Historic Buildings Council (HBC) Publication Scheme and FOI

About this publication scheme

Under section 19(1) of the Freedom of Information Act every public authority is required to adopt and maintain a publication scheme setting out the classes of information it holds, the manner in which it intends to publish the information and whether or not a charge will be made for the information.

The Information Commissioner, who is responsible for monitoring and enforcing compliance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000, has drawn up a Model Publication Scheme and a Definition Document for all public sector organisations.  The Historic Buildings Council has formally adopted the Information Commissioner’s model publication scheme.  The scheme is organised into seven classes of information which are set out below.  This structure aims to save you time and effort when searching for information.

Who we are

The Council currently consists of a chair and thirteen members. Appointments are for a term which usually lasts three years.

Chair
Peter Tracey
Members
John Anderson
Ciarán Andrews
Siobhan Brown
Elbeth Clarke
Margaret Edwards
Connie Gerrow
Rosaleen Hickey
Johanna Higgins
Sabine Kalke
Graeme Moore
Charlie Murray
Tanja Poppelreuter
Connor Sandford

What we do

Historic Buildings Council is a Statutory Advisory Council established in 1974 under the provisions of the Planning (Northern Ireland) Order 1972.  This was subsequently repealed and an amended Planning (NI) Order was passed in 1991 The Council is currently constituted under Section 198 of the Planning Act (Northern Ireland) 2011.

What we spend and how we spend it

HBC is a Statutory Advisory Body which works in partnership with Historic Environment Division its sponsor branch within the Department of Communities who provide the Council’s secretariat. The secretariat manages the annual budget which is less than £5,000 per annum.

This budget is used to cover the cost of travel and subsistence for Council members and as well as any publications which happen throughout the year. The cost of recruitment is met by a central recruitment budget within the Department for Communities.

Positions of the HBC are not remunerated, however Council members, including the Chair, although not salaried, are entitled to make a claim for expenses incurred through the performance of their duties, such as transport costs.

HBC has no contracts that have gone through a tendering process.

HBC undertakes no major capital expenditure.

What are our priorities and how are we doing

The main priority of HBC is to advise the Department for Communities on matters relating to its role on the listing and delisting of buildings, listed building consent, and to keep under review, and from time to time report to the Department on the general state of preservation of listed buildings. HBC is a small public body and does not have an annual strategic or business plan because, in line with its statutory remit, it consistently advises on the same issues. However it does produce a programme of work which covers each term of the Council, usually three years. At the end of each term there is also a Report which is produced and presented to the Departmental board before being laid at the assembly. HBC is an advisory body.

Our Policies and procedure

Appointments

The Department for Communities is responsible for the recruitment of members and chair of the Council in line with the guidance. Members and chair are usually officially appointed by the Minister or the Secretary of State if the Minister is absent.

Customer service

The introduction of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 ensures that anybody has the right to write and ask for official information held by HMC as a public authority.

HBC also has a statutory obligation to adopt and maintain this publication scheme. The secretariat is responsible for considering requests for information and operating the publication scheme. The Secretariat should be contacted at the following address:

Records management

HBC is a statutory Advisory Body which works in partnership with Historic Environment Division its sponsor branch within the Department of Communities who provide the Council’s secretariat. The secretariat creates and maintains all records related to HBC and does this in line with the Department for Communities policy.

Equality

As an arm’s length body of the Department for Communities, HBC is committed ensuring due regard is given to the need to promote equality of opportunity and good relations in respect of religious belief, political opinion, gender, race, disability, age, marital status, dependents and sexual orientation.

Complaints

Complaints against a member of the council should be referred to the chair in the first instance. If it is not resolved it should then be referred to the sponsor division. In such circumstances members should expect to be assessed against the Terms and Conditions of Appointment and code of conduct for members of the HBC and On Board: A Guide for Board Members of Public Bodies.

Charges for publications

HBC reserves the right to charge for the production of multiple paper copies of documents, which are otherwise free of charge. 

Policies and procedures for membership

The Council may also be consulted on changes to Legislation, Planning Policy, Development Plans and planning applications which include or impact upon the setting of historic buildings.

Membership is sought through public advertisement and appointments are made in accordance with the Nolan Principles and ratified by the Minister for Communities. The term of appointment is for a three year period but members may be eligible for re-appointment subject to satisfactory service.

The Services we offer

The services provided by HBC are set out in the ‘Who we are and what we do’ section above.

If you can’t find a document

HBC is committed to making information readily available, within the scope of the legislation. To assist us to deal with requests for information promptly, it would be helpful if you could direct enquiries to:

Requests for information must be in writing (or email), give your name and a correspondence (or email) address and describe the information requested. Requests for environmental information may also be made verbally. Applications should provide as much detail as possible to identify the information sought.

If the information you want is not routinely published, you can make a request for it under the Freedom of Information Act via the address above.

We will also advise you how to ask for information that we do not publish or how to complain if you are dissatisfied with any aspect of this publication scheme.

If we are unable to resolve any complaint, you can complain to the Information Commissioner whose contact details are:

Alternative formats

If the information is not in a format that meets your needs please contact: HBC-HMCSecretariat@communities-ni.gov.uk

Crown copyright and licensing

All material belonging to the Council is subject to Crown copyright protection unless otherwise indicated.

This version of the Publication Scheme was last updated in June 2020.