The Information Management Assessment (IMA) programme has been in operation since 2008, with participating members drawn from a wide range of government and public sector organisations. Our IMA programme strategy has been established to support The National Archives in its roles as custodian of the public record and trusted experts in managing, preserving and using information, as set out in the 2015-19 business plan. You can download our current strategy here:
Download the IMA Strategy (PDF, 0.53MB)
The IMA programme provides me, as Keeper of Public Records, with an assessment of whether the organisation is fulfilling its duties in relation to the Public Records Act. Not only is membership of the programme a highly effective way for an organisation to improve its information management, it also helps ensure that the decisions and life of that organisation today become tomorrow’s publicly accessible record.
Jeff James, Chief Executive and Keeper,
The National Archives
The outcome of the IMA is a published report that highlights what is working well, together with recommendations that the organisation can take forward in an action plan. With senior support from the start of the process, an IMA can really contribute to how an organisation tackles the issues of information management.
The IMA programme helps organisations meet legislative duties. Find out more about:
- Legislation
- How you can manage digital continuity in your organisation
To find out more about the programme or to discuss becomg a member, get in touch.
Views from our members
Government departments and public bodies who have taken part in the IMA programme have found a number of benefits to the process:
Helped us to understand the information management challenges we face and the most appropriate way to deal with them…. We have welcomed The National Archives’ involvement in helping the department improve its knowledge and information management.
Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Justice
The entire IMA process was extremely helpful to DECC, from identifying and providing evidence prior to the assessment, to discussing initial findings with the team immediately after the assessment, and finally the report and recommendations, including advice on how to act on them.
Chief Operating Officer, Department of Energy and Climate Change
We manage millions of items of information every day. Improving the way we do that makes life easier for our customers and reduces costs for them and for us…Information management is an area where the landscape changes quickly, particularly in the area of digital records where storage requirements, tools and techniques are continually evolving.
Permanent Secretary of HMRC