Qld Government issues a Records Disposal Freeze Notification

Monday, June 11, 2018 10:00 AM

Qld Government issues a Records Disposal Freeze Notification

 

Archives authorities throughout Australia have recently issued a disposal freeze for �records that are relevant to, or may become relevant to, an allegation of child sexual abuse'.

This disposal freeze has been issued in response to the recommendations contained in the Final Report of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. The Royal Commission found that �inadequate records and record keeping have contributed to delays in or failures to identify and respond to risks and incidents of child sexual abuse and have exacerbated distress and trauma for many survivors�.

What does this mean for you as a custodian of these records?

Whilst the freeze officially applies to public authorities and service providers who keep or manage records on behalf of their agency, not-for-profit and private sectors should still adhere to this freeze to ensure the intent is maintained for all survivors.  

Some tips for facilitating the disposal freeze include:

- Education and awareness � make sure your key business areas are aware of this disposal freeze and provide them with tools to ensure the records are not destroyed.

- Encourage users to capture records in the eDRMS.

- Ensure your eDRMS is set up to allow this hold to be applied to relevant records (can you apply it to individual documents or only folders?)

- Make sure your searches include document content.

- Are these records still active and subject to change? Consider that your hold may render these unchangeable � think about your processes to support application of the hold once finalised.

- Contact your public records authority for more information on what you need to provide them to show your compliance with this disposal freeze.

Further details on the official announcement can be found here on the Qld Government website

Should you wish to discuss any aspect of this freeze and how it may apply to your organisation, or require any further information or support, please feel free to contact WyldLynx today on support@wyldlynx.com.au!