Primary Care Out of Hours Workforce Survey 2025

Author

NHS Education for Scotland

Published

August 26, 2025

1 Executive Summary

During the year ending 31 March 2025:

  • The number of GPs working in OOH services in Scotland was 1,459. The total number of hours worked was 511,496.

  • For GPs working in OOH services, the mean weekly hours was 6.74 hours.

  • Excluding NHS Highland, who were unable to provide data for Argyll & Bute, the number of GPs working in OOH decreased by 3.1% and the total hours worked increased by 0.6% since the year ending 31 March 2024.

  • Approximately 10% of GPs working in OOH services worked approximately 43% of the total hours.

  • For GPs working in OOH services, older GPs on average worked more weekly hours than younger GPs.

  • The number of nurses working in OOH services was 317, working a total of 281,054 hours, a mean of 16.62 hours per week.

  • Excluding NHS Highland, the number of nurses decreased by 8.5%, and the total hours decreased by 10.0% since the year ending 31 March 2024.

  • Most nurses working in OOH services were Band 7 (54%).

  • Healthcare Support Worker was the most common multidisciplinary team role in OOH services

2 Introduction

The Primary Care Out of Hours (OOH) Workforce Survey captures information from the Primary Care OOH services in each NHS Board area to give an evidence base for workforce planning for OOH services.

This survey has been developed in partnership with a range of stakeholders including: the Scottish General Practitioners’ Committee, the Royal College of General Practitioners, the Royal College of Nursing and the Scottish Practice Nurse Association.

The Out of Hours Survey was last carried out in 2024. Results of surveys prior to 2023 were published by Public Health Scotland (PHS), and the results of earlier surveys can be found on PHS’s website.

The report provides information on the:

  • General Practitioners (GPs) and nurses working in Primary Care OOH services in the past year
  • Challenges and experiences in filling shifts in the past year
  • Use of multi-disciplinary teams within OOH

More detailed information can be found within the supplementary data tables and dashboard published alongside this report and an interactive dashboard .

Background information, including an overview of the data sources used and a glossary can be found on our website.

OOH activity data is published by PHS.

3 Results

3.1 Data quality

All 14 NHS Boards responded to the survey, however, not all provided complete data on staff age, sex and registration numbers.

Data quality improved for the 2025 survey compared to the 2024 survey, with only a few missing registration numbers missing. There was still a significant number of staff with missing age and sex.

Table 1: Missing Data in the OOH Survey
Staff Group Registration Number Age Sex
Doctor 1.7% 72.6% 40.2%
Nurse 4.3% 16.4% 0%

The National Primary Care Clinicians Database (NPCCD) was used to look up age and sex of GPs where it was missing using Registration numbers to link the two datasets.

NHS Highland were unable to provide data on the OOH workforce for Argyll & Bute. When reporting Scotland totals for 2025, NHS Highland are included, however when comparing to 2024 totals, NHS Highland are excluded. NHS Education for Scotland, NHS National Services Scotland and NHS Highland will work together over the next year to include Argyll & Bute data for the year ending 31 March 2025 in the next publication.

3.2 General Practitioners

The data presented in this section exclude GP specialty trainees.

3.2.1 Headcount and hours worked

Table 2 presents the GP headcount, total hours worked and the mean weekly hours worked by GPs in OOH services. These GPs may work in other Primary care services, such as within the in-hours services.

Some GPs work across multiple NHS Boards, and so the total headcount across the Boards does not equal the Scotland total.

Table 2: OOH GP Headcount and Total Hours 2025
HealthBoard Headcount Total hours Mean weekly hours per GP working in OOH
NHS Ayrshire & Arran 131 38,189 5.61
NHS Borders 38 8,859 4.48
NHS Dumfries & Galloway 27 14,911 10.62
NHS Fife 95 25,310 5.12
NHS Forth Valley 38 7,148 3.62
NHS Grampian 95 47,152 9.54
NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde 322 97,500 5.82
NHS Highland* 179 81,168 8.72
NHS Lanarkshire 119 34,117 5.51
NHS Lothian 280 61,385 4.22
NHS Orkney 12 9,406 15.07
NHS Shetland 8 5,010 12.04
NHS Tayside 175 62,186 6.83
NHS Western Isles 34 19,154 10.83
Scotland 1,459 511,496 6.74
* NHS Highland does not include Argyll and Bute region

The number of GPs working in Primary Care OOH services during the year ending 31 March 2025 was 1,459, working a total of 511,495.7 hours. The mean weekly hours of all GPs was 6.74.

Variation in mean hours per GP may be due to differences in service delivery. In more rural NHS Boards, such as NHS Orkney, some GP hours are based on “on-call” hours rather than hours worked in clinics.

The figures below show changes in reported headcount, total hours and mean hours in each Board between the 2024 and 2025 surveys.

Figure 1: OOH GP Headcount in each Board, 2024 - 2025
A chart showing the trend of Headcount of GPs working in OOH services over the previous 2 years.
Figure 2: OOH GP total hours in each Board, 2024 - 2025
A chart showing the trend of total hours of GPs working in OOH services over the previous 2 years.
Figure 3: Mean weekly hours worked in OOH services hours in each Board, 2024 - 2025
A chart showing the trend of mean hours of GPs working in OOH services over the previous 2 years.
Table 3: Changes in the OOH GP headcount, total hours and mean weekly hours worked per GP 2024 - 2025
HealthBoard Headcount 2025 (Percentage Change) Total Hours 2025 (Percentage Change) Mean Weekly Hours 2025 (Percentage Change)
NHS Ayrshire & Arran 131 (-4.4%) 38,188.9 (-0.9%) 5.61 (3.7%)
NHS Borders 38 (15.2%) 8,859.4 (38.8%) 4.48 (20.4%)
NHS Dumfries & Galloway 27 (-32.5%) 14,911.4 (19.8%) 10.62 (77.6%)
NHS Fife 95 (11.8%) 25,310.0 (31.0%) 5.12 (17.2%)
NHS Forth Valley 38 (-38.7%) 7,148.0 (-22.3%) 3.62 (26.6%)
NHS Grampian 95 (-17.4%) 47,151.8 (-9.4%) 9.54 (9.5%)
NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde 322 (-9.6%) 97,500.4 (7.9%) 5.82 (19.3%)
NHS Highland* 179 (-36.7%) 81,168.4 (-39.3%) 8.72 (-4.0%)
NHS Lanarkshire 119 (-9.2%) 34,116.9 (-8.0%) 5.51 (1.1%)
NHS Lothian 280 (17.6%) 61,384.8 (12.9%) 4.22 (-3.9%)
NHS Orkney 12 (-20.0%) 9,406.0 (2.5%) 15.07 (28.0%)
NHS Shetland 8 (-50.0%) 5,010.0 (-6.2%) 12.04 (87.5%)
NHS Tayside 175 (16.7%) 62,185.8 (-16.3%) 6.83 (-28.3%)
NHS Western Isles 34 (-30.6%) 19,154.0 (0.3%) 10.83 (44.6%)
Scotland 1,459 (-7.5%) 511,495.7 (-8.9%) 6.74 (-1.6%)
Scotland (excl. Highland) 1,295 (-3.1%) 430,327.4 (0.6%) 6.39(3.7%)
* NHS Highland does not include Argyll and Bute region

Excluding NHS Highland, total headcount in the year ending 31 March 2025 fell by 3.1% whereas total hours increased by 0.6% compared to the year ending 31 March 2024. The mean hours per week was 0.23 greater than during the previous year.

There was a wide variation between boards of the change in the total headcount and hours worked between the years ending 31 March 2025 and 31 March 2024. The total hours worked in NHS Borders increased by 38.8%, whereas NHS Tayside decreased by 16.3%.

3.2.2 Designation

GPs working in OOH services can do so under several different contractual arrangements. The two most common are Sessional GPs who are not employed by the Health Board, and work on an ad-hoc basis, and Salaried GPs who are employed by the Health Board.

Table 4: OOH GPs by Designation 2025
Designation Headcount Total hours Mean Weekly Hours per GP working in OOH
Locum / Agency GP 97 37,552 7.44
Other Doctor 6 11,739 37.63
Partner / Senior Partner 2 1,472 14.15
Salaried GP 427 213,087 9.60
Sessional GP 1,097 247,645 4.34
Total 1,459 511,496 6.74

The majority of GPs working in OOH services are Sessional GPs (67.3%), and Salaried GPs (26.2%).

3.2.3 Demographics

Figure 4 displays GP headcount by age group and sex for the year ending 31 March 2025.

Figure 4: OOH GP headcount by age and sex for the year ending March 2025
A chart showing the age and sex of GPs for the year ending March 2025.

There were more female GPs than male GPs (55.4% compared to 43.5%) in the OOH workforce.

Thirty eight percent of the workforce was between the ages of 35 and 44.

Mean Weekly Hours

For those GPs who worked in OOH services, the mean weekly hours was 8.67 for male GPs and 5.19 for females. (The mean for the remaining GPs with unknown sex was 8.82).

Figure 5 shows older GPs work on average more weekly hours than younger GPs, and male GPs on average work more weekly hours than female GPs in the same age group.

Figure 5: GP mean weekly hours by age and sex
A chart showing the average weekly hours worked by GPs in OOH services by the age and sex of the GP for the year ending March 2025.

3.2.4 Input to services

Table 5 presents the distribution of hours worked by GPs for the year ending 31 March 2025.

The figures below are shown in total hours over the year. One thousand hours over the year is an average of approximately 20 hours per week.

Table 5: GP hours input to OOH services for the year ending 31 March 2025
Hours per year Number of GPs % of GPs Total hours worked in year % of total hours
Under 50 327 22% 6,718.2 1.3%
50-99 236 16% 16,922.4 3.3%
100-199 259 18% 36,867.4 7.2%
200-499 297 20% 94,492.8 18.5%
500-999 192 13% 137,246.8 26.8%
1,000-1,499 84 6% 101,496.6 19.8%
1,500 and over 59 4% 117,751.5 23.0%
Not stated 5 0% 0.0 0.0%
Total 1,459 100% 511,495.7 100.0%

In keeping with previous surveys, approximately 10% of GPs working in OOH services are working approximately 43% of the total hours recorded (over 1000 hours per year each). In contrast, 22% GPs were recorded working fewer than 50 hours throughout the year; these GPs accounted for less than 2% of the total hours worked by all GPs.

3.2.5 Work across GP services

Of the 1,459 GPs included in the OOH Survey, 1,420 had a recorded registration number. Among these, 843 (57.7%) had an active contract with a GP Practice recorded in NPCCD at some point between 31 March 2024 and 31 March 2025.

The remaining 43.3% may work as locums within Primary Care, as these are not recorded in NPCCD.

3.3 Nurses

3.3.1 Headcount and hours worked

The following sections present data on nurses working in OOH services in NHS Boards in Scotland for the year ending 31 March 2025.

Figure 6 and Figure 7 present headcount and total hours figures for the 2024 and 2025 surveys, Table 6 shows the scale of any change between the two surveys.

Figure 6: Nurse Headcount in each Board 2024 - 2025
A chart showing the headcount of Nurses working in OOH services by NHS Board for the year ending 31 March 2025
Figure 7: Nurse Total Hours in each Board, 2024 - 2025
A chart showing the total hours of Nurses working in OOH services by NHS Board for the year ending 31 March 2025
Figure 8: Mean weekly hours for nurses working in OOH Services in each Board, 2024 - 2025
A chart showing the mean weekly hours of nurses working in OOH services by NHS Board for the year ending 31 March 2025
Table 6: Nurse headcount, total hours and mean weekly hours working in OOH services; 2024 - 2025
HealthBoard Headcount (Percentage Change) Yearly Total Hours (Percentage Change) Mean weekly hours (Percentage Change)
NHS Ayrshire & Arran 6 (20.0%) 4,481 (39.7%) 14.36 (16.4%)
NHS Borders 17 (0.0%) 16,117 (-1.4%) 18.23 (-1.4%)
NHS Dumfries & Galloway 7 (40.0%) 526 (-66.9%) 1.45 (-76.2%)
NHS Fife 34 (-19.0%) 41,688 (-23.0%) 23.58 (-4.8%)
NHS Forth Valley 14 (-39.1%) 29,782 (-12.1%) 40.91 (44.4%)
NHS Grampian 37 (-5.1%) 23,936 (-25.9%) 12.44 (-22.0%)
NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde 59 (15.7%) 30,738 (12.1%) 10.02 (-3.0%)
NHS Highland* 47 (30.6%) 47,692 (16.4%) 19.51 (-10.8%)
NHS Lanarkshire 29 (-21.6%) 17,786 (-5.4%) 11.79 (20.6%)
NHS Lothian 43 (-8.5%) 50,467 (-5.3%) 22.57 (3.6%)
NHS Orkney 1 (-85.7%) 118 (-77.0%) 2.27 (61.0%)
NHS Shetland 3 (-25.0%) 1,548 (-3.3%) 9.92 (28.8%)
NHS Tayside 13 (30.0%) 10,841 (7.8%) 16.04 (-17.0%)
NHS Western Isles 7 (-22.2%) 5,333 (-14.7%) 14.65 (9.6%)
Scotland 317 (-4.2%) 281,054 (-6.4%) 17.05 (-2.2%)
Scotland (excl. NHS Highland) 270 (-8.5%) 233,362 (-10.0%) 16.62 (-1.8%)
* NHS Highland does not include Argyll and Bute region

There were 317 nurses working in OOH services in NHS Scotland, working an average of 17.05 hours a week.

Excluding NHS Highland, the number of nurses working in OOH services fell by 8.5% and the mean weekly hours worked fell by 1.8%

There are relatively small numbers of nurses working in OOH services, and especially in smaller boards any changes may result in large percentage changes.

3.3.2 Demographics

Figure 9 shows the distribution of nurses across age groups.

Figure 9: Nurse headcount by age group
A chart showing the age and sex distribution of Nurses working in OOH services for the year ending 31 March 2025

3.3.3 Agenda for Change (AfC) band

Figure 10 shows the percentage of nurses in each AfC band for the years ending 31 March 2024 and 2025. There has been a 4.3 percentage points increase of nurses in Band 7.

Figure 10: Registered nurse headcount by AfC band for the years ending 31 March 2024 and 31 March 2025
A chart showing the AfC band distribution of Nurses working in OOH services for the years ending 31 March 2024 and 31 March 2025.

3.3.4 Input to services

Table 7 shows nurses working in OOH services by number of hours worked in the year ending 31 March 2025

Table 7: Nurse input to OOH services for the year ending 31 March 2025
Hours per year Nurses (headcount) Nurses (%) Total hours input Percentage of total hours
Under 50 26 8.2% 614.4 0.2%
50-99 17 5.4% 1,242.1 0.4%
100-199 23 7.3% 3,476.2 1.2%
200-499 45 14.2% 15,368.7 5.5%
500-999 60 18.9% 47,551.4 16.9%
1,000-1,499 78 24.6% 97,627.1 34.7%
1,500 and over 64 20.2% 115,173.9 41.0%
Not stated 4 1.3% 0.0 0.0%
Total 317 100.0% 281,054.0 100.0%

Almost 50% of nurses are providing around 80% of the total input to OOH services.

3.4 Multi-disciplinary teams

The survey asked services for information about their use of wider multidisciplinary teams (MDTs) working in their OOH services.

Multi-disciplinary staff were employed under a mixture of arrangements, some directly employed while others were contracted. Employment arrangements for the same role could differ across NHS Boards.

Out of the 14 territorial NHS Boards, 11 indicated that they used additional clinical roles within their OOH service.

Table 8 shows which roles worked in the MDTs of the OOH in each NHS Board.

Table 8: Employed/managed/contracted MDT roles used in OOH services
HealthBoard HealthCareSupportWorker Paramedic MentalHealthWorker Pharmacist Other
NHS Ayrshire and Arran No No No No 0
NHS Borders Yes Yes No No 0
NHS Dumfries and Galloway Yes Yes No Yes 0
NHS Fife Yes Yes No No 0
NHS Forth Valley Yes Yes No No 0
NHS Grampian Yes No Yes No 0
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde Yes No No No Yes
NHS Highland No Yes No No 0
NHS Lanarkshire Yes Yes Yes Yes 0
NHS Lothian Yes No No No 0
NHS Orkney No No No No No
NHS Shetland No No No No 0
NHS Tayside Yes Yes No No Yes
NHS Western Isles No Yes No No Yes
Scotland 9 8 2 2 3

Healthcare Support Worker was the most common role, reported by nine NHS Boards. Within three of the nine NHS Boards they were used for all shifts, and more than 50% of shifts by six of them.

Paramedic were reported by eight NHS Boards, but typically used for less than 25% of shifts.

Full details of MDT support can be found in the supplementary tables accompanying this report.

3.5 Managing the Out of Hours service

NHS Boards reported varying experiences in filling shifts, with some reporting considerable challenges, and others reporting a stable service or an improvement since the 2023 survey. Full commentary on each NHS Boards experience of filling shifts can be found in the data tables accompanying this report.

3.5.1 Proportion of shifts unfilled 48 hours beforehand.

For GP shifts on normal weekdays, 12 NHS Boards reported that more than a two thirds of shifts were filled 48 hours beforehand, and two Boards reported no issue with filling shifts. For weekend day shifts, NHS Borders and NHS Fife reported that about a third of shifts were affected, and NHS Forth Valley reported that more than two thirds were affected. NHS Fife reported issues with about half of weekend overnight shifts being unfilled 48 hours in advance.

Table 9 details the additional actions reported by Boards when shifts could not be filled as planned, and the frequency with which each type of action was required in each Board.

HealthBoard Normal weekdays Weekday overnights Normal weekend days Weekend overnights Public holidays Protected learning time
NHS Ayrshire & Arran Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%)
NHS Borders Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Not Applicable
NHS Dumfries & Galloway Not Applicable Not Applicable Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Not Applicable Not Applicable
NHS Fife Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) About half (~50%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%)
NHS Forth Valley Less than a third (<33%) Not Applicable Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) About half (~50%)
NHS Grampian Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Not Applicable
NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Not Applicable
NHS Highland Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Not Applicable
NHS Lanarkshire Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) About a third (~33%) Less than a third (<33%) Not Applicable
NHS Lothian Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Not Applicable
NHS Orkney Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%)
NHS Shetland Not Applicable Not Applicable Not Applicable Not Applicable Not Applicable Not Applicable
NHS Tayside Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%)
NHS Western Isles Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%)
HealthBoard Normal weekdays Weekday overnights Normal weekend days Weekend overnights Public holidays Protected learning time
NHS Ayrshire & Arran Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%)
NHS Borders About a third (~33%) About a third (~33%) About a third (~33%) About a third (~33%) Less than a third (<33%) Not Applicable
NHS Dumfries & Galloway Not Applicable Not Applicable Not Applicable Not Applicable Not Applicable Not Applicable
NHS Fife Less than a third (<33%) About a third (~33%) Less than a third (<33%) About a third (~33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%)
NHS Forth Valley Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) About half (~50%) About half (~50%)
NHS Grampian Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Not Applicable
NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Not Applicable
NHS Highland Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Not Applicable
NHS Lanarkshire Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) About a third (~33%) About a third (~33%) Less than a third (<33%) Not Applicable
NHS Lothian Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) About a third (~33%) About a third (~33%) Less than a third (<33%) Not Applicable
NHS Orkney Not Applicable Not Applicable Not Applicable Not Applicable Not Applicable Not Applicable
NHS Shetland Not Applicable Not Applicable Not Applicable Not Applicable Not Applicable Not Applicable
NHS Tayside
NHS Western Isles Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%) Less than a third (<33%)

Nine Boards reported using longer shifts to fill shifts in the year ending 31 March 2025: four of these reported the use of longer shifts on a weekly basis.

Only one Board (NHS Highland) reported using additional financial incentives to fill shifts (a fall from seven for the year ending 31 March 2023 and four for the year ending 31 March 2024). NHS Highland reported additional financial incentives to fill shifts was used on a weekly basis.

Overall, it appears that Boards had to take less actions than last year. This is borne out in the general comments which can be found in the accompanying data tables.

Figure 11: Number of NHS Boards taking Actions to manage Unfilled OOH Shifts
Table 9: Actions undertaken for unfilled shifts in the year ending 31 2025
HealthBoard Standby / On-call / Back-up cover used Reduced triage cover Increased rates / financial incentives Nurse filling GP shift GP filling nurse shift Longer shifts Reduce number of bases Other
NHS Ayrshire & Arran No: No: No: No: No: Yes: Quarterly Yes: Quarterly :
NHS Borders No: No: No: No: Yes: Monthly Yes: Weekly No: Yes: Bianually
NHS Dumfries & Galloway Yes: Anually No: No: Yes: Quarterly No: No: No: :
NHS Fife No: No: No: Yes: Yes: Yes: No: :
NHS Forth Valley Yes: Weekly : : : : : : :
NHS Grampian Yes: Anually Yes: Quarterly No: Yes: Weekly Yes: Weekly Yes: Weekly Yes: Weekly :
NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde Yes: Quarterly Yes: Quarterly No: No: No: Yes: Monthly Yes: Quarterly :
NHS Highland No: Yes: Quarterly Yes: Weekly Yes: Monthly Yes: Monthly Yes: Quarterly Yes: Monthly :
NHS Lanarkshire Yes: Monthly No: No: Yes: Quarterly No: Yes: Monthly Yes: Daily :
NHS Lothian No: Yes: Quarterly No: Yes: Monthly Yes: Quarterly Yes: Weekly Yes: Quarterly :
NHS Orkney No: No: No: Yes: Anually No: No: No: Yes: Anually
NHS Shetland No: No: No: No: No: No: No: No:
NHS Tayside No: No: No: No: No: Yes: Weekly Yes: Quarterly Yes: Weekly
NHS Western Isles No: No: No: No: No: No: No: No:
Scotland 5 4 1 7 5 9 7 3

3.5.2 Standby / On-call / Back-up

Five NHS Boards reported that they had standby, on-call or back-up arrangements in place for GPs for their Primary Care OOH service. For two Boards this was available for Weeknights and Weekend nights. Three Boards had standby available for Public Holidays.

4 Appendices

4.1 Appendix 1: Official statistics information

As a provider, we adhere to the Code of Practice for Statistics and are regulated by the Office for Statistics Regulation. You can find more information on the Code of Practice, our protocols for Early and Pre-release Access to our publications, reports on events impacting our publications, our publication timetable.

4.1.1 Pre-release access to official statistics

Under terms of the “Pre-Release Access to Official Statistics (Scotland) Order 2008”, NES is obliged to publish information on those receiving Pre-Release Access (“Pre-Release Access” refers to statistics in their final form prior to publication). The standard maximum Pre-Release Access is five working days.

Named individuals in the following organisations are approved to receive standard Pre-Release Access:

  • Scottish Government Primary Care Directorate
  • NHS Board Chief Executives
  • NHS Board Communication leads