Takedown policy

This page sets out the circumstances in which material is taken down from our websites.

Scope of the policy

The takedown policy applies to material on our own websites; on the archived websites of other government bodies that are being preserved in the UK Government Web Archive; and on the websites of our commercial partners, insofar as the content has come from The National Archives.

This takedown policy does not apply to material on the Find Case Law service. Judgments published on Find Case Law can only be taken down on instruction from the courts or tribunals. Find out more about how we publish judgments.

Guiding principles

As a general rule, information published on a website will be considered to be in the public domain and will be removed from that website only in exceptional circumstances, at the discretion of The National Archives.

The information will be regarded as having been removed temporarily and may be restored at a date decided by The National Archives.

The work of the Takedown Panel: in what circumstances might material be taken down from a website?

Material will be taken down temporarily on receipt of a request from a member of the public or a government department. The case will then be considered by the Takedown Panel composed of members of staff with expertise in Freedom of Information (FOI) and Data Protection, along with other specialists from across The National Archives.

If the takedown request concerns a factual error which has caused an entry on the 1939 Register to be inadvertently displayed, or the person is over 100 years old, then on receipt of proof of identity of the subject in the record, the entry will be obscured from view  on  the website, and an investigation as to why the record is open will be carried out. These cases will not come before the Takedown panel.

If the takedown request concerns a person on the 1921 Census who is over 100 years old, then, on receipt of proof of identity of the subject in the record, the entry concerning that person will be obscured from view on the website. These cases will not come before the Takedown panel.

To contact us about material on the 1939 Register, or the 1921 Census, which are  published online by The National Archive’s Licensed Associates, please follow any instructions and advice on their websites, or contact The National Archives directly using our online form.

If there is a Takedown request, to remove information from our website concerning records received from Public Inquiries and other short-term bodies such as Independent Inquiries, information may not always be immediately removed from public access as part of a Takedown Request. This is due to the high-profile nature and content of Inquiry records which have been selected by the Inquiry chair to be made available at The National Archives as part of the transparent record of the Inquiry.

The Takedown Panel is chaired by the Director for Public Records Access and Government Services. The panel will approve continued withdrawal of the material only if one of the following criteria is met:

  • Because of changed circumstances, material previously published in good faith is now considered to be subject to an exemption in the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act 2000 or the Environmental Information Regulations (EIR) 2004 and the public interest lies in withholding it from public access
  • The material is personal information about someone who is still alive and continued online access would be unlawful or unfair to them under data protection legislation, would breach their or their family’s right to a private and family life under the Human Rights Act 1998, or would constitute a breach of trust as demonstrated by the case of the Insolvency Service, where information concerning insolvent debtors is intended to be removed from the service’s own website in its entirety after six months
  • Making the material available online is an infringement of copyright
  • The material is defamatory or obscene
  • Continued online access would cause a department serious and real administrative difficulties and it has requested takedown for a specified and limited period of time
  • The material was released in error and removal is required to rectify a mistake

Paper/original formats of online material taken down under this criterion will be brought to the attention of the Reclosure Panel as soon as possible after the Takedown Panel.

Should the person or authority who made a request disagree with the decision taken by the Takedown Panel, then they have the right to appeal to the Keeper and Chief Executive of The National Archives. Appeals must be received within two months of the decision being notified to the member of public. For further details, please contact the Quality Manager.

To contact us about material on our websites that needs referral to the Takedown Panel, please use our online form.