Staff guidance on using the Ongoing Approval process for applications on Designated Sites. (Designated sites" refers to SSSIs, SACs, SPAs and Ramsar sites.)
This guidance has been updated in February 2013. In 2013, applications for SSSI/Natura management can only be considered if they are eligible for the RP9 Ongoing Approval process (or the Forestry Ongoing Approval process, in the case of some woodland SSSIs).
Please note that if you currently have a Regional Priority 9 contract which expires in December 2013 you may be offered an extension to this contract. You should not submit an application for a new contract.
1 Submit stage
Check that the proposal meets the criteria for RP9 Ongoing Approval:
- The entire Proposal contains only Regional Priority 9.
- All options selected will address Regional Priority 9.
- The total value of the Proposal does not exceed £50k. (For actual cost capital items, please check quotes and ensure that total costs would not exceed £50k when these are taken into account).
Note: Options may be located outside a designated site boundary, as long as they aimed specifically at addressing the qualifying features of the site, as explained in the guidance on the use of RP9.
As usual, please consult the relevant SNH Area Officer at the submit stage and use the SSSI/Natura proforma (SNH ref A703572) to record benefits to features, etc.
Carry out initial checks under the eligibility checklist and ‘buddy’ checklist.
2 Commit stage
Complete the eligibility and buddy checklists.
If the applicant has made any changes since submit stage, confirm that the case still meets the Ongoing Approval (OA) criteria above.
Fill in Part 1 of the RP9 OA Case Proforma and ask the SNH endorsing officer in the table below to complete Part 2 then save to Case Documents Screen.
3 Assessment stage
Carry out Stage 3 scoring and assessment. In the Stage 3 screen online, tick the box to indicate that the case is using the Ongoing Approval route.
On the scoring sheet, note which SSSI/Natura features the Proposal will benefit, or insert a link to the SSSI/Natura Proforma (A703572) which should contain this information.
If the score is 12, please send the score sheet to the SNH help desk - SRDP_HELP@snh.gov.uk
Enter the score on Part 3 of the Case Proforma and then contact the SNH Area Manager to seek a decision (make sure they can access the Scoring Sheet and Eligibility Checklist along with any supporting information).
The SNH Area Manager takes the decision to approve or reject the Proposal on behalf of the RPAC, using their delegated authority. Proposals should only be approved if they meet the required score, in line with the NPAC guidance issued September 2012:
“the buffer score of 14 for the Agri-Environment designation should only be used when considering proposals which clearly benefit Natura and/or SSSI designated sites. Note that in line with the procedure for Ongoing Approvals, RPACs have the further discretion to approve proposals which score 12 if they fully meet the requirements of the scoring criterion for National Targets – Natura or SSSI designated sites and there are particular reasons why the nature of the management means the score is low. Clear justification must be recorded in all cases.”
The Area Manager records the decision on the Case Proforma and notifies the RPAC Chair and Case Officer.
A handwritten signature is required from the Area Manager on the Case Proforma, which should then be scanned into the Case Documents screen in the back office.
4 Contract stage
Complete the following screens sequentially, in one operation: "RPAC decision" screen; "Ministerial confirmation" screen.
Then take the case to the 'contract issue' stage, generating an "RPAC Decision letter" for the applicant. (There are no separate versions of the letter for Ongoing Approval cases, only the standard version). The letter is not essential if the contract is issued very soon after a case is approved.
Issue the contract to the applicant in the usual way. When the applicant has responded, please ensure you complete the contract Monitoring screen and forward the signed copy of the contract to RPID as usual. Check that the online case file is in order, and that it is clear which are the final versions of maps, plans, etc.
SNH contacts
| RPAC Region | SNH contact for approving use of OA process | SNH Area Manager | SNH Area |
| Ayrshire | Dorothy Simpson | Ross Johnson | Strathclyde & Ayrshire |
| Argyll/Outer Hebrides | Ross Lilley | David Maclennan | Argyll & Western Isles |
| Borders | Andrew Panter | Chris Miles | Southern Scotland |
| Clyde | Amanda Storey | Ross Johnson | Strathclyde & Ayrshire |
| Dumfries & Galloway | Lynn Walker | Chris Miles | Southern Scotland |
| Forth | Kay Prichard | Iain Rennick | Forth |
| Grampian | Ewen Cameron | David Bale | Tayside & Grampian |
| Highland (south) † | Chris Donald | George Hogg | South Highland |
| Highland (north) † | Gail Churchill | Lesley Cranna | Northern Isles & North Highland |
| Northern Isles | Gail Churchill | Lesley Cranna | Northern Isles & North Highland |
| Tayside | Neale Taylor | David Bale | Tayside & Grampian |
† south and north refer to location of case not Case Officer.
SNH email addresses: firstname.surname@snh.gov.uk
SNH contacts webpage