Homepage > Regulating Appointments > Overview

• Overview
• Code of Practice
• A New Code of Practice
• Regulated Bodies
• OCPAS Assessors
• How to complain
• Auditing the process

Regulating Appointments

The Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments in Scotland, also known as OCPAS, regulates appointments to the boards of many of Scotland’s public bodies. We regulate the appointment of people to what are sometimes called non-executive positions.

Whilst we regulate the process used to make appointments, it is run by civil servants on behalf of the Scottish Government. The responsibility for making these appointments fairly, openly and based on merit lies with the Scottish Government.

We are wholly independent of the Scottish Parliament and the Scottish Government.

Our website has a list of the bodies that we regulate appointments to.

We regulate these appointments in three main ways:

• we have produced a Code of Practice for Ministerial Appointments to Public Bodies in Scotland. The Scottish Government has to follow the Code when making regulated appointments.

• we oversee every appointment process from start to finish by assigning an OCPAS Assessor

• we conduct audits of the parts of the process that weren’t overseen by the OCPAS Assessor.

We regulate in a proportionate and supportive way. We understand that our regulation must contribute to the appointment of the right people to the right roles. In this way we help to make public services even more effective for the people of Scotland.

The office was established by the Public Appointments and Public Bodies etc. (Scotland) Act 2003

Interested in applying for a public appointment?

For current vacancies go to www.appointed-for-scotland.org