SCHEDULES

C2FIRST SCHEDULE Definition of Public Records

Section 10.

Annotations:
Modifications etc. (not altering text)
C2

Sch. 1 excluded by Transport Act 1968 (c. 73), s. 144(9)

Sch. 1 excluded (E.W.S.) (1.4.1994) by 1993 c. 43, s. 125(6); S.I. 1994/571, art. 5 (with art. 7) (which exclusion was repealed (18.7.1996) by 1996 c. 42, s. 8(2)(3))

Sch. 1 excluded (E.W.S.) (18.9.1996) by 1996 c. 42, ss. 5(3), 8(3)

1

The provisions of this Schedule shall have effect for determining what are public records for the purposes of this Act.

Departmental records

2

1

Subject to the provisions of this paragraph, administrative and departmental records belonging to Her Majesty, whether in the United Kingdom or elsewhere, in right of Her Majesty’s Government in the United Kingdom and, in particular,—

a

records of, or held in, any department of Her Majesty’s Government in the United Kingdom, or

b

records of any office, commission or other body or establishment whatsoever under Her Majesty’s Government in the United Kingdom,

shall be public records.

2

Sub-paragraph (1) of this paragraph shall not apply—

a

to records of any government department or body which is wholly or mainly concerned with Scottish affairs, or which carries on its activities wholly or mainly in Scotland, or

b

to registers or certified copies of entries in registers being registers or certified copies kept or deposited in the General Register Office under or in pursuance of any enactment, whether past or future, which provides for the registration of births, deaths, marriages F1, civil partnerships or adoptions, or

c

except so far as provided by paragraph 4 of this Schedule, to records of the Duchy of Lancaster, or

d

to records of the office of the Public Trustee relating to individual trusts F2or

e

to Welsh public records (as defined in the Government of Wales Act 1998).

3

1

Without prejudice to the generality of sub-paragraph (1) of the last foregoing paragraph, the administrative and departmental records of bodies and establishments set out in the Table at the end of this paragraph shall be public records, whether or not they are records belonging to Her Majesty.

2

The provisions of this paragraph shall not be taken as applying to records in any museum or gallery mentioned in the said Table which form part of its permanent collections (that is to say records which the museum or gallery has acquired otherwise than by transfer from or arrangements with a government department).

TABLE

C1PART I

BODIES AND ESTABLISHMENTS UNDER GOVERNMENT DEPARTMENTS

Responsible Government Department

F135Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Agricultural Wages Board.

Agricultural Wages Committees.

Organisation known as the “National Farm Survey”.

Official seed testing station for England and Wales.

F136Ministry of Defence

Meteorological Office.

F137. . .

F138. . .

F139Department of Health

National Health Service Authorities F140including F141Primary Care TrustsF142, National Health Service trusts and NHS foundation trusts other than local health authorities F143and Authorities for districts or localities in Wales, or for areas in or consisting of Wales (including National Health Service trusts all of whose hospitals, establishments and facilities are situated in Wales).

F144Family Practitioner CommitteesF145for localities in England

F146health service hospitals, within the meaning of the National Health Service Act 1977F147, in England except—

records of endowments passing to Boards of Governors under section seven of the National Health Service Act 1946.

records relating to funds held by Hospital Boards and Committees under sections fifty-nine and sixty of the said Act, andrecords of private patients admitted under section five of the said Act.

F148records of property passing to F149Regional, Area or District Health Authorities or special health authorities under sections 23 to 26 of the M7National Health Service Reorganisation Act 1973 F150, section 92 of the National Health Service Act 1977, section 213 of the National Health Service Act 2006 or section 161 of the National Health Service (Wales) Act 2006

records of property held by a F151Regional, Area or District Health Authority or special health authority under section 21 or 22 of the said Act 1973F152, section 90 or 91 of the National Health Service Act 1977, section 218 of the National Health Service Act 2006 or paragraph 8 of Schedule 6 to that Act, or paragraph 8 of Schedule 5 to the National Health Service (Wales) Act 2006

F153records of trust property passing to a F154Strategic Health Authority, Health Authority, Special Health Authority or Primary Care Trust by virtue of the Health Authorities Act 1995 F155, under section 213 of the National Health Service Act 2006 or section 161 of the National Health Service (Wales) Act 2006, or held by F156a Strategic Health Authority or a Health Authority under section 90 or 91 of F157the National Health Service Act 1977, section 218 of the National Health Service Act 2006, paragraph 12 of Schedule 2 to, or paragraph 8 of Schedule 6 to, that Act, or paragraph 8 of Schedule 5 to the National Health Service (Wales) Act 2006.

F158. . .

Home Office

Office of Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis.

Office of Receiver for the Metropolitan Police District.

F159Department of Employment

National Dock Labour Board.

National Institute of Houseworkers Limited.

Wages Boards and Wages Councils.

F160Department of Social Security

National Insurance Advisory Committee.

Industrial Injuries Advisory Council.

F161Attendance Allowance Board.

National Insurance and Industrial Injuries Joint Authorities.

Workmen’s Compensation Supplementation Board.

Pneumoconiosis and Byssinosis Benefit Board.

F162. . .

F163. . .

F164Department of Transport

Air Transport Advisory Council.

Air Registration Board.

F165Airworthiness Requirements Board, Civil Aviation Authority.

F166Strategic Rail Authority.

F167Department for Constitutional Affairs

F168Legal Aid Board

F169Legal Services Commission

X1C3PART IIOTHER ESTABLISHMENTS AND ORGANISATIONS

  • F10F11Adult Learning Inspectorate

  • Anglo-Egyptian Resettlement Board.

  • F12Armouries

  • F13The Big Lottery Fund.

  • F14The Board of the Pension Protection Fund.

  • F15The Board of Trustees of the National Museums and Galleries on Merseyside.

  • F16British Coal Corporation

  • F17British Council.

  • British Museum (including the Natural History Museum).

  • F18Care Council for Wales.

  • F19the Care Quality Commission.

  • Catering Wages Commission.

  • F20Central Police Training and Development Authority

  • F21Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission.

  • F22Civil Nuclear Police Authority.

  • F23Coal Authority

  • Coal Industry Social Welfare Organisation.

  • F24Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment.

  • F25The Commission for Equality and Human Rights.

  • F26F27 Commission for Health Improvement.

  • F28Commission for Healthcare Audit and Inspection

  • F29Commission on Industrial Relations

  • F30Commission for Patient and Public Involvement in Health.

  • F31Commission for Rural Communities.

  • F32Commission for Social Care Inspection

  • F33The Committee on Climate Change.

  • F34Competition Commission.

  • F35Competition Service

  • F36F37Consumer Council for Postal Services.

  • F38Consumer Council for Water.

  • F39Council for the Regulation of Health Care Professionals.

  • F40F41Countryside Council for Wales

  • F42Criminal Cases Review Commission

  • F43Crown Agents for Overseas Governments and Administrations (before and after their reconstitution as a body corporate) except when acting for governments or authorities outside Her Majesty’s dominions.

  • F44Crown Agents Holding and Realisation Board.

  • C4F45F46Curriculum and Assessment Authority for Wales

  • F47F48the Data Protection Commissioner

  • F49A development agency established under section 1 of the Regional Development Agencies Act 1998.

  • Development Commission.

  • F50Director of Fair Access to Higher Education

  • F51F52Disability Rights Commission.

  • F53Electoral Commission.

  • F54. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

  • F55F56English Nature.

  • F57The Environment Agency

  • C4F58Funding Agency for Schools

  • F59 Further Education Funding Council for England.

  • F60F59Further Education Funding Council for Wales.

  • F36F61Gas and Electricity Consumer Council.

  • F170Gangmasters Licensing Authority

  • F62General Social Care Council.

  • F63General Teaching Council for England.

  • F64General Teaching Council for Wales.

  • F59Higher Education Funding Council for England.

  • F65F59Higher Education Funding Council for Wales.

  • F66Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England

  • F67The Homes and Communities Agency.

  • F68Human Tissue Authority.

  • Imperial War Museum.

  • F69Information Commissioner.

  • Irish Sailors’ and Soldiers’ Land Trust.

  • F70Learning and Skills Council for England.

  • F71The Legal Services Board.

  • F72The Legal Services Consultative Panel.

  • F73 The Legal Services Ombudsman

  • F74Local Better Regulation Office.

  • London Museum.

  • F75The Lord Chancellor’s Advisory Committee on Legal Education and Conduct

  • F76. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

  • F77F78Millennium Commission.

  • F79F80Monopolies and Mergers Commission.

  • F81National Audit Office

  • F26F82National Care Standards Commission

  • F83. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

  • F84The National Consumer Council.

  • National Gallery.

  • F77F85National Lottery Charities Board.

  • F86National Lottery Commission.

  • National Maritime Museum.

  • F55F87Countryside Agency

  • F88National Policing Improvement Agency.

  • National Portrait Gallery.

  • National Savings Committee.

  • F89Natural England.

  • F90F91Nature Conservancy Council for England

  • F77F92New Opportunities Fund.

  • F93Nuclear Decommissioning Authority.

  • F94Occupational Pensions Regulatory Authority.

  • F95Office of Communications.

  • F96Office of F97the Director General of Fair Trading.

  • F98Office of Fair Trading.

  • F99Office for Tenants and Social Landlords.

  • F100Olympic Delivery Authority.

  • F101Olympic Lottery Distributor.

  • F102The Ombudsman for the Board of the Pension Protection Fund.

  • F103Pensions Compensation Board.

  • F104Pensions Ombudsman.

  • F105The Pensions Regulator.

  • F106Personal Accounts Delivery Authority

  • F107Police Information Technology Organisation

  • F108Post Office.

  • F109Post Office company (within the meaning of Part IV of the Postal Services Act 2000).

  • F110Qualifications and Curriculum Authority

  • F111F112Qualifications, Curriculum and Assessment Authority for Wales

  • F113Rail Passengers’ Committees.

  • F114Rail Passengers’ Council.

  • Remploy Limited.

  • F115Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew

  • Royal Greenwich Observatory.

  • C4F116School Curriculum and Assessment Authority

  • C4F117F58Schools Funding Council for Wales

  • F118Science Museum

  • F119Security Industry Authority.

  • F120Serious Organised Crime Agency.

  • F121F122The Service Authority for the National Crime Squad.

  • F123F124The Service Authority for the National Criminal Intelligence Service.

  • F125The Simpler Trade Procedures Board.

  • Tate Gallery.

  • F126F127Teacher Training Agency

  • F128Technology Strategy Board.

  • F129Traffic Director for London

  • F130Training and Development Agency for Schools

  • F131. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

  • Trustee Savings Banks Inspection Committee.

  • United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority.

  • University Grants Committee.

  • F132Valuation Tribunal Service.

  • F133Victoria and Albert Museum

  • Wallace Collection.

  • War Works Commission.

  • Any body established for the purpose of determining the boundaries of constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, or of local authorities in England F134or Wales.

F33A

1

Her Majesty may by Order in Council amend the Table at the end of paragraph 3 of this Schedule by adding to either Part of the Table an entry relating to any body or establishment—

a

which, at the time when the Order is made, is specified in Schedule 2 to the Parliamentary Commissioner Act 1967 (departments, etc. subject to investigation), or

b

in respect of which an entry could, at that time, be added to Schedule 2 to that Act by an Order in Council under section 4 of that Act (which confers power to amend that Schedule).

2

An Order in Council under this paragraph may relate to a specified body or establishment or to bodies or establishments falling within a specified description.

3

An Order in Council under this paragraph shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.

Records of courts and tribunals

4

1

Subject to the provisions of this paragraph, records of the following descriptions shall be public records for the purposes of this Act:—

a

records of, or held in any department of, the Supreme Court (including any court held under a commission of assize);

b

records of county courts and of any other superior or inferior court of record established since the passing of the M1County Courts Act 1846;

F4c

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

d

records of courts of quarter sessions:

e

records of magistrates’ courts;

f

records of coroners’ courts;

g

records of courts-martial held whether within or outside the United Kingdom by any of Her Majesty’s forces raised in the United Kingdom;

h

records of naval courts held whether within or outside the United Kingdom under the enactments relating to merchant shipping;

i

records of any court exercising jurisdiction held by Her Majesty within a country outside Her dominions;

j

records of any tribunal (by whatever name called)—

i

which has jurisdiction connected with any functions of a department of Her Majesty’s Government in the United Kingdom; or

ii

which has jurisdiction in proceedings to which such a government department is a party or to hear appeals from decisions of such a government department;

k

records of the Lands Tribunal or of any Rent Tribunal or Local Valuation Court;

l

records of the Industrial Court, of the Industrial Disputes Tribunal, and of the National Arbitration Tribunal (which was replaced by the Industrial Disputes Tribunal);

m

records of umpires and deputy-umpires appointed under the M2National Service Act 1948, or the M3Reinstatement in Civil Employment Act 1944;

n

records of ecclesiastical courts when exercising the testamentary and matrimonial jurisdiction removed from them by the M4Court of Probate Act 1857, and the M5Matrimonial Causes Act 1857, respectively;

F5nn

records of the Information Tribunal;

o

records of such other courts or tribunals (by whatever name called) as the Lord Chancellor may by order contained in a statutory instrument specify.

F61A

Records of, or held in any department of, the Supreme Court within sub-paragraph (1)(a) of this paragraph include the records of the Chancery Court of the county palatine of Lancaster and the Chancery Court of the county palatine of Durham (which were abolished by the Courts Act 1971).

1B

Records of county courts within sub-paragraph (1)(b) of this paragraph include the records of the following courts (which were abolished by the Courts Act 1971)—

a

the Tolzey and Pie Poudre Courts of the City and County of Bristol;

b

the Liverpool Court of Passage;

c

the Norwich Guildhall Court; and

d

the Court of Record for the Hundred of Salford.

2

This paragraph shall not apply to any court or tribunal whose jurisdiction extends only to Scotland or Northern Ireland.

3

In this paragraph “records” includes records of any proceedings in the court or tribunal in question and includes rolls, writs, books, decrees, bills, warrants and accounts of, or in the custody of, the court or tribunal in question.

Records of the Chancery of England

5

The records of the Chancery of England F7, other than any which are Welsh public records (as defined in the Government of Wales Act 1998), shall be public records for the purposes of this Act.

Records in Public Record Office

6

Without prejudice to the foregoing provisions of this Schedule, public records for the purposes of this Act shall include—

a

all records within the meaning of the M6Public Record Office Act 1838, or to which that Act was applied, which at the commencement of this Act are in the custody of the Master of the Rolls in pursuance of that Act, and

b

all records (within the meaning of the said Act or to which that Act was applied) which at the commencement of this Act are in the Public Record Office and, in pursuance of the said Act, under the charge and superintendence of the Master of the Rolls, and

c

all records forming part of the same series as any series of documents falling under sub-paragraph (a) or sub-paragraph (b) of this paragraph F8other than any which are Welsh public records (as defined in the Government of Wales Act 1998).

Power to add further categories of records and to determine cases of doubt

7

1

Without prejudice to the Lord Chancellor’s power of making orders under paragraph 4 of this Schedule, Her Majesty may by Order in Council direct that any description of records not falling within the foregoing provisions of this Schedule F9and not being Welsh public records (as defined in the Government of Wales Act 1998) shall be treated as public records for the purposes of this Act but no recommendation shall be made to Her Majesty in Council to make an Order under this sub-paragraph unless a draft of the Order has been laid before Parliament and approved by resolution of each House of Parliament.

2

A question whether any records or description of records are public records for the purposes of this Act shall be referred to and determined by the Lord Chancellor and the Lord Chancellor shall include his decisions on such questions in his annual report to Parliament and shall from time to time compile and publish lists of the departments, bodies, establishments, courts and tribunals comprised in paragraphs 2, 3 and 4 of this Schedule and lists describing more particularly the categories of records which are, or are not, public records as defined in this Schedule.

Interpretation

8

It is hereby declared that any description of government department, court, tribunal or other body or establishment in this Schedule by reference to which a class of public records is framed extends to a government department, court, tribunal or other body or establishment, as the case may be, which has ceased to exist, whether before or after the passing of this Act.