What arrangements are in place to ensure that historical medical, psychiatric and safeguarding records that might be relevant to investigat…

National Records of Scotland (NRS) oversees statutory arrangements for public authority records management. I have therefore asked Alison Byrne, Chief Executive of NRS, to respond. Her response is as follows:NRS expects public authorities holding records of potential significance to ensure they are preserved securely and transferred appropriately.The Public Records (Scotland) Act 2011 requires named public authorities, including NHS bodies, to prepare and implement a Records Management Plan covering the management, retention, disposal and, where appropriate, archiving of public records. This applies whether the authority is carrying out the functions itself, or when functions are contracted out to a third party.These Plans are assessed by the Keeper of the Records of Scotland and must include arrangements to ensure records remain properly managed during periods of organisation or system change.For independent boarding schools and other non-public bodies, responsibility for records management rests with the organisation concerned.