Departments should have effective arrangements to determine which records should be retained in the department, designated as open on transfer or transferred as closed for a period of time.
Similarly, bodies which transfer to a place of deposit should undertake sensitivity reviews to identify those records which contain sensitive information. They should also provide advice on any Freedom of Information or Environmental Information Regulation exemptions that should be applied and which would restrict access.
You can find guidance for the sensitivity review process in our 'Access to Public Records' guidance, found below.
We have published guidance for records listed below and specific subject matter expert guidance may be available directly from the appropriate lead government department.
While this guidance applies to records in all formats and media, there is additional guidance available about closure on transfer for digital records.
Guidance and forms
Redaction toolkit: Guidelines for editing exempt information from paper and electronic documents prior to release (PDF, 0.15Mb)
Closure on transfer application form for digital records (XLS, 0.02Mb)
Access to public records (PDF, 0.28Mb)
Closure on transfer form (Word document) (DOC, 0.08Mb)
Closure on transfer form (Excel) (XLS, 0.04Mb)
Application to retain under s3(4) of the Public Record Act 1958 (Word document) (DOC, 0.09Mb)
Application to retain under s3(4) of the Public Record Act 1958 (Excel) (XLS, 0.04Mb)
Go to the next stage: Cataloguing and preparation for transfer
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