FOI AND ARCHIVES: THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES AT THE HEART OF A NETWORK

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FOI AND ARCHIVES THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES AT THE
HEART OF A NETWORK
Susan Healy 13 September 2005
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What I shall cover

• Setting the scene
• TNA response to FOI rights of access and issues
  that arise
• Records management
• Research project on FOI and archives
• Looking forward

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Setting the scene
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Some facts and figures

• JAN-JUNE 2004 / JAN-JUNE 2005
• Onsite visitors 143,030 / 144,544
• web page impressions 66,679,093 / 86,438,856
• written (letter/email) enquiries 14,783 /
  22,625
• Phone enquiries 36,759 / 47,630
• 178 km records as at 31 August 2005

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TNA response to FOI rights of access
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Paid research service

• s 21 not allowed if transferred records are over
  30 years old
• Advice and guidance and initial assessment of
  request free of charge
• Free access to reading rooms and catalogues
• Option of detailed research on payment of fee
• Information From Archives guides with pre-costed
  searches for frequent enquiries

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Issues

• Defining an FOI request - when is an enquiry an
  FOI/EIR request?
• 22,265 written enquiries Jan-June 2005
• 3,119 of them handled as FOI/EIR requests
• Estimating fees for non-standard research - how
  long is a piece of string?
• Can never be 100 sure all information has been
  found or information is not held - we act in good
  faith

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Closed transferred records

• Pre-emptive review of 30 year closures in 2004
• 53,394 records released 4/1/05
• Gave experience in applying exemptions
• Records still closed were primarily difficult
  cases
• Reactive review of records from 1 Jan - 30 June
• Triggered by letter/email or from catalogue entry
• c1,511 records reviewed, 74 released

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The FOI network

• FOIA s 66/EI Reg 17 consultation process
• Exemption decision - TNA (FOI Unit) but consult
  department
• Extra 10 days allowed
• Public interest decision - department but consult
  Lord Chancellor before refusing
• Advisory Council on National Records and Archives
  advises Lord Chancellor

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Advisory Council

• What is it? Independent advisory body on public
  records and archives issues, including access
• Who is on it? Master of the Rolls (chair),
  academics, archivists, owners, politicians,
  public servants
• What does it do?
• s 46 part 2 review when records are transferred
• s 66 public interest test advice for Lord
  Chancellor
• Advice in difficult exemption cases

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Issues

• Difficult access decisions - all human life is in
  the public records
• Numbers of requests including bulk requests from
  individuals
• Public catalogue encourages, and technology
  supports, requests for review of closed records
• Redaction - complex and time-consuming process

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Records management
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The RM network

• Client managers liaise with departments
• NAS liaises with wider public sector
• Model action plans, workshops and seminars
• Guidance - new toolkits planned
• Information Commissioner Memorandum of
  Understanding re promotion and monitoring
• Evaluation workbook and audit methodology
• See http//www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/policy/foi/
  

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Issues

• Coincidence with Modernising Government target to
  introduce e-records management - focus on erm
  rather than legacy records
• Need to build on momentum to improve records
  management generally
• Should FOI affect decisions to keep or destroy
  records? Should information provided under FOI be
  selected for permanent preservation?

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Research project on impact of FOI on archives
services
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The project

• Self-selected group of 22 archives services from
  local government, universities and national
  bodies
• Questionnaires issued in Nov 2004 and Feb 2005,
  final one due Jan 2006
• Comparative exercise
• Volumes figures before and after
• Expectations versus reality
• Risks and issues

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Emerging issues

• Different approaches to defining a written
  enquiry as an FOI request
• Private archives
• Cataloguing backlogs

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Looking forward
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Looking forward

• Identifying hot topics and research trends in
  advance and preparing for enquiries
• Early transfer of digital records through our
  Seamless Flow programme
• Effect of case law - keeping up to date
• ?????

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