Karin
Your records management policy should make clear the point that records are
media independent and so emails can be a record in the same way as paper
correspondance. Therefore, the usual procedures which you apply to your
records will also appy to such emails - the problem will come in training
individuals to sort the wheat from the chaff!
Locating emails when required under dp/foi will be made easier if they are
filed as per a departmental filing system that has been agreed and properly
implemented - we tend to use email as a file store rather than the
communication program it was designed to be.
You may want to consider formualting an email policy to deal with this
issue, since although you may have a policy on the acceptable use of email
i.e the items that can and cant be sent by email - that may not cover all
the management issues associated with email as its currently used.
Hope this helps!
Paula J Smith
Records Manager
Cheshire County Council
01244 60 2592
-----Original Message-----
From: Bleasdale Karin [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: 09 January 2004 12:56
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Emails
Can anyone help me with the following queries that have come from two of my
colleagues. My thoughts are that these emails should form part of a
structured file therefore not really being a problem. Any thoughts?
Are retrieving emails considered to be of a disproportionate effort.
The answer to this will also help FOI - as it can go in our Publication
Scheme....
Do we need a council policy on record retention that advises
managers and staff on how long records must be kept.
Subject Access requests and disproportionate effort - I agree that
this can be used but all the more reason to have a clear policy that states
upfront how long we strive to keep information for in permanent/easily
available form, and that any requests for information from an earlier period
must be judged on a case by case basis, taking required effort into account.
Another point to consider is how we would locate emails, both for
Data Protection and Freedom of Information purposes. The former would
hopefully be easier to locate than the latter. And who would do this?
Records Management Officer SSD
LB Hammersmith & Fulham
Tel: 020 8753 5118
Fax: 020 8753 5103
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