Records Management FAQs and Information
3. The importance of Records Management.
4. Who is responsible for Records Management?
5. Records Management and Freedom of Information Act.
6. Records Management and Data Protection.
7. The Record Retention Schedule
10. How Records Management can help you.
They are the outputs that record each and every business and administrative transaction of an institution and details about its students, members of staff and all its external contacts. The activities of the University are documented predominantly by the records it produces. They also form the University's collective memory that must be available beyond the memory or working life of any single member of staff.
Records management is a process for the systematic management of all records and the information or data that they contain. It incorporates the practice of identifying, classifying, providing access to archiving, and sometimes the controlled destruction of records.
The record’s life-cycle is one of the key concepts in Records Management. Information has a series of phases from creation to final disposition, either through a controlled destruction process or being added to the long-term or permanent record (the archive) of the University:
3. Why is Records Management important?
Information is one of the most important corporate resources the University has. The implementation of good Records Management practices benefits the University in a number of ways:
- Improves the conduct of business in an orderly, efficient and accountable manner.
- Ensures the University is compliant with statutory obligations and standards, ensures that it adheres to professional and ethical responsibilities and minimises litigation risks鈥� we are required to produce certain types of record and retain them for a certain length of time. Failure to retain certain records and destroy others can make the University liable to litigation.
- Supports and documents policy and managerial decision-making.
- Facilitates the effective performance of functions and activities throughout the University.
- Provides evidence of and establishes the University’s business, and cultural activities.
- Preserves the corporate memory for the University and prevents loss of information.
- Increases productivity and reduced time spent searching for needed documents 鈥� records management usually leads to more effective filing and indexing methods, making records easier and quicker to find.
- Facilitates efficient and effective use of physical and server space.
4. Who is responsible for Records Management?
All University staff who use records in their work have some records management responsibility. This includes the need to adopt good practice in creating and maintaining records.
The Head of 聽Governance and聽Compliance has overall responsibility for the management of records.
5. Records Management and Freedom of Information Act.
Certain records must be retained for a specific length of time to comply with legislation.
The University recognises its corporate responsibility under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 to provide for a general right of access to information held. The Freedom of Information Act establishes two related rights:
- The right to be told whether information exists, and
- The right to receive the informati