Bridges Dental Practice
Dental Practice Guide to Information.
Guide to Information available through the Model Publication Scheme
The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 requires Scottish public authorities to produce and maintain a publication scheme.
Authorities are under a legal obligation to:
• publish the classes of information that they make routinely available
• Tell the public how to access the information they publish and
whether information is available free of charge or on payment.
Bridges Dental Practice has adopted the Model Publication Scheme produced by the Scottish Information Commissioner.
You can see this scheme on the the Practice website
or by contacting us at the practice.
The purpose of this Guide to Information is to:
• allow you to see what information is available (and what is not available) in relation to each class of information
• state what charges may be applied for supplying information
• explain how you can find the information easily
• provide contact details for enquiries and to get help with accessing the information
• explain how to request information we hold that has not been published
Availability and formats
The information we publish through the Model Publication Scheme is, wherever possible, available on our website. We offer alternative arrangements for people who do not want to, or cannot, access the information online or by inspection at the practice. For example, we
can usually arrange to send information to you in paper copy, although there may be a charge for this. Information can be requested from us by telephone or in writing using the contact details provided.
When writing to us to request information, please include your name, address and full details of the information or documents you would like to receive. Please also include a telephone number so we can call you to clarify any details, if necessary.
Advice on requesting information not detailed in this Guide to Information can be found in
.
Exempt information
Bridges Dental Practice Guide to Information April 2019
We will publish the information we hold that falls within the classes of information below. If a document contains information that is exempt under The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA), we may remove or redact the information before publication but we will explain why. Examples of exempt information include requests for information that is contained in patient dental records (although you do have the right to request, your own dental records under the Data Protection Act 2018),
requests for information relating to private income of practice partners or practice staff and requests for financial information
that would likely prejudice substantially the commercial interests of any person.
Copyright and re-use
Where Bridges Dental Practice holds the copyright in its published information, the information may be copied or reproduced without formal permission, provided it is copied or reproduced accurately, and is not used in a misleading context and provided that the source of the material is identified.
Bridges Dental Practice does not hold the copyright for some of the information referred to in this guide. This should be apparent from the documents. It is the responsibility of the person accessing the information to locate and seek the permission of the copyright holder before reproducing the material or in any other way breaching the rights of the copyright holder.
Charges
Unless otherwise stated in the Classes of Information section below, all information contained within our Guide to Information is available from us free of charge, where it can be downloaded from our website, sent to you electronically by email, or accessed at the
practice premises.
We reserve the right to impose charges for providing information in paper copy or on computer disc. Charges will reflect the actual costs to the practice, of reproduction and postage, as set out below. In the event that a charge is to be levied, you will be advised of the charge and how it has been calculated. Information will not be provided to you until payment has been received.
Reproduction costs:
Where charges are applied, photocopied information will be charged at a standard rate of 1p per A4 paper (black and white
copy) and 1p per A4 paper (colour copy).
Computer discs will be charged at the rate of £1 per CD-Rom.
Postage costs:
We will pass on postage charges to the requester at the cost to the practice of sending the information by first class post.
Contact Us
You can contact us for assistance with any aspect of this publication scheme:
Bridges Dental Practice
1 Regent Park Square
Glasgow G41 2AF
Tel. 0141 4232832
We will also be pleased to advise you how to ask for information that we do not publish (also see Appendix I), or how to complain if you are dissatisfied with any aspect of this publication scheme.
The Classes of Information that we publish
We publish information that we hold within the classes of information listed below, in accordance with the Model Publication Scheme 2019. Once information is published under a class we will continue to make it available for the current and previous two financial years.
Where information has been updated or superseded, only the current version will be available. If you would like to see previous versions, you may make a request to us for that
information.
CLASS 1: ABOUT US
Class description:
Information about who we are, where to find us, how to contact us, how we are managed Guide to information thre Model Pand our external relations
The information we publish under this class How to access it
1. Name, address, contact details Refer to ‘Contact Us’ section above,
Practice website and Patient Information Leaflet
2. Practice opening hours Refer to practice website
and Patient Information Leaflet
3. Organisational structure: Refer to ‘About Practice and patient
Information leaflet
4. Legal/contractual framework for the practice:
(e.g. NHS terms of service)
Refer to ‘About’ section above, The National Health Service (GeneralDental Services)(Scotland) Regulations 2010 (as amended fromtime to time)
5. Standards Refer to ‘About’ section above, GDC
standards displayed at practice, NHS
Quality Improvement Scotland
(2006) Dental Services Standards
6. Reports to regulators and internal and external
audits:
At practice
7. Strategic planning processes: policies available at practice
8. Contact details for customer care and
complaints
See 1. in this class
9. Model Publication Scheme and Guide to
Information
Refer to practice website and available on the Scottish Information
Commissioner’s website 10. Charging schedule for published information ‘Charges’ section above 11. Charging schedule for environmental information not available through this publication
scheme
Refer to Appendix I below
12. Advice about how to request information Refer to ‘Availability and formats’ section above .
CLASS 2: HOW WE DELIVER OUR FUNCTIONS AND SERVICES
Class description: Information about our work, our strategy and policies for delivering functions and services and information for our patients.
The information we publish under this class How to access it
​
1. Description of practice functions and services,
including statutory basis for them
‘About‘ section above, on practice website, Patient Information Leaflet and at practice
2. Strategies, policies and internal staff procedure
for performing statutory functions: (e.g. record
keeping, infection control policy etc)
At practice
3. How to report a concern to the practice - Practice complaints
procedure at practice.
4. Information for patients, including how to access
services
Refer to ‘Contact Us’ section above,
practice website and Patient Information Leaflet
5. Treatment fees and charges: (e.g. cost of NHS
treatment set by government, entitlement to
exemption and remission from NHS dental charges,
private charges etc)
Refer to Practitioner Services
Division website, current SDR,
practice website and
at practice
CLASS 3: HOW WE TAKE DECISIONS AND WHAT WE HAVE DECIDED
Dental Practice Guide to Information April 2019
Information about the decisions we take, how we make decisions and how we involve
others
The information we publish under this class How to access it
1. Decisions taken by the practice: (e.g. agendas,
reports, papers, and minutes of meetings (that do
not contain confidential patient information) etc)
At practice
2. Decisions are informed by referring to national
guidance and current Scottish Government
guidelines
General Dental Council (GDC),
Scottish Dental Clinical Effectiveness
Programme (SDCEP), Scottish
Intercollegiate Guideline Network
(SIGN) and British Dental
Association (BDA) websites
3. Patient consultation and feedback: Not Held
CLASS 4: WHAT WE SPEND AND HOW WE SPEND IT
Class description:
Information about our strategy for, and management of, financial resources (in sufficient detail to explain how we plan to spend public money and what has actually been spent).
The information we publish under this class How to access it
1. Details of NHS funding Refer to ‘About us’-Investor
Relations section. You will need to
register for this section. Reports on
company performance are held
here.
2. Purchase of equipment and supplies: (e.g. names
of suppliers, laboratory services etc)
Refer to ‘About us’-Investor
Relations section. You will need to register for this section. Reports on company performance are held here.
CLASS 5: HOW WE MANAGE OUR HUMAN, PHYSICAL AND INFORMATION RESOURCES
Class description:
Information about how we manage the human, physical and information resources of Bridges Dental Practice
The information we publish under this class
How to access it-
1. Human resources policies, procedures and
guidelines: (e.g. recruitment, performance
Policies available at practice
SDCEP Practice Support Manual template (April 2019)
Dental Practice Guide to Information April 2019
management, pensions, discipline, grievance, staff
development etc)
2. Management of the practice premises: (e.g.
owner of premises or factor, planning permission)
Refer to ‘About Us ‘ section above, at practice
3. Premises maintenance arrangements: (e.g.
premise maintenance contracts)
At practice
4. Equipment maintenance arrangements: (e.g.
equipment service contracts)
At practice
5. Records management policy: (e.g. Data
Protection, Confidentiality and Information Security
Policy)
At practice
CLASS 6: HOW WE PROCURE GOODS AND SERVICES FROM EXTERNAL
PROVIDERS
Class description:
Information about how we procure goods and services, and our contracts with external providers
The information we publish under this class How to access it
1. List of suppliers: (e.g. utilities, dental supplies,
laboratory work etc)
At practice
2. Procurement policies and procedures - At practice
CLASS 7: HOW WE ARE PERFORMING
Class description:
Information about how we perform as an organisation, and how well we deliver our functions and services
The information we publish under this class How to access it-
1. External reports, reports for NHS boards, annual
reports, and performance statements: (e.g. Health
Board practice inspection completion letter)
At practice
2. Patient feedback: (e.g. patient experience
surveys and other feedback)
At practice
SDCEP Practice Support Manual template (April 2019)
Dental Practice Guide to Information April 2019
CLASS 8: OUR COMMERCIAL PUBLICATIONS
Class description:
Information packaged and made available for sale on a commercial basis and sold at market value through a retail outlet e.g. bookshop, museum or research journal.
The information we publish under this class How to access it
No information held under this class Not applicable
CLASS 9: OUR OPEN DATA
Class description:
Open data made available by us as described by the Scottish Government’s Open Data
Resource Pack and available under an open licence.
http://www.gov.scot/Publications/2015/08/4093/downloads#res-1
The information we publish under this class How to access it
No information held under this class Not applicable
Appendix I
How to access information that is not available under this publication scheme
If the information you are seeking is not available under this Guide to Information, then you may wish to request it from us. The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002(FOISA) provides you with a right of access to the information we hold, subject to certain
exemptions. The Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (EIRs) separately provide a right of access to the
environmental information we hold, while the Data
Protection Act 2018 (DPA) provides a right of access to any personal information about you that we hold. Again, these rights are subject to certain exceptions or exemptions.
Should you wish to request a copy of any information that we hold that is not available under this publication scheme, please write to the practice,
Charges for information which is not available under the scheme
Fees for information that is not available under this scheme are outlined in The Freedom of
Information (Fees for Required Disclosure) (Scotland) Regulations 2004.
If you submit a request to us for information which is not available under the current Model Publication Scheme the charges will be based on the following calculations:
General information requests
SDCEP Practice Support Manual template (April 2019)
Dental Practice Guide to Information April 2019
(These charges are set within The Freedom of Information (Fees for Required Disclosure)
(Scotland) Regulations 2004)
• There will be no charge for information requests, which cost us £100, or less to process.
• Where information costs between £100 and £600 to provide you may be asked to pay 10% of the cost. That is, if you were to ask for information that cost us £600 to
provide, you would be asked to pay £50, calculated on the basis of a waiver for the first £100 and 10% of the remaining £500.
• We are not obliged to respond to requests which will cost us over £600 to process.
• In calculating any fee, staff time will be calculated at actual cost per staff member hourly salary rate to a maximum of £15 per person per hour.
• We do not charge for the time to determine whether we hold the information requested, nor for the time it takes to decide whether the information can be released. Charges may be made for locating, retrieving and providing information to you.
• In the event that we decide to impose a charge we will issue you with notification of the charge (a fees notice) and how it has been calculated. You will have three months from the date of issue of the fees notice in which to decide whether to pay the charge. The information will be provided to you on payment of the charge. If you decide not to proceed with the request there will be no charge to you.
Charges for environmental information
(This could include, for example, details of waste disposal. The charging scheme below can be modified: unlike a FOISA request for general information, there is no upper or lower cost limit for an EIR request and the practice can recover, in full, the cost of supplying the information)
• We will ask you to pay the full cost of providing the information, with no waiver for any portion of the cost. [there is no upper cost limit, meaning that a request cannot
be refused on cost grounds]
• Charges are calculated on the basis of the actual cost to the practice of providing the information. Photocopying is charged at 10p per A4 sheet for black and white copying and 30p per A4 sheet for colour copying. Postage is charged at actual rate for first class mail. Staff time is calculated at actual cost per staff member hourly
salary rate to a maximum of £15 per person per hour.
• We do not charge for the time to determine whether we hold the information requested, nor for the time it takes to decide whether the information can be released.
• In the event of a request we will issue you with notification of the charge and how it has been calculated. The information will be provided to you on payment of the charge. If you decide not to proceed with the request there will be no charge to you.
Requests for your own personal data
While you cannot request personal data under the FOISA you are entitled to request your own personal data from us under the Data Protection Act 2018. There is no charge for routine Subject Access Requests but there may be a charge to cover administrative costs for repeat requests and for unfounded or excessive requests.
SDCEP Practice Support Manual template (April 2019)
Dental Practice Guide to Information April 2019
Guide to Information last updated: July 2025
Date of next review: July 2026