainably, ethically, fairly and transparently in line with European Union and Scottish Government Guidance.

Our procurement procedures and policies are available online.

Lists of current contracts and their values will be available online. (Not yet available)

 

Class 7: How the Library is performing

In 2010 the Library conducted a review of its performance against a wide range of measures, and published the Review of Performance 2011-2012 (PDF) (8 pages; 134 KB).

On our website we publish both our annual report and accounts (which gives a statistical breakdown of our funding, spending, and statutory compliance), and an annual review, which looks at the performance and development of our services more generally.

Quarterly performance reports (KPI reports) are available online:

 

Class 8: Our commercial publications

In recent years we have published several books about NLS collections and history, and occasionally we collaborate with other publishers.

 

 

Make a Freedom of Information request online