James Watson
[FOI #27815 email]
22 Feb 2010
Our Ref: FOI 2010/27 – F0084448
Dear Mr Watson,
Re: Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 – Request for Information
Thank you for your email which was received by the University on 25 January 2010 timed
19:51 hours, requesting the following information:
“I have been trying to comprehend why the University of Glasgow has paid £293,000 to the
supplier of its new Student Information System for due diligence. I have asked a large number
of UK Universities for details of the cost of their due diligence for procuring a student
information system and whether any supplier was paid for this.
From the replies that I have received (which you can find on this site) the largest amount spent
on due diligence was by Oxford University, £24,000. From the correspondence I have found
that no university has ever paid the supplier of its student information system for due
diligence.
I therefore wish to request that you send me the case justifying the employment of the student
information system supplier for the due diligence. I am particularly interested to know the
rationale for paying the supplier such a huge sum of money for this task. After all, due
diligence is about assessing the ability of the supplier to deliver. I am keen to learn why the
University of Glasgow has paid the supplier to assess its own ability to deliver?”
University’s Response
The decision to undertake due diligence with the preferred supplier was taken prior to final
supplier selection. This decision reflected the Project Board’s assessment that undertaking
due diligence prior to the contract being agreed would offset expenses likely to be incurred
further down the line in ensuring the system fully met with the University’s requirements.
Therefore the case justifying the employment of the student information system supplier for
due diligence is not held. Accordingly, the University of Glasgow does not hold the
information that you have requested and is not aware of any other public authority that could
DATA PROTECTION AND FREEDOM OF INFORMATION OFFICE
Main Building, University of Glasgow, Glasgow G12 8QQ
Data Protection: Telephone: 0141-330-3111
E-Mail: [email address]
Freedom of Information: Telephone: 0141-330-2523
E-Mail: foi@gla.ac.uk
The University of Glasgow, charity number SC004401
respond to your request. Section 17 of FOISA states that where public authorities receive
requests for information that they do not hold, they must issue a notice advising that they do
not hold the requested information.
Please see the below extract from the minutes of the SLP Project Board meeting of 4th June
2008 for further clarification of the above:
“The ITPD evaluation was not the last step in the process. The ITSFT would be issued on 9th
July 2008. This document would pull all the tenders into line and define how we would
complete the procurement phase. On receipt of the ITSFT responses (23rd July 2008), a
further evaluation exercise would take place to enable the Project Board to select the
preferred supplier.
Following this decision due diligence would be carried out with the preferred supplier. This
would involve more work than normal pre-contract however this exercise would help mitigate
the risk on any gaps identified.”
The supply of documents under the terms of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002
does not give the applicant or whoever receives the information any right to re-use it in such a
way that might infringe the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (for example, by making
multiple copies, publishing or otherwise distributing the information to other individuals and the
public). The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (Consequential Modifications) Order
2004 ensured that Section 50 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (“CDPA”)
applies to the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (“FOISA”).
Breach of copyright law is an actionable offence and the University expressly reserves its
rights and remedies available to it pursuant to the CDPA and common law. Further information
on copyright is available at the following website:
http://www.ipo.gov.uk/copy.htm
Your right to seek a review
Should you be dissatisfied with the way in which the University has dealt with your request,
you have the right to require us to review our actions and decisions. If you wish to request a
review, please contact the University Secretary, University Court Office, Gilbert Scott Building,
University of Glasgow, Glasgow, Scotland G12 8QQ or e-mail: [University of Glasgow request email] within 40
working days. Your request must be in a recordable format (letter, email, audio tape, etc). You
will receive a full response to your request for review within 20 working days of its receipt.
If you are dissatisfied with the way in which we have handled your request for review you may
ask the Scottish Information Commissioner to review our decision. You must submit your
complaint in writing to the Commissioner within 6 months of receiving the response to review
letter. The Commissioner may be contacted as follows:
The Scottish Information Commissioner
Kinburn Castle
Doubledykes Road
St Andrews
Fife
KY16 9DS
Telephone: 01334 464610
Fax: 01334 464611
Website www.itspublicknowledge.info
E-mail: [email address]
An appeal, on a point of law, to the Court of Session may be made against a decision by the
Commissioner.
For further information on the review procedure please refer to
(http://www.gla.ac.uk/services/dpfoioffice/policiesandprocedures/foisa-complaintsandreview/ )
All complaints regarding requests for information will be handled in accordance with this
procedure.
Yours sincerely,
Data Protection and Freedom of Information Office
