Freedom of Information Request - Dalkeith Country Park
Date: 13 January 2025
Our ref: SIR178239/A4920018
Information Request – Dalkeith Country Park
Your Request
Your Original Request – Received – 9 December 2024
Can you tell me if Dalkeith Country Park receive any grants or other financial support from NatureScot to help with management of the oak woodland SSSI? If so what have they had, and for what reason, in the last 15 years?
In addition can you tell me when was the last SCM Assessment of the SSSI at Dalkeith CP and when is the next one due?
Your Additional Request – Received – 17 December 2024
When did you advise Dalkeith CP to close the oak woods SSSI path during the winter and what was the reason for this?
Our Response
We have discussed your request with various teams within NatureScot and we can provide you with the following information.
- Can you tell me if Dalkeith Country Park receive any grants or other financial support from NatureScot to help with management of the oak woodland SSSI? If so what have they had, and for what reason, in the last 15 years?
We found one grant that was an award to Dalkeith Country in 2020/21 – from the Better Places Fund. The project was “Dalkeith Country Park: Routes for the Future” and they were awarded £18,000 for the project. The project finished in 2021. The purpose of the grant was to “provide visitor management solutions to ensure that Dalkeith Country Park can continue to welcome visitors to its landscape of outstanding significance for generations to come”. This was done by undertaking a visitor activity review and preparation of a management and improvement strategy, considering visitors needs and conservation priorities which included the SSSI.
Dalkeith Country Park applied again to the Better Places Fund in 21/22 to take forward more but due the competitive funding round it was unsuccessful, and we have not provided any further funding.
2. In addition can you tell me when was the last SCM Assessment of the SSSI at Dalkeith CP and when is the next one due?
For this part of your request, the Operations Officer – South has contacted you directly, via email on the 23 December 2024. Information on protected areas including SSSI’s can also be found on SiteLink
3. When did you advise Dalkeith CP to close the oak woods SSSI path during the winter and what was the reason for this?
We were first approached by Dalkeith Country Park management about the condition of the paths around the start of 2020.
Some sections of path had become waterlogged/compacted over the winter and the Estate wanted our support in closing some sections to allow them to recover and reduce impacts on the veteran oaks.
We agreed that the oak trees would benefit from the paths being closed for a period, at this time to enable this, as the root systems of the oaks in the SSSI are particularly sensitive to these kinds of impacts. We advised that the Estate considered the condition of the paths through the SSSI when looking at their future management of the path network across the park, as ultimately it is for them to decide how best to do this.
How We Handled Your Request
We believe you have asked for environmental information as defined in the Environmental Information (Scotland Regulations 2004 (‘the EIRs’), so we are dealing with your request under those regulations. To be able to use the EIRs, we must apply an exemption under section 39(2) of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (‘FOISA’). The Scottish Information Commissioner’s guidance recommends that public authorities apply this exemption to environmental information and handle request under the EIRs.
If you would like to find out more about the access to information legislation, there is a guidance booklet available on the Scottish Information Commissioner’s website.
Review and Appeal
I hope this information meets your requirements, but if you are dissatisfied with how we have responded to your information request, please write to us within 40 working days explaining your concerns. You can contact us at Battleby, Redgorton, Perth, PH1 3EW or email us at [email protected]. We will carry out a review of our response and contact you with our findings within 20 working days.
If you are not satisfied following this, you can make an appeal to the Scottish Information Commissioner within 6 months. The Scottish Information Commissioner can be contacted at:
Scottish Information Commissioner
Kinburn Castle
Doubledykes Road
St Andrews
Fife
KY16 9DS
Telephone: 01334 464610
Yours sincerely
FOI Officer,
NatureScot
