Archives New Zealand issued a new mandatory storage standard on 19 September 2007. A copy of the standard is available here.
What is the storage standard?
How did we set the standard?
Documents and links
Where to find out more
The storage standard sets minimum requirements for storage of physical records and archives under the Public Records Act 2005. Its purpose is to support and encourage government recordkeeping. It applies to physical records such as paper files, photographs, microfilms, maps and plans. It does not apply to digital records.
The standard applies to state sector and local government records only. It applies whether records are in active use, are held in storage for occasional use, are allowed to be destroyed, or must be kept because they are of archival value.
From 2010, public offices may be audited against the requirements in the standard.
Archives New Zealand developed the standard in a consultative way. The process of development is outlined below.
| Stage | Details |
|---|---|
| Project planning | This stage was completed in May 2006. |
| Formation of advisory group |
We formed an advisory group which represented key interest groups. Members of this group included:
|
| Consultation on existing standard | This stage was completed in June 2006. We received a total of 62 submissions. A summary of submissions and recommendations is available below. |
| Develop draft standard | This stage was completed in February 2007. A copy of the exposure draft is available below. |
| Consultation and review |
This stage was completed in June 2006. We held seven consultation workshops attended by 127 people, and we received 87 written submissions. A summary of consultation is available below. |
| Approval by advisory group | The advisory group considered the feedback received and recommended changes to the standard, which are outlined in the summary of consultation. The advisory group approved the final version of the standard which went to the Chief Archivist. |
| Approval by Chief Archivist | The Chief Archivist accepted the recommendations of the advisory group and approved the standard on 30 June 2007. |
| Publish, promote, implement |
The standard was launched on 19 September 2007. The Government Recordkeeping Programme at Archives New Zealand is working to implement the standard by:
|
Scoping Paper 
(127 kb)
Terms of Reference for Advisory Group (25 kb)
Summary of Submissions and Recommendations (90 kb)
Exposure Draft of Revised Storage Standard (339 kb)
Consultation Workshop Presentation (315 kb)
Summary of Consultation on Revised Storage Standard (169 kb)
Mandatory Storage Standard
For more information, please contact:
The Government Recordkeeping Programme
Archives New Zealand / Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga
PO Box 12-050, Wellington
Telephone: 04-499 5595
Fax: 04-495 6210
Email: rkadvice@archives.govt.nz