The following has been reproduced from Legal Topic Note 38, issued by NALC in
September 1988.
LOCAL
COUNCIL DOCUMENTS AND RECORDS
Introduction
Information about local
council documentation is contained in Chapter 12 of ‘Local Council
Administration’. This note is
intended to update and supplement that information, with particular reference
to the length of time documents should be retained by local councils.
Financial Returns
The section of page 78 of
‘Local Council Administration’ headed ‘Financial Returns’ is no longer
relevant. Local councils are not
now required to make financial returns to the Secretary of State, following
the enactment of the Local Government Finance Act 1982.
Retention of Documents
At the bottom of the page
there is an Annex indicating the appropriate retention periods for audit
purposes and the reasons for retention.
Other documents not mentioned in the Annex and not
covered in Chapter 12 of ‘Local Council Administration’ may be treated as
follows:
Planning Papers
(a)
Where planning permission is granted, the planning application, any
plans and the decision letter should normally be retained until the
development has been completed so that, if required, the council can check
that the development proceeds in accordance with the terms and conditions of
the permission. Where planning
permission is granted on appeal, a copy of the appeal decision should also be
retained likewise. It may
sometimes be sensible to retain an appeal decision indefinitely because of the
wider implications (e.g. the decision may set a precedent for other
developments in the locality).
(b)
Where planning permission is refused, the papers should be retained
until the period which an appeal can be made has expired.
If an appeal is made, and dismissed, the decision letter may, as (a)
above, be worth retaining against further applications retaining to the same
site.
(c)
Where a substantial number of planning applications come before the
council, it may well be advisable to keep a card index, or similar system of
record.
(d)
Copies of Structure Plans, Local Plans and similar documents should be
retained as long as they are in force.
Information
from Other Bodies (e.g. circulars etc. from County Associations, NALC and
other bodies to numerous to mention)
Such
information should be retained as long as it is useful and relevant.
Magazines and Journals
The
Local Council Review is worth keeping for at least 5 years: other regular
publications received may merit similar treatment.
Correspondence
If
related to audit matters, correspondence should be kept for the appropriate
period specified in the Annex hereto. In
planning matters, correspondence should be retained for the same period as
suggested for other planning papers. For
other correspondence, no firm guidelines can be laid down (but see the next
paragraph).
It
is good practice, and probably essential for larger councils, to review the
council’s documentation at least annually.
Anything that is no longer of use or value can be destroyed, but if a
council is in doubt on this point it should seek advice from the County
Association and retain the document(s) until that advice has been received.
Documents of historical importance, if not retained by the council,
should be offered first to the county record office.
The county archivist there will always be willing to advise of which
records should be permanently preserved.
Retention of Documents required for the Audit
of Parish Councils
