Electronic records only? - Public forum - Planning Advisory Service (PAS)
Open group
|
Started - July 2012
|
Last activity - Today
Electronic records only?
I was hoping other authorities could share their practices - Do any authorities only keep electronic records now? (excepting any current ongoing applications) If so, who in the authority made the decision and can you reference any guidance or legislation you referred to? My interpretation is that we need to keep records - particularly of applications, plans and decision notices - but not necessarily in any particular format. Any experiences welcomed! Chris Roberts Business Analyst and Project Manager Winchester City Council croberts@winchester.gov.uk
We no longer keep paper case files after a permission has been issued. We keep the paper files for refusals until the period for appeal has expired. We also tend to keep the paper files for some major applications for a while. The decision to go fully electronic was made by the Head of Development management.
At stroud we no longer keep paper copies of anything. We shread neighbour comments as soon as scanned (ok next day to ensure the back up ran) Officers only get copies of drawings and long verbose reports. We consider the electronic file as the true file, and the officer copy as merely that. You must not try to maintain two authoritive copies as this is a mine field for the ombudsman and Judicial Review. Also, we make ALL paperwork available on the web, unless it is confidential (like viability stuff). The public appreciate this, and we have cut footfall to our customer service centre by 90%. It also means we can be flexible on home working as case officers can see the whole file from any internet ready device... Happy to share our learning and experiance Phill
Thanks for the replies so far - we do currently operate a full DMS and have been publishing online for several years. Its the additional duplication of keeping paper records (and its additional costs) that Im trying to navigate. It appears different authorities have different interpretations of the guidance surrounding this. My view is that, as there is such different interpretation, that in itself confirms that there is no set requirement?!