Document & Records Management Policy - The …

1 Document AND Records Management Policy Page 1 of 3 Document and Records Management system Policy statement The Pensions Regulator (TPR) will manage all documents and Records created or received, using reliable and well designed systems in accordance with: Legislation surrounding information, including: the Public Records Acts 1958 and 1967; the Freedom of Information Act 2000; the Data Protection Act 1998 and the Environmental Information Regulations 2004, and Relevant standards, including the DCA Code of Practice on the Management of Electronic Records ; BIP0008:2004 (legal admissibility of Electronic Records ) and BS5454 (Storage and Exhibition of Archived Documents) Document and Records Management system design TPR will ensure that the design of its Document and Records Management systems and processes enable it to comply with its Document and Records Management Policy statement efficiently and support its business.

2 TPR s Document and Records Management systems and processes will ensure that Records held electronically are safeguarded from alteration, misinterpretation or loss; Any newly developed Document and Records Management systems will adopt the Government Metadata Framework (e-GMF) and Government Metadata Standard (e-GMS) and will enable sufficient metadata to be retained to enable logical retrieval of recorded information; TPR s Document and Records Management systems will be monitored using this Policy as a bench-mark; TPR will operate a structured filing system, with all electronic TPR business-related documents (including e-mails) being stored in TPR s EDRM system (DISC) by teams using that system, and appropriate systems in place for teams not using it and for applications not supported by it.

3 Saving and record declaration Documents must be saved to DISC with the following limited exceptions: a) those that have been produced using applications not supported by DISC, (DISC supports the main applications, such as Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Project, Visio and Adobe) b) those that are used as databases and are updated more than once a week c) documents created by Human Resources that are stored on folders organised by individual staff name d) documents created by Finance in the course of managing TPR's finances Document AND Records Management Policy Page 2 of 3 Documents meeting TPR specified criteria will be declared as Records , with their content locked and authenticated, when electronic.

4 Paper documents, that can't be held onto electronically, will be placed on a paper file referenced from TPR's EDRM system, DISC TPR's naming convention will be followed The i:/drive will not be used to store documents related to TPR business Documents received under one cover, when appropriate will scanned as one Document Structure of documents and Records Records will be maintained in a logically-designed TPR-wide fileplan, consisting of hierarchical classes, which will be based on TPR functions at the top two levels, and with documents and Records only able to be held in folders at the lowest level; Changes will only be made to the fileplan with the approval of TPR s Records manager.

5 A separate file for the storage of Records (electronic, physical or both) will be created for each case or topic, and annual files will be opened for those topics which could potentially continue indefinitely; All Records on a specific case or topic will be grouped together by the use of common metadata and their place in the fileplan; Classes of the fileplan, folders, documents and Records will be given clear and descriptive titles that reflect their contents and follow a TPR-wide naming convention; Paper files The location of paper files will be tracked (for teams using DISC, this will be done alongside the metadata for their electronic counterpart); The contents of any one team s paper files will be organised in an order agreed by the team, date order; Papers will be tagged together inside the file; Items that can t be tagged will be held in an envelope and tagged inside the file, with a description of the contents on the outside; Important Records held on paper will be indexed (using DISC, for teams using that system).

6 File closure Files (electronic and physical) will be closed and TPR's retention Policy applied when foreseeable action has been completed; Closed paper files will be stored off-site in a storage facility that complies with relevant standards, including BS5454 (Storage and Exhibition of Archived Documents); Document AND Records Management Policy Page 3 of 3 Closed files retrieved from off-site storage will be returned once they are no longer needed regularly for reference; Retention and disposal TPR will ensure that Records remain accessible and usable for as long as they are needed; Records will be disposed of as part of a managed destruction process in accordance with agreed retention periods; Procedures will prevent the accidental or deliberate loss of Records outside a managed destruction process; The periods shown on the retention schedules will run from the date of the last record or action recorded on the file; TPR s retention schedule will cover all data, documents and Records .

7 Version control Version control will be used to provide an audit trail of the versions of documents and Records ; Reviewing this Policy This Policy will be reviewed by TPR's Records manager as required and at least every three years to ensure its relevance.