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nutritional guidance for early years:
food choices for children aged 1-5 years in early education
and childcare settings
appendix a - Scottish Executive consultation
process
Consultation is an essential and important aspect of
Scottish Executive working methods. Given the wide-ranging
areas of work of the Scottish Executive, there are many
varied types of consultation. However, in general, Scottish
Executive consultation exercises aim to provide
opportunities for all those who wish to express their
opinions on a proposed area of work to do so in ways which
will inform and enhance that work.
The Scottish Executive encourages consultation that is
thorough, effective and appropriate to the issue under
consideration and the nature of the target audience.
Consultation exercises take account of a wide range of
factors, and no two exercises are likely to be the
same.
Typically Scottish Executive consultations involve a
written paper inviting answers to specific questions or
more general views about the material presented. Written
papers are distributed to organisations and individuals
with an interest in the issue, and they are also placed on
the Scottish Executive website enabling a wider audience to
access the paper and submit their responses. Consultation
exercises may also involve seeking views in a number of
different ways, such as through public meetings, focus
groups or questionnaire exercises. Copies of all the
written responses received to a consultation exercise
(except those where the individual or organisation
requested confidentiality) are placed in the Scottish
Executive library at Saughton House, Edinburgh (K Spur,
Saughton House, Broomhouse Drive, Edinburgh EH11 3XD,
telephone 0131 244 4565).
All Scottish Executive consultation papers and related
publications (eg, analysis of response reports) can be
accessed at: Scottish Executive consultations (
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/consultations)
The views and suggestions detailed in consultation
responses are analysed and used as part of the
decision-making process, along with a range of other
available information and evidence. Depending on the nature
of the consultation exercise the responses received
may:
- indicate the need for policy development or
review
- inform the development of a particular policy
- help decisions to be made between alternative
policy proposals
- be used to finalise legislation before it is
implemented
Final decisions on the issues under consideration will
also take account of a range of other factors, including
other available information and research evidence.
While details of particular circumstances described in a
response to a consultation exercise may usefully inform the
policy process, consultation exercises cannot address
individual concerns and comments, which should be directed
to the relevant public body.
This consultation, and all other Scottish Executive
consultation exercises, can be viewed online on the
consultation web pages of the Scottish Executive website at
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/consultations.
You can telephone Freephone 0800 77 1234 to find out where
your nearest public internet access point is.
The Scottish Executive now has an email alert system for
consultations (SEconsult:
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/consultations/seconsult.aspx).
This system allows stakeholder individuals and
organisations to register and receive a weekly email
containing details of all new consultations (including web
links). SEconsult complements, but in no way replaces SE
distribution lists, and is designed to allow stakeholders
to keep up to date with all SE consultation activity, and
therefore be alerted at the earliest opportunity to those
of most interest. We would encourage you to register.
Next steps in the process
Where respondents have given permission for their
response to be made public (see the separate Respondent
Information Form), these will be made available to the
public in the Scottish Executive Library by 31 August 2005.
We will check all responses where agreement to publish has
been given for any potentially defamatory material before
logging them in the library or placing them on the website.
You can make arrangements to view responses by contacting
the Scottish Executive Library on 0131 244 4565. Responses
can be copied and sent to you, but a charge may be made for
this service.
What happens next?
Following the closing date, all responses will be
analysed and considered along with any other available
material and will be used to inform the final version of
the guidance. We aim to issue a report on this consultation
process by Autumn 2005.
Comments and complaints
If you have any comments about how this consultation
exercise has been conducted, please send them to Susan
Neilands at Early Education and Childcare Division,
Scottish Executive (2BCN), Victoria Quay, Edinburgh EH6
6QQ.
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