University Secretary

Emails should not be treated as a single series with a single retention period: the length of their retention should be determined by their subject matter or business purpose, as is the case with any other electronic or paper record.  For example:

• Contracts: emails containing contractual details or clarifying the conditions attached to a contract should be retained for 6 years after the expiry of the contract (Limitation Act 1980).

• Unsuccessful applicants: emails relating to unsucessful applications by prospective students should be retained for a minimum of 6 months from the completion of the admissions process and ideally (as recommended by JISC) for 1 year (Employment and Training Regulations SI 2003/1660, SI 2003/1661, SI 2006/1031).

• Students: under the terms of the Limitation Act 1980, students are permitted to take legal action for breach of contract or negligence within 6 years of an alleged incident. Messages concerning the academic progress of students,as well as emails relating to complaints, academic appeals or disciplinary matters, may therefore be required for up to 6 years in the event of a dispute.

For further guidance on retention periods, please see Section 4 of the Factsheet: Managing Emails.

There are also numerous emails that will only be required for a short time, such as:

• arrangements for meetings;
• messages that are needed temporarily to ensure a routine action is completed;
• emails from electronic distribution lists;
• all staff emails;
• personal emails.

Using folders to group together messages of a similar nature will make it easier to review them and make consistent retention decisions. For more guidance on managing emails, see the Factsheet.