What this review helps you do
A retention schedule is useful only when its rules can be applied to real records. For each record class, document the retention trigger, period, justification, owner and disposal method, then test the copies held in applications, exports, email, suppliers and backup arrangements.
AT A GLANCE
Set justified retention periods by record type, then make deletion work across systems, suppliers and backups while preserving information subject to a valid legal hold.
Who should use this review?
All organisations, with distinct schedules for clinical, employment, tax, legal and notarial records.
What to review
- For each record class, specify the purpose, retention trigger, period, authority or justification, owner and disposal method.
- Distinguish a legal minimum from guidance, limitation-risk reasoning and a chosen business period.
- Test deletion or irreversible anonymisation in live systems, email, archives, suppliers and backup cycles.
- Use a documented legal-hold process with defined scope, access controls, review and release.
Working outputs
- Record-specific retention schedule.
- Practical deletion procedure and disposal evidence log.
- Legal-hold protocol and review register.
PUT THIS GUIDE TO WORK
Review it. Record it. Keep the evidence.
Open the relevant assessment area or complete the matching working document.
Evidence checklist
Use these checks to gather references and identify the evidence that still needs testing.
Does each record class have a justified period and start trigger?
Evidence to look for: Retention schedule citing the applicable obligation or purpose.
If it is missing: Replace blanket periods with record-specific decisions.
Are sector requirements distinguished from general recommendations?
Evidence to look for: Source, jurisdiction, exceptions and review date.
If it is missing: Validate high-risk classes against current sector requirements.
Do deletion rules operate across systems, suppliers and backups?
Evidence to look for: Configuration checks, disposal logs and backup lifecycle.
If it is missing: Test one deletion path and resolve copies left in normal use.
Are legal holds documented, scoped and reviewed?
Evidence to look for: Hold register, authorisation, review and release decisions.
If it is missing: Implement a hold-and-release procedure before deleting affected records.
Retention examples need context
England and Wales — limitation periods
Six years for a simple-contract action and generally twelve for an action on a specialty are litigation time limits. They do not impose a universal requirement to retain every file for that period.
UK company tax records
Company records commonly require six years from the end of the relevant financial year, with extensions and exceptions. Other tax and employment categories need their own rules.
England — health records
The NHS England schedule gives eight years for adult health records not covered elsewhere, and generally to the 25th birthday for children's records (26th if age 17 when treatment ended). Apply the full schedule, scope and exceptions; GP, maternity and other classes differ.
England and Wales — solicitors
SRA Accounts Rules require accounting records to be retained for at least six years. That is not a universal six-year rule for all client matter files.
England and Wales — notaries
Notaries Practice Rules 2019, Rule 24.3 requires permanent preservation of the public-form protocol; Rule 24.4 requires records of acts not in public form for at least twelve years.
Apply the limits carefully
Periods need a defined start event and review of exceptions. Confirm the law, regulator, contract and professional obligations for the actual record.
An archived or backup copy still requires controls; inability to delete instantly is not permission to retain information indefinitely in ordinary use.
Common misunderstandings
For notaries in England and Wales, the record-preservation duties are in Rule 24 of the Notaries Practice Rules 2019. Rule 23 concerns acting as a Commissioner for Oaths.
There is no universal six-year minimum covering every solicitor file or every tax record. The correct period depends on the record, applicable obligation, retention trigger and any justified exception.
NHS England retention examples have a defined scope and record-specific qualifications. They do not create a universal retention rule for every private clinic or every UK jurisdiction.
A limitation period sets a time limit for bringing a type of claim. A retention duty determines how long particular information must be kept. One does not automatically establish the other.
Worked example: testing recruitment-record disposal
Illustrative scenario. This is a fictional teaching example, not a client case, professional finding or verified outcome.
A fictional employer has an approved retention rule for unsuccessful applications. The example uses that organisation's own rule; it does not prescribe a universal retention period.
- Control
Records reaching the approved disposal point should be handled under the retention rule, subject to documented legal holds or other justified exceptions.
- Evidence
Compare the schedule with the recruitment platform, interview-folder permissions, exports and the legal-hold register.
- Finding
The platform deletes the main application, but interview attachments remain in a shared folder with no clear disposal owner.
- Owner and action
The recruitment owner brings the attachments within the approved process, checks applicable holds and confirms the responsibilities for supplier and backup copies.
- Verification
Run a disposal test using a suitable test record, check the relevant locations and retain the result. Confirm that restored data would not silently return to normal use.
Practical questions
Why does the retention trigger matter?
A period cannot be applied consistently unless people know when it starts. Define the relevant event for that record class and how it is recorded, then explain any event that changes or suspends the disposal decision.
Does a legal hold mean keeping every record indefinitely?
A hold needs a documented reason, scope, responsible owner and review process. Identify the affected material, control access and record the decision to release the hold when appropriate.
Official sources
- ICO — Storage limitation (opens in a new tab)
- Limitation Act 1980, section 5 (opens in a new tab)
- Limitation Act 1980, section 8 (opens in a new tab)
- GOV.UK — Company and accounting records (opens in a new tab)
- NHS England — Care records retention schedule (opens in a new tab)
- SRA — Accounts Rules, Rule 13 (opens in a new tab)
- SRA — Closing down your practice, retention (opens in a new tab)
- Faculty Office — Notaries Practice Rules 2019, Rule 24 (opens in a new tab)
Source-linked editorial review: 1 November 2026. Guidance supports a documented process. It does not replace advice about your particular circumstances or verify your organisation’s compliance.
Content update — 2 November 2026: added an illustrative evidence record, practical questions and related guidance. The existing legal-source baseline is 1 November 2026.