Ethical Standards Commissioner

Scottish Funding Council Appointment Round - Good Practice in Lessons Learned (2025)

This Good Practice Case Study relates to an appointment round seeking a new chair for the Scottish Funding Council in 2025. It followed an initial unsuccessful attempt at filling the role, and the case study showcases how the panel conducted a thoughtful lessons learned process.

Scottish Enterprise Appointment Round - Good Practice in Early Engagement and Planning (2023)

A case study illustrating the steps taken by Scottish Enterprise, particularly during Early Engagement and Planning, during an appointment round in 2023.

Scottish Qualifications Authority Appointment Round - Good Practice in Planning and Assessment (2023)

A case study illustrating the creative steps taken by the Scottish Qualifications Authority, particularly during planning and assessment, during an appointment round in 2023.

NHS Grampian Appointment Round - Good Practice in Planning and Publicity (2023)

A case study illustrating the creative steps taken by NHS Grampian, particularly in their outreach activity, during an appointment round that commenced in August 2022.

Good Practice in Public Appointments - Publicity

There is no one size fits all to producing diverse and effective boards, and the 2022 Code encourages new and innovative ways of running appointment rounds. It is important that approaches taken are tailored to the specific posts being advertised for, and where new ways of working have proven to be effective, good practice case studies can aid selection panels faced with similar circumstances – to use, learn, adapt and improve upon. The current ‘snapshot’ case study aims to review good practices coming out of the publicity of appointment rounds, and provide examples of what selection panels have done well within it. The case studies use appointment rounds concluded within the last 12 months and their associated end of round reporting material to inform their content.

Good Practice in Public Appointments - Planning

There is no one size fits all to producing diverse and effective boards, and the 2022 Code encourages new and innovative ways of running appointment rounds. It is important that approaches taken are tailored to the specific posts being advertised for, and where new ways of working have proven to be effective, good practice case studies can aid selection panels faced with similar circumstances – to use, learn, adapt and improve upon. The current ‘snapshot’ case study aims to review good practices coming out of the formal planning stage, and provide examples of what selection panels have done well within it. The case studies use appointment rounds concluded within the last 12 months and their associated end of round reporting material to inform their content.

The Poverty and Inequality Commission members appointment round - Good Practice in planning, publicity and assessment - 2019

This report summarises an exercise in planning, attraction and assessment. The combination of good practices helped to attract a quality field of applicants from a wide and diverse pool of people not normally attracted to apply for board roles.

Exhibit 3a – Types of complaints received during 2024/25 (excluding the super complaint) - total 244

Our performance

Our progress against the first year of the 2024-2028 strategic plan is set out in Figure 3.

Stage 1 (Councillor and member cases)

Performance at Stage 1 has shown marked improvement over the course of the year. While the average stood at 152 days across quarters 1-3, performance improved sharply in quarter 4, with cases completed in an average of 78 days – nearly a 50% reduction compared to earlier in the year.

The marked improvement in quarter 4 reflects the sustained efforts and initiatives introduced earlier in the year to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of our complaints management alongside the additional time devoted by existing senior staff within the team during the final quarter of 2024/25. Their combined impact has become increasingly evidenced as the year has progressed, and we have continued to maintain this positive trend into the new financial year.

**Exhibit 16 - Average number days spent at Stage 1 for cases completed by quarter in 2024/25**
	Q1	Q2	Q3	Q4
Average number of days a complaint stays at stage 1	152	156	148	78

**Exhibit 17- Average number days spent at Stage 1 for cases completed in 2024/25 and previous 2 reporting years**
	2022/23	2023/24	2024/25
Average number of days a complaint stays at stage 1	172	140	133

Stage 2 (Councillor and Member cases)

This year has seen a marked improvement in Stage 2 complaint handling. The average number of days to complete a Stage 2 case dropped from 211 days in 2023/24 to 158 days in 2024/25 – representing a significant 17% reduction.

While challenges remain in managing the complexity of Stage 2 investigations, we are committed to continuing with this progress. In 2025/26, we will build on this foundation by exploring further ways to reduce the time cases take to be investigated. A key focus will be on ensuring investigations are not only thorough but also proportionate – helping us to operate more efficiently and effectively.

**Exhibit 18 - Average number days spent at Stage 2 for cases completed by quarter in 2024/25**
	Q1	Q2	Q3	Q4
Average number of days a complaint stays at stage 2	157	132	179	166

**Exhibit 19 - Average number days spent at Stage 2 for cases completed in 2024/25 and previous 2 reporting years**
	2022/23	2023/24	2024/25
Average number of days a complaint stays at stage 2	180	211	158

Exhibit 19 - Average number days spent at Stage 2 for cases completed in 2024/25 and previous 2 reporting years

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