Retention periods
Retention periods are defined in administrative information in the Archive. They reflect the need to consider each dataset differently, and no dataset is removed automatically. Retention period indicate the need for a review of a dataset, at which point further retention is decided on one or more of the factors set out below.
Typically initial retention periods are decided using the following decision-making guide:
- Does the funder of the research specify a minimum or maximum period of retention?
- Does the publisher of a related item require the dataset to be kept for a defined period?
- Does the dataset have known long-term value?
- Are there regulatory reasons to keep or dispose of the data at a defined point in time?
Review questions would include:
- Does the dataset underpin a publication?
- Does the dataset have known long-term value?
- Has the dataset been accessed, and if so, how often?
- Are there regulatory reasons to keep or dispose of the data?
- How big is the dataset?
