MAKING, MANAGING AND KEEPING PUBLIC RECORDS

Queensland State Archives

A guide for CEOs
You are responsible for your public authority making and keeping complete and reliable records of its activities and having regard to any policies, standards, and
guidelines made by the State Archivist.

• Evidence of business decisions

• Disposal includes destroying,
and activities must be created
• Access to records needs to be transferring, selling, donating,
and managed.
managed and secured if damaging, abandoning, or
• Records created must be necessary. amending records.
complete and reliable.
• Records need to be accessible, • Disposal must be documented.
• Records can be in any format, discoverable and usable. • If records are lost or damaged
including emails, text messages
and social media.
Create Disposal you need to notify QSA.

• Disposal must be authorised by

• Records are kept for their
the State Archivist and endorsed
authorised minimum retention
by the agency CEO.
period.
• Retention and disposal schedules
• Ensure the safe custody and
tell you which records you can
preservation of records.
destroy and when and which
• Records are safeguarded from ones can be transferred to QSA.
Access
obsolescence, degradation,

Keep damage, loss, and deterioration.

• Schedules are only used by the
agency or sector it’s issued to Transfer
• Records remain inviolate. unless otherwise permitted.

• Transfer includes transferring

records to another agency or
• Recordkeeping, recordkeeping organisation or transferring
• Records must only be destroyed
processes, systems and records to QSA.
using a schedule that is current at
technology are actively monitored
and reviewed.
the time of destruction. • Only archival value records are
• You can set up a standing transferred to QSA unless
• Recordkeeping is regularly otherwise arranged.
endorsement for the destruction
monitored against QSA’s
• Placing a restriction on access to
Destruction
of specific records.
recordkeeping standards.
Monitor some records transferred to QSA
may be necessary.