Recommendation DM-23: Retain documents in digitised form
From The Report of the Daniel Morgan Independent Panel, published 15 June 2021.
Recommendation
It is recommended that, whenever a major incident remains under investigation or inquiry, documents should be retained in digitised form, subject to appropriate security measures and made available to those who subsequently and justifiably require access to them.
In brief (written by this site)
The Home Office stated in June 2023 that a new Code of Practice and complementary guidance on archiving records would advise police forces on managing appropriate records to prevent obsolescence and preserving those in the public interest (Home Office response, Jun 2023). The department added that chief officers should ensure their forces maintain systems and processes to identify records meeting the criteria for permanent preservation (Home Office response, Jun 2023). The record holds no update since the department's response of June 2023 (Home Office response, Jun 2023).
Sources
AI-generated summary of the record on this page, checked by a second model and automatic checks, 26 Sep 2026. The record below is the sources' own words.
About this summary
This recommendation applies across many organisations. The record reflects central policy activity; adoption in individual organisations may vary.
Government response
2.4.4. The new Code of Practice, together with a new, complementary APP on ‘Archiving of records in the public interest’, will set guidance for preserving records where there is a public interest, as well as setting out advice on how appropriate types of records should be managed to prevent obsolescence. Certain police records are archived for their historical value and enduring public interest, for example those involved in major investigations such as a murder. Chief officers should ensure their force has systems and processes in place to identify records that meet the criteria for permanent preservation.
How this response relates to the recommendation
Site note: The response is arranged by theme and does not name this recommendation. This is paragraph 2.4.4, in its section "Information management", given once; the same words are recorded on recommendations 21 and 23.
Delivery
No statement on delivery from Home Office has been found in the sources searched (last checked 30 January 2026). This is separate from the response above.
Source
Responsible bodies
Themes and tags
Who has spoken
- Home Office
Response