Data Retention Schedule.
- ABOUT THIS SCHEDULE
1.1 Tom Prichard (Holdings) Ltd establishes retention or destruction schedules or procedures for specific categories of data. This is done to ensure legal compliance (for example, with our data protection obligations) and accomplish other objectives, such as protecting intellectual property and controlling costs.
1.2 Employees should comply with the retention periods listed in the record retention schedule below, in accordance with the Tom Prichard (Holdings) Ltd Data Retention Policy, which can be provided by the DPO upon request.
1.3 If you hold data not listed below, please refer to the Tom Prichard (Holdings) Ltd Retention Policy. If you still consider your data should be listed, if you become aware of any changes that may affect the periods listed below or if you have any other questions about this record retention schedule, please contact the DPO.
1.4 This is version 1 dated November 2024.
2. COMPANY AND CORPORATE RECORDS
| TYPE OF DATE | RETENTION PERIOD | REASON | COMMENTS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Accounting records. | 7 years from the date they were made (private company) | Section 388(4) Companies Act 2006 (CA 2006) | Tax requirements or other legislation may require longer. |
| Register of members. | 10 years after the date they ceased to be members. | Section 121, CA 2006 | Tom Prichard is the sole owner currently and always has been. |
| Register of directors. | Indefinite | Usual practice | Section 162 of the CA 2006 requires the register to be kept but legislation is not explicit about retention periods. General practice is to retain details of current and former directors, together with date of ceasing to be a director. |
| Register of directors' residential addresses. | Remove addresses of former directors after 6 years. | Best practice | Section 165 of the CA 2006 requires the register to be kept but there is no statutory retention period or indication whether addresses of former directors should be removed. Company will need to consider anything that has been told to directors and what is appropriate. |
| Recording of internal directors' meetings contained in email. | 10 years from the date of the meeting | Section 248, CA 2006 | Statutory minimum period (no period applies to meetings held before 1 October 2007, but best practice is to apply a consistent standard). |
| Health and safety inspections, property management and asset records. | 6 years | Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and Limitation Act 1980 (LA 1980) | |
| Historical records and archives about the company e.g. former directors, chairpersons, employees of note etc. | Indefinite | Usual practice | Balance data minimisation principle against the need to retain this information for historical purposes in the legitimate interests of the organisation. |
3. HR BENEFITS AND RECORDS
| TYPE OF DATA | RETENTION PERIOD | REASON | COMMENTS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Recruitment records including: Completed online application forms or CVs – use indeed for majority of applications. Notes from interviews and short-listing exercises. | Six months after notifying candidates of the outcome of the recruitment exercise. | Best Practice | |
| Immigration checks | seven (7) years after the termination of employment. | Best Practice | |
| Contracts, including: Written particulars of employment. Contracts of employment or other contracts. Documented changes to terms and conditions. | While employment continues and for seven years after the contract ends. | Best Practice | |
| Past agreements that could affect present employees. | Any copy of a relevant collective agreement retained on an employee's record will remain while employment continues and for seven years after employment ends. | Best Practice | |
| Payroll and wage records including: Benefits in kind. Details on overtime. Bonuses. Expenses. | These must be kept for at least three years after the end of the tax year to which they relate. However, given their potential relevance to pay disputes they will be retained for seven years after employment ends. | Tax purposes | |
| Current bank details | Bank details will be kept on file and deleted after 7 years | Best Practice | |
| PAYE records | These must be kept for at least three years after the end of the tax year to which they relate. However, given their potential relevance to pay disputes they will be retained for seven years after employment ends. | Tax purposes | |
| Payroll and wage records for companies | These must be kept for six years from the financial year-end in which payments were made. However, given their potential relevance to pay disputes they will be retained for seven years after employment ends. | Tax purposes | |
| Records in relation to hours worked and payments made to workers | These must be kept for three years beginning with the day on which the pay reference period immediately following that to which they relate ends. However, given their potential relevance to pay disputes they will be retained for seven years after the working relationship ends. | Best Practice | |
| Travel and subsistence. | While employment continues and for seven years after employment ends. | Tax purposes | |
| Personnel records including: Resignation, termination and retirement. Qualifications/references. Consents for the processing of special categories of personal data. Annual leave records. Annual assessment reports. Disciplinary procedures. Grievance procedures. Death benefit nomination and revocation forms. | While employment continues and for seven years after employment ends. | Tax purposes | |
| Working time opt-out | 7 years on hard copy file | Best Practice | |
| Records to show compliance, including: Time sheets for opted-out workers. Health assessment records for workers. | Three years after the relevant period. | Best Practice | |
| Maternity and paternity records including: Dates of maternity leave. Maternity / paternity payments. Period without maternity / paternity payment. Maternity / paternity certificates showing the expected week of confinement. | Four years after the end of the tax year in which the maternity pay period ends. | Tax purposes | |
| Accident records created regarding any reportable accident, death or injury in connection with work. | For at least four years from the date the report was made. | Best Practice |
4. PENSION RECORDS
| TYPE OF DATA | RETENTION PERIOD | REASON | COMMENTS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Name and address of scheme or provider of the automatic enrolment scheme used to comply with the employer's duties. | 6 years | Employers' Duties (Registration and Compliance) Regulations 2010 (SI 2010/5) (Employers' Duties Regulations 2010) (regulations 5, 6 and 8). | Minimum statutory period. |
| Employer pension scheme reference. | 6 years | Employers' Duties Regulations 2010 (regulations 5, 6 and 8). | Minimum statutory period. |
| Evidence scheme complies with auto-enrolment statutory quality tests. | 6 years | Employers' Duties Regulations 2010 (regulations 5, 6 and 8). | Minimum statutory period. |
| Name, NI number, date of birth and automatic enrolment date of all jobholders auto-enrolled (and corresponding details for non-eligible jobholders and entitled workers who have opted in or joined). | 6 years | Employers' Duties Regulations 2010 (regulations 5, 6 and 8). | Minimum statutory period. |
| Evidence of jobholders' earnings and contributions. | 6 years | Employers' Duties Regulations 2010 (regulations 5, 6 and 8). | Minimum statutory period. |
| Contributions payable by employer in respect of jobholders and dates on which employer contributions were paid to scheme. | 6 years | Employers' Duties Regulations 2010 (regulations 5, 6 and 8). | Minimum statutory period. |
| If auto-enrolment postponement period used, records of workers who were given notice of postponement including full name, NI number and date postponement notice was given. | 6 years | Employers' Duties Regulations 2010 (regulations 5, 6 and 8). | Minimum statutory period. |
| Auto-enrolment opt-in notices, joining notices and opt-out notices (original format). | 6 years (4 years for opt-out notices) | Employers' Duties Regulations 2010 (regulations 5, 6 and 8). | Minimum statutory period. Opt-in notices, joining notices and opt-out notices must be kept in the original format, although copies of the original format or electronically stored versions are acceptable (Pensions Regulator, Detailed Guidance Note 9, Keeping records, paragraph 8). |
| Information relating to applications for ill health early retirement benefits, including medical reports. | While entitlement continues and for period of 15 years after benefits stop being paid. | Limitation period | Employers may also need to keep data relating to employees' job descriptions to assist with any ill-health application. |
| Death benefit nomination and revocation forms. | While entitlement continues and for period of 15 years after the death of member and their beneficiaries. | Limitation period | Longer may be required for public sector employees e.g. the National Archives suggests 100 years from date of birth. |
5. FACILITIES AND SECURITY RECORDS
| TYPE OF DATA | RETENTION PERIOD | REASON | COMMENTS |
|---|---|---|---|
| CCTV recordings. | One month for routine recordings As long as necessary for any investigations or claims that arise – please see CCTV Policy. | Best practice | No set period in law but as these can contain personal data, should be kept for no longer than is necessary for the purpose. Relevant authorities must comply with the Surveillance Camera Code of Practice. |
| Visitor logs. | 6 months | Best practice | No set period in law but as these can contain personal data, should be kept for no longer than is necessary for the purpose. |
| Building contracts. | 15 years from practical completion | Limitation period | While this category of data is identified as "building contracts", it is not limited to the contract with the main building contractor. It covers all contractual and ancillary documents related to construction work. For example, this may include professional appointments, collateral warranties, grants of third-party rights, development agreements, novations, assignments, bonds, parent company guarantees, party wall awards and relevant insurance documents. Given the number of documents involved, an organisation may wish to break this down into sub-categories for each type of agreement identified above.In addition, consideration should be given to other records relating to the building works, such as correspondence and sub-contracts, which may be required in the event of a dispute. A retention period of 15 years is suggested in light of the extended limitation periods for certain types of claim introduced by the Building Safety Act 2022. |
| Health and safety files for building works. | For the life of the building to which it relates | Health and safety legislation | Health and safety legislation requires the creation of a "health and safety" file for a building in relation to work carried out on it. That information should then be retained for the life of the building. |
| Golden thread of information | For the life of the building to which it relates | Building safety legislation | Building safety legislation imposes a requirement to maintain a "golden thread of information" in relation to a "higher-risk building". Such information must be retained and kept up to date for the life of the building. |
6. SALES, MARKETING AND CUSTOMER RECORDS
| TYPE OF DATA | RETENTION PERIOD | REASON | COMMENTS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marketing database records (e.g. lead generation, meeting feedback, contact data etc.). | 2 years from last contact | Business need | Currently don’t market but may in the future, and depends on the needs of the business. |
| Customer relations database records (e.g. call centre records, queries, meeting feedback, account history etc.). | 6 years from last contact | Business need and limitation period. | |
| Order fulfilment records. | 6 years from completion | Limitation period and accounting requirement. | |
| Opt-out/suppression lists. | Indefinite | Business and compliance need. | Only sufficient information to enable the opt out should be retained if marketing is to be carried out. |
| Evidence of consent to marketing (including electronic marketing). | While consent valid 6 years from date consent withdrawn or ceases to be valid | Business need Limitation period | Consent can be withdrawn at any time and may not necessarily remain valid indefinitely although how long it remains valid will depend on the context. |
| Customer complaints handling | 6 years from settlement or closure | Business need and limitation period | |
| Website analytics reports from cookies and other similar technology | 2 years | Business need | This refers to the output from information obtained via cookies. No firm period recommended by the ICO, although the French regulator recommends 25 months from collection and, for Google Analytics the DMA recommends 2 years. Cookies themselves may be set for different periods depending on the function of the cookie. |
7. PROCUREMENT RECORDS
| TYPE OF DATE | RETENTION PERIOD | REASON | COMMENTS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unsuccessful tenders | 2 years | Business need | Businesses that have a large number of tenders may prefer to only retain for 1 year but will depend on the nature of the business. |
| Successful tenders | Contract period plus 6 years (12 years for contracts executed as a deed). | Limitation period | |
| Contractual documents | Contract period plus 6 years (12 years for contracts executed as a deed). | Limitation period |
8. LEGAL RECORDS
| TYPE OF RECORD | RETENTION PERIOD | REASONS | COMMENTS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Legal advice and opinions (non-litigation). | 6 years after life of the service or matter the advice relates to | Business need | |
| Legal advice and other records relating to specific litigation or claim. | 6 years from settlement or withdrawal of claim | Limitation period | |
| Data subject rights requests | 6 years from closure of request | Limitation period | |
| Previous versions of policies, including IT policy, privacy policy, retention policy etc. | indefinite | Business need and limitation period in the event of a related claim | |
| Monitoring and investigation requests | 6 years from closure of investigation | Limitation period | |
| Insurance claims | 3 years after settlement | Limitation period |
Date: Nov 2024
Tom Prichard
Managing Director