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Freedom of information request

Removal of RR 568 from Archived List

Freedom of information request reference
CAS-266231
Request resolved

Request

I am writing to request information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 regarding the availability and archival handling of DWP Research Report RR 568, titled:

'Summary report on the potential causes of lower overall satisfaction from non-white customers and customers with a long term illness or disability.' (2008, produced by BMRB for DWP)

Although the report was publicly available for several years and is cited in other published documents, it is the only report missing from the main DWP Research Report Series index archived by The National Archives.

The DWP has confirmed (Ref: FOI2025/32466) that:

  • It does not hold a copy of the report in its records.
  • It has no documentation regarding the removal or reclassification of the report.
  • It did not request removal from The National Archives.
  • The PDF of the report remains accessible only through a direct (but unlisted) link, and DWP suggests I contact you for further clarification.

I would therefore like to request:

  • Any information or internal correspondence The National Archives holds about why RR 568 is not listed in the archived index of DWP research reports;
  • Whether the report was ever subject to a takedown, reclassification, or partial suppression in line with your takedown policy;
  • If any external body (including DWP or another government department) requested changes to the archived content relating to RR 568;
  • The date and rationale behind any decisions that resulted in RR 568 not being included in the index;
  • Confirmation of whether the current access route to the PDF (via direct link only) is standard practice, or the result of a specific policy decision.

I understand The National Archives maintain historical accuracy and may not routinely amend archived content, but would appreciate clarity on whether any exceptions have been made in this case.

Outcome

Information not held.

Response

The National Archives does not hold any internal correspondence about why RR 568 is not listed in the archived index of DWP reports and it has never been subject to takedown, reclassification, or partial suppression in line with your takedown policy. The National Archives has additionally never received requests from external government departments to make changes to RR 568.

RR 568 is not in the snapshot of the webpage as it was captured on 8 February 2010. It does appear in the snapshot from 30 March 2010 at the bottom of the list for the year 2010. The publication date for the report itself is stated as 2010. This is consistent with DWP first publishing on their website at some point in between 8 February and 30 March in that year.

The web archive reflects the web pages and documents they linked to, at the time they were captured. The National Archives has not made any decisions in relation to RR 568 that would affect access to this material. The information can also be found via the web archive here and here.

It appears that the link to the report was added later by whoever was managing the DWP website at that time, and prior to us archiving it. The link you have provided is to the 2009 version of the page, but the link is listed on these pages from March 2010 onwards, to when the page was finally archived in June 2013:

The National Archives would suggest that you refer to a later version of the referring page, like this page for example.

Also, the document, and reference to it is reachable through search here and here.

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