FOI 25-395 NRRD Strategic Operation Manager
Freedom of Information Request
- Reference
- FOI 25-395 NRRD Strategic Operation Manager
- Request Date
- 16 Sep 2025
- Response Date
- 30 Sep 2025
- Information Requested
I am writing to request information under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act Specifically, I would like to know: In the last three years, on how many occasions within the NRRD there has not been a Strategic Operating Manager (SOM) on shift. If possible, please also provide: A breakdown of figures by month and by year. Any provide recorded reasons for the absence of SOM cover.
- Response
From the date range 1st September 2022 - 21st September 2025, there have been 194 shifts where there have been no Strategic Operating Manager on shift. Over the same date range 33.5 shifts were covered on Overtime.
Please see the attached sheet detailing a breakdown of the gapped shifts by year and month.
For the given data, you will see that some of the figures are shown as, five or less than five, please note that this figure has been suppressed because the statistical value is less than five. The Scottish Ambulance service has a duty, under the Data Protection Act to avoid directly or indirectly revealing any personal details. It is therefore widely understood that provision of statistics on small numbers, five or less are statistically suppressed upon disclosure. It is for this reason we have also not broken the information into genders, the figures were too small to report.These shifts remained vacant because the scheduled SOM was unavailable/absent, all relief options had been exhausted, and no staff volunteered for overtime to cover the absence.
Important Information to Consider
In the absence of a Strategic Operations Manager (SOM) on duty, the Assistant SOM assumes responsibility for maintaining the point of contact role within the Service Overview Cell.
Regarding decision-making authority, when no SOM is present, operational decisions are escalated to the designated senior managers who are either on duty or on call. These senior managers are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year to provide support as required.In situations where no SOM is available to cover overtime shifts, Assistant SOMs may be offered overtime opportunities to ensure adequate staffing levels. This may involve a ‘double-up’ arrangement, whereby two staff members are scheduled to manage the operational workload effectively.
In addition to the escalation pathway outlined above, immediate managerial support is also available from the NRRD Strategic Advisor, who is accessible 24/7/365.- Response Documents
