Management of Information Following Administrative Change

The basic principle to remember with any administrative change is that, for the most part, records remain with the originating Organisation.  
To assist with continuity of the function/s:

1. Copies of records of current activities relating to the function/s being transferred can be provided to the Organisation that will be continuing the work.
2. Alternatively, only the current and active records relevant to that function can be transferred.  
3. Non-current or legacy records relating to the function may be loaned to the receiving Organisation for a specified period of time.
4. Loaned records must ultimately be returned to the originating Organisation; and
5. Formal arrangements regarding the temporary custody of records and future access to legacy records should be established.

Where records of the function are maintained in electronic systems, consideration must be given to the applications, systems and media used to capture, store and manage those records.  If there is little or no compatibility between the electronic systems of the respective agencies, transfer could be complicated.

1. Identify all records relating to the function, regardless of format, currency or storage location.  
2. Close all records relating to the function.  Electronic records should be closed and access restricted to “read only” to prevent any alteration to existing records.
3. Prior to transfer, conduct a disposal program on those records legally able to be destroyed or identified for transfer to the State Archives Collection. 
4. Consult with the Organisation receiving the function and provide a list of all records held relating to the function.
5. Where appropriate, provide copies of current records to enable the receiving Organisation to continue the function/s.
6. Where appropriate, provide the current and active records only, to the receiving Organisation. 
7. Formalise arrangements for other, non-current or legacy records to be loaned to the receiving Organisation for a specified period of time.  
8. Formalise arrangements for the receiving Organisation to access legacy records relating to the function after return of the loaned records.
9. Formalise arrangements for the relinquishing Organisation to gain access to transferred records for legal or functional purposes going forward.
10. Maintain a register of copied records; transferred records; and records loaned to the receiving Organisation.
11. Ensure the transfer of records is identified in the Retention and Disposal Schedule.
12. Ensure the transfer of records is identified in the Recordkeeping Plan.
13. Send a register of transferred records to the State Records Office.

NB: Contact the State Records Office if records and data are being relinquished to a different tier of government or to another State or Territory jurisdiction.
 

1. Consult with the Organisation relinquishing the function and negotiate the type and format of records required to continue the function.  
2. Negotiate the format of, and conditions for, those records to be transferred – copies; current and active; short term loan; hard copy; digital etc.
3. Acquire a register of records to be transferred or loaned. 
4. On transfer, check copied; transferred or loaned records for completeness against registers supplied by the relinquishing Organisation.
5. Copies of current and active records of the function/s received from the relinquishing Organisation should be incorporated into the receiving Organisation’s recordkeeping system.
6. Transferred Hard Copy Records must be closed and maintained as though they were still records of the relinquishing Organisation.  
   NB:  No attempt should be made to remove file covers, renumber, change file titles or in any way destroy the identity of those records.
7. Transferred Electronic / Digital Records should be maintained as read only until migration into the receiving Organisation’s systems, without loss of data, is achieved.  
8. Transferred Records must be managed in accordance with the relinquishing Organisation’s Recordkeeping Plan, until the receiving Organisation’s Plan is amended accordingly.
9.  New records created and received in the course of continuing the function must be cross referenced to the transferred records for completeness.
10. New records created and received in the course of continuing the function should be registered and classified in accordance with the receiving Organisation’s Recordkeeping Plan.  
11. All records (except loaned records) relating to the function must be incorporated into the Organisation’s records Retention and Disposal Schedule.
12. Records loaned to the receiving Organisation for the purpose of continuing the function must not be incorporated into the recordkeeping system.  

1. All records (administrative and functional) relating to the business activities of the Organisation to be abolished must be transferred to the government Organisation that is absorbing the functions and activities – please follow steps above.
2. Should the business activity along with the Organisation be abolished, all records (administrative and functional) must be transferred to the central government Organisation designated to accept responsibility for those records.  
   NB: if there is no continuing government Organisation contact the State Records Office for advice.
3. All records from the abolished Organisation must be closed.  Electronic records should be closed, and access restricted to “read only” to prevent any alteration to existing records.
4. No attempt should be made to remove file covers, renumber, change file titles or in any way destroy the identity of those records.
5. All records must be managed and disposed of in accordance with the former Organisation’s Recordkeeping Plan until they can be legally destroyed or lodged with the State Archives Collection.
6. Notify the Director State Records of the abolition of the Organisation and arrangements for the government records, as per section 8 of the State Records Act 2000.

As websites are considered a record documenting the interaction between a government Organisation and the Western Australian public, a snapshot of the old and new sites should be taken and maintained as a permanent record.