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Summary of What's New
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Announcing increase to regulated fees and charges governed by Regulation. Increase to regulated fees and charges |
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To assist researchers, State Records has released a new Research Advice entitled Researching the History of Your House. Researching the History of Your House |
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Information on some recent transfers into State Records custody. Recent Transfers of Records to Archival Custody |
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State Records current range of recordkeeping information sheets are now accessible from one location on our website. Recordkeeping Information Sheets |
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Principles and associated obligations agencies, bound by the State Records Act, 1997, must consider to ensure that the records of agencies are adequately managed throughout the contracting process. Contracting and Official Records Guideline |
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State Records has reviewed and updated the Intention to Destroy Records Report form. Request for Approval to Destroy Temporary Records |
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Advice that State Records has a new postal address. Change of State Records Postal Address |
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Disposal SchedulesOn This Page
DisposalDisposal is the process by which official records of agencies are either destroyed, retained or transferred between agencies. The State Records Act, 1997 defines disposal in the following manner:
The disposal process for official records also determines whether the records are of permanent value or temporary value. Permanent value records are to be transferred to State Records of South Australia to form part of the South Australian Archival Collection maintained by State Records. Temporary value records are either retained by an agency on its own site or transferred to an Approve Storage Provider nominated by State Records. Sections 23 and 24 of the Act allow for the disposal of official records in accordance with determinations made by the Manager [Director] of State Records. '........... (2) If an agency requests the Manager to make a determination as to the disposal of official records, the Manager must, as soon as practicable -
(3) A determination or approval for the purposes of this section may be a general determination or approval relating to classes of official records. (4) If there is a dispute as to a determination under this section, the Minister may, on application, determine the matter. 24. (1) If the Manager determines, with the approval of the Council, that an official record in the custody of State Records is not worthy of preservation, the Manager may dispose of the record. (2) A determination or approval for the purposes of this section may be a general determination or approval relating to classes of official records. The Manager must, before disposing of a record under subsection (1), obtain the consent of the agency responsible for the record and consult with any other person who has, in the opinion of the Manager, a proper interest in the record. A determination from the Director takes the form of either an Operational Records Disposal Schedule (RDS), a General Disposal Schedule (GDS), or a Transfer of Ownership and Custody Schedule (TOCS). A Disposal Schedule is a systematic listing of records, created by an organisation or agency, which plans the life of these records from the time of their creation to their disposal. It identifies business activities, classes of records (which result from each activity) and specifies retention periods and disposal action. It ensures that in-active records are disposed of efficiently and effectively in accordance with legislative, evidential, financial, social and historical requirements. Further information on disposal can be found in Disposal of Official Records. Related Information:
When to Use a GDS or an RDSState Records has developed a flowchart to assist Agencies and Authorities understand when to use a General Disposal Schedule (GDS) and when to use an Operational Records Disposal Schedule (RDS). The flowchart clearly identifies which Disposal Schedule to use. Clicking on many of the boxes in the flowchart will produce a popup window with help information to further assist you.
Pre-1901 RecordsGovernment agencies, both state and local, need to be aware that all pre-1901 official records are to be retained permanently. This decision was approved as a general disposal determination by the State Records Council at its meeting of 19 February 2008. State Records has updated the records disposal schedule (RDS) template used by agencies to include a pre-1901 records statement as standard text. Contact our Records Management Services team to obtain the amended RDS template. Agencies that still hold pre-1901 records need to contact our Collection Management Services team to discuss the transfer of these to the custody of State Records. General Disposal Schedules will be progressively updated to include a pre-1901 records statement in the Introduction section. Related Information:
Native Title and the Separation of FamiliesThe Separation of Families State Records endorses Bringing them Home: the Report of the National Inquiry into the Separation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children from their Families. State Records will not authorise the destruction of records that are of relevance to re-establishing family links. Native Title Government agencies in South Australia have a crucial role to play in relation to Native Title claims. As a party to Native Title claims, as well as holding the largest information source for indigenous claimants, it is vital that government agencies properly manage records relevant to Native Title claims. Agencies must ensure that they are taking measures to retain those records that may help to support or defend a claim, as destruction of such records may expose their agency, and the government in general, to large financial and legal penalties. To assist agencies to meet their responsibilities when they are attempting to dispose of official records, State Records, in consultation with the Crown Solicitor's Office, has produced a guideline that outlines the impact of these two issues on disposal. State Records, in consultation with the Crown Solicitor's Office, has also produced a guideline that assists agencies in Identifying Documents Relevant to Native Title. This document outlines the impact of Native Title and Separation of Families / Bringing them Home on disposal of official records.
General Disposal ScheduleGeneral Disposal Schedules (GDS) cover functions common to a number of agencies. A GDS can be used to sentence those records that provide evidence of generic functions and activities carried out by most agencies. For example, personnel, financial management, strategic management, occupational health and safety, etc. The State Records Council has approved General Disposal Schedules for:
The General Disposal Schedules for the Government of South Australia are provided for viewing and downloading below. If you wish to purchase the hard copy of these disposal schedules please visit Publications Related to Records Management. General Disposal Schedules are works of copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act, 1968, no part may be reproduced by any process without the prior written permission of State Records. The terms in a GDS may include terms and relationships taken from the Keyword AAA: A Thesaurus of General Terms (© State Records Authority of New South Wales, 1995 and 1998), and are reproduced under a licence agreement between the Government of South Australia and the State Records Authority of New South Wales. Related Information:
General Disposal Schedules Upload FormatsA number of State Records customers have asked how they may load disposal information into their Electronic Document and Records Management Systems (EDRMS) from a new General Disposal Schedule when it is released by State Records. It is not possible for State Records to release and support electronic versions of our General Disposal Schedules targeted at the wide variety of EDRMS available. However, State Records is able to offer, only from this Internet site, a generic 'upload' version of certain Disposal Schedules - subject to a small number of conditions. These conditions are that State Records:
Based upon these conditions, the customer may download these files from the web links below. To clarify any of the details above, the customer should contact Services for Government - Records Management Consultancy.
General Disposal Schedule No.15General Disposal Schedule No.15 (GDS 15), 7th edition, applies to general administrative records created and maintained by State Government Agencies of South Australia. GDS 15 7th edition was approved by the State Records Council of South Australia on 14 November 2006 for a period of 5 years. GDS 15 is a function based Disposal Schedule based on the functions and activities common to most Agencies e.g. Personnel, Information Management, Financial Management etc. This functional approach is in line with the Australian Standard for Records Management - AS ISO 15489 2002. GDS 15 6th edition has been superseded by the 7th edition and can no longer be used for sentencing. GDS 15 7th edition is available for download as two documents:
Please note due to formatting issues with converting GDS 15 7th edition into a PDF document, there may be some page number discrepancies within the GDS 15 (7th edition) index. Using the item number in the index for location/reference purposes will ensure that the correct page number is found. State Records has released a comparison table of GDS 15 7th edition and the preceding edition (GDS 15 - Notification of Changes). The General Disposal Schedule 15 applies to all general administrative records of State Government agencies. Related Information:
General Disposal Schedule No.15 - Upload FormatState Records is able to offer, only from this Internet site, a generic 'upload' version of GDS 15 7th edition - subject to the small number of conditions outlined above. The upload file is a spreadsheet composed of the following 8 columns extracted from the full GDS 15 Schedule:
The Disposal Types have been categorised to adhere to the full GDS 15 Schedule, but with some minor deviations:
Once the customer has noted these entries (CHECKRDS and REVIEW), they may change all of these entries in the EXCEL spreadsheet to TEMPORARY. This is a generic upload file in Excel 2000 for Windows for loading disposal schedules into an ERMS.
General Disposal Schedule No.16General Disposal Schedule No.16 (GDS 16) provides the guidelines for identifying documents which may be relevant to Native Title Claims. GDS 16 was approved by the State Records Council of South Australia on February 9th, 1999. The guidelines in GDS 16 should be used in conjunction with GDS 15 or GDS 20 and must be taken into consideration before any destruction of South Australian Government records takes place. General Disposal Schedule No.16 contains the guidelines for identifying documents which may be relevant to Native Title Claims. The guidelines must be taken into consideration before any destruction of State Government records takes place. Related Information:
General Disposal Schedule No.18General Disposal Schedule No.18 (GDS 18) applies to all operational records created or received by any Ministerial Offices in South Australia. GDS 18 Version 3 was approved by the State Records Council on 12 December 2006 and is effective until 30 June 2011 (a period of five years). GDS 18 is a functional-based Schedule, meaning the schedule is based on function or activity within a function, within related organisations. The functions in use are:
GDS 18 is available for download below. Additionally, State Records has produced a guideline to assist with the usage of GDS 18 - Guideline to Usage of GDS 18. The 3rd edition supersedes the 2nd edition of GDS 18, which can no longer be used for sentencing. This document contains the introduction and schedule to GDS 18, which covers disposal of records collected by ministers of the South Australian parliament. Related Information:
General Disposal Schedule No.20General Disposal Schedule No.20 (GDS 20), version 3, applies to all records, irrespective of format or media, created or received by any Local Government Authorities in South Australia. GDS 20 was approved by the State Records Council to be effective from 11th March 2003 for a period of 5 years. Please note this date has been extended to 31 December 2009 while a review of GDS 20 version 3 is undertaken by a working group. GDS 20 has been separated into three documents for ease of downloading.
Changes to the Schedule have been itemised in the GDS 20 - Notification of Changes available below. This is the general disposal schedule for local authorities in South Australia - GDS20. This section includes the Introduction and Table of Contents. Related Information:
General Disposal Schedule No.20 - Upload FormatState Records is able to offer, only from this Internet site, a generic 'upload' version of GDS 20 - subject to the small number of conditions outlined above. The upload file is a spreadsheet composed of the following 8 columns extracted from the full GDS 20 Schedule:
A generic upload file for loading GDS 20 disposal information into an EDRMS. Related Information:
General Disposal Schedule No.21The State Records Act, 1997 provides for the preservation and management of official records. General Disposal Schedule No 21 (GDS 21) is issued as a determination under Section 23 of the Act. Section 23 of the State Records Act, 1997 states that no official record may be disposed of without the approval of the State Records Council. GDS 21 has been developed by State Records to provide state government agencies and local government authorities with the means of disposing of source records and their digitised counterparts after the source records have been rendered into digital format by the process of scanning and capturing into an electronic document and records management system (EDRMS). The State Records Council approved GDS 21 version 1 on 12 April 2005. GDS 21 version 2 is effective from 14 February 2006 to 31 December 2009 unless revoked earlier. Amendments approved by the State Records Council may be issued during this period. GDS 21 applies to official records made or received by all state government agencies and local government authorities in South Australia.
GDS21 is for the disposal and management of source documents and digitised records after digitisation. Related Information:
General Disposal Schedule No.23GDS 23 applies to operational records commonly created or received by all Natural Resources Management (NRM) Boards in South Australia. For the purposes of GDS 23 an NRM Board includes the actual Board, the General Manager and supporting staff, NRM Groups and any predecessor agencies. For records that are of a general administrative or financial nature, NRM Boards should refer to General Disposal Schedule No. 15 for State Government Agencies. Where appropriate, cross-references to GDS 15 (as amended) are set out in GDS 23. GDS 23 was approved by the State Records Council on 14 October 2008 and is effective until 30 June 2019. GDS 23 applies to operational records commonly created or received by all Natural Resources Management (NRM) Boards in South Australia. Related Information:
General Disposal Schedule No.23 - Upload FormatState Records is able to offer, only from this Internet site, a generic 'upload' version of GDS 23 - subject to the small number of conditions outlined above. The upload file is a spreadsheet composed of the following 8 columns extracted from the full GDS 23 Schedule:
The Disposal Types have been categorised to adhere to the full GDS 23 Schedule, but with some minor deviations:
Once the customer has noted these entries (REVIEW), they may change all of these entries in the EXCEL spreadsheet to TEMPORARY. A generic upload file in Excel 2000 for Windows for loading disposal schedules into an ERMS.
Operational Records Disposal ScheduleAn Operational Records Disposal Schedule (RDS) is used to sentence those official records relating to functions and activities specific to your agency. Some examples are:
An RDS can be developed by appropriately trained and experienced agency staff or by an independent records management consultant. Developing an RDS, and getting it approved, is made up of a number of steps. Preparing and Registering an RDS An RDS requires a considerable amount of preparation. To assist in this process, State Records has developed a Microsoft WORD template for RDS. For a copy of the template please contact Records Management Enquiries. An RDS number is required to be obtained from State Records prior to the RDS being developed. Please email Records Management with details of the RDS to be produced. An RDS number will then be forwarded for inclusion in the template. External Stakeholder / Historian Consultation Both State Records and the State Records Council consider consultation with appropriate external stakeholders to be an important phase of the preparation of an RDS. This assists in identifying those records that have an enduring nature beyond the current business needs of the agency developing the RDS. Such records are considered of permanent value to the State of South Australia. A Record Advice Sheet has been prepared by State Records to outline the importance of this step and it can be downloaded from the links below. State Records Internal Disposal Meeting This next step involves submitting an RDS to an internal disposal meeting of State Records. The meeting allows State Records to review and suggest amendments to the proposed RDS to ensure an appropriate standard. This meeting will also clarify issues and questions that might delay the approval of the RDS by the State Records Council - the approving body. Two Record Advice Sheets have been prepared by State Records to outline this step and the issues involved in preparing an RDS. They can be downloaded from the links below. What to expect at a State Records Council Meeting Once the amendments recommended by State Records have been made to the proposed RDS and State Records has determined the schedule in accordance with s23 of the State Records Act, 1997, the RDS is then submitted for approval to a scheduled meeting of the State Records Council. State Records has prepared a Records Advice Sheet to assist an agency to prepare for a State Records Council meeting. It can be downloaded from the links below. After a State Records Council Meeting The result of a State Records Council meeting is that an RDS is approved (possibly subject to amendments) or disapproved. Until an original signed copy of the RDS is received by the agency, the RDS cannot be used as a Disposal Schedule. State Records has produced a Records Advice Sheet to outline this step. It can be downloaded from the links below. This document outlines the need for external consultation while developing an RDS. Related Information:
Transfer of Ownership and Custody ScheduleA Transfer of Ownership and Custody Schedule (TOCS) is used for sentencing records relating to functions and activities transferred to a private entity from a government agency as part of a sale or privatisation.
All attachments on this web page have been scanned for virus infection. However, State Records of South Australia takes no responsibility for the dissemination of computer viruses from downloaded material. |
Native Title and Separation of Families (104 KB PDF File)
GDS 15 7th edition - Generic Upload File (295 KB XLS File)
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