Dear Nick

Thanks for this statement on Ruskin from TNA.  I think it's clear from the response to my FoI request (see http://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/records_management) that the College has not managed its records in line with the code of practice and has badly misjudged what we might call its "archival stakeholders".  For those following or catching up with the saga, there's a round-up of links at http://msarahwickham.wordpress.com/2012/11/04/ruskin-round-up/ and other personal thoughts on the blog.

The whole episode has raised some major issues for the profession, and I would be interested to hear from the Archives & Records Association and the IRMS, as well as JISC, whether any similar public statements are being made.

Best wishes

Sarah
posting in my personal capacity...

M Sarah Wickham, MA, MA, Registered Archivist & Records Manager
Project Director, Heritage @ Huddersfield 
University of Huddersfield

+44 (0)1484 473 935
Web: http://library.hud.ac.uk/heritage/
LinkedIn: http://uk.linkedin.com/in/msarahwickham 
Twitter @msarahwickham

Heritage@Huddersfield – an exciting project to transform Archives & Special Collections
Find out more http://library.hud.ac.uk/heritage/

On Thu, 22 Nov 2012 12:59:38 +0000, Kingsley, Nick <<a href="/cgi-bin/wa-jisc.exe?LOGON=A3%3Dind1211%26L%3DARCHIVES-NRA%26E%3Dquoted-printable%26P%3D1574648%26B%3D--part-GwlGD1cAskMAMAt8Y6UHfArIvZhUfa6jO0d7oY3gQAgFA%26T%3Dtext%252Fhtml%3B%2520charset%3DUTF-8%26pending%3D" target="_parent" >[log in to unmask]</a>> wrote:

>Colleagues,



We have been liaising recently with Ruskin College with regard to the management of their student records.  Our view is that it would have been acceptable to retain these records indefinitely for historical purposes by reference to section 33<http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1998/29/section/33> and Schedule 8 Part IV<http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1998/29/schedule/8> to the Data Protection Act 1998 and SI 2000 No 417 paragraph 9<http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2000/417/made>. It is critical that records are managed in line with the code of practice<http://www.justice.gov.uk/downloads/information-access-rights/foi/foi-section-46-code-of-practice.pdf> issued under section 46 of the Freedom of Information Act: Sections 10, 11 and 12 give clear guidelines on the selection of records for retention or destruction as well as on storage and preservation and security.



There has also been public concern about the fate of archival collections deposited with Ruskin College.  Our discussions with Ruskin have confirmed that while some collections have been retained by the college most have been transferred to other archival institutions; none have been destroyed.  When we have received complete information from the college about relocations, we will update relevant entries on the National Register of Archives<http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/nra/default.asp>.



The National Archives has no statutory powers in this space, because Ruskin College is not subject to the Public Records Act, but we do have a leadership role for the archives sector.  We believe that by issuing guidance and offering advice to holding institutions, and encouraging the cataloguing of collections, we can help to ensure that material with historical value survives and remains accessible.





Nicholas Kingsley | Head of Archives Sector Development & Secretary of the Historical Manuscripts Commission

The National Archives | Kew | Richmond | Surrey TW9 4DU | 0208 392 5369: http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/





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