A Records Management Plan sets out in detail an authority’s arrangements for managing its public records.
Under the Public Records (Scotland) Act (PRSA), named public authorities must submit a Records Management Plan.
We assess each plan. If the plan meets the criteria set out in the Act, the Keeper of the Records of Scotland will agree it.
Our Chief Executive holds the title of Keeper.
Resources
The Keeper develops and publishes:
You can also watch our short video on YouTube explaining the requirements of PRSA.
The assessment process
- We engage with a public authority to inform them of obligations under the Act, and timelines for submission of a plan.
- The Keeper formally invites the authority to submit a plan
- The Keeper allows an opportunity for the authority to seek guidance from PRSA team regarding the submission of their plan.
- An authority submits a records management plan for the Keeper’s consideration.
- We assess the plan.
- We issue an interim report to the authority for with our initial findings.
- Authority responds to our interim report.
- Assessment report sent to authority and published on National Records of Scotland website.
The Keeper will also encourage the authority to publish the agreed plan or a redacted version on their own website.
The Keeper reports to Scottish Ministers annually on assessed plans.
Invitation timetable
We publish a timetable of invitations for the next 6 months.
Once a plan has been agreed, the Keeper must wait 5 years to issue a new invitation.
We can invite them sooner if we learn that an authority is not following the arrangements in their agreed plan.
Plans which are not agreed
The Keeper can return a plan without agreement. This can happen if the Keeper considers that the plan does not set out proper arrangements for the management of the authority’s public records.
The Keeper must:
- consult with the authority while this step is being considered
- consider any further representations made by the authority
- explain their reasons for considering returning a plan
The Keeper may suggest improvements that would, if implemented, allow a plan to be agreed.
If the Keeper decides to return a plan, the authority must then submit a new plan.
Voluntary resubmission of Revised Plan
Authorities can resubmit a revisited plan for agreement at any time. If you're looking to do this, contact us.
Assessment reports
We publish a report on each records management plan.
Assessment reports published after December 2024 can be found in the Publications section.
Find previous assessment reports on the NRS web archive.
PRSA submissions and Freedom of Information
We are subject to freedom of information legislation. We’ll disclose information submitted to us by public authorities under PRSA, unless a statutory exemption applies.
We will consult a public authority when their records management arrangements are the focus of a request. We do this to help determine whether an exemption applies to the information.
We will not consult them if doing so is unnecessary or disproportionate.
Raising a complaint
Check if an authority you have concerns about is subject to PRSA on the schedule.
The Keeper’s agrees plans on the condition that the authority follows and implements the plan.
The Keeper has power to carry out a records management review of:
- a group of authorities
- an individual authority
You can contact us to:
PRSA submissions and Freedom of Information
We are subject to freedom of information legislation. We’ll disclose information submitted to us by public authorities under PRSA, unless a statutory exemption applies.
We will consult a public authority when their records management arrangements are the focus of a request. We do this to help determine whether an exemption applies to the information. We will not consult them if doing so is unnecessary or disproportionate.
Raising a complaint
Check if an authority you have concerns about is subject to PRSA on the schedule.
The Keeper’s agrees plans on the condition that the authority follows and implements the plan.
The Keeper has power to carry out a records management review of:
- a group of authorities
- an individual authority
You can contact us to:
