The Territory Records Office provides a number of resources to assist ACT Government agencies with their recordkeeping responsibilities, including:
The Open Access website is a searchable online repository for members of the public to access ACT Government information in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 2016. The website provides information on agencies functional arrangements, policies and grants administration. It also contains links to other important sources of government information such as legislation, budget documents and open data.
ArchivesACT provides access to publically available ACT Government records older than 20 years. The ArchivesACT website also exhibits a number of highlights from the ACT Government archives, including a Find of the Month.
About the Territory Records Office
The Territory Records Office assists Territory agencies to meet their records management requirements.
The Territory Records Office is responsible for the implementation of the Territory Records Act 2002 
and the regulation of recordkeeping across the ACT Government. The main purposes of the Territory Records Act 2002
- To encourage open and accountable government by ensuring that Territory records are made, managed and, if appropriate, preserved in accessible form; and
- To support the management and operation of Territory agencies; and
- To preserve Territory records for the benefit of present and future generations; and
- To ensure that public access to records is consistent with the principles of the Freedom of Information Act 2016 .
The Territory Records Office assists Territory agencies to meet their Records Management requirements as set out in the Territory Records Act 2002 . The Standards for Records Management used by all agencies in the development of their Records Management Programs have been developed by the Territory Records Office.
The Territory Records Act 2002 establishes that each agency is required to develop and maintain a Records Management Program that includes requirements for the creation, management, protection, preservation, storage and disposal of, and access to records of the agency. Agencies are required to develop a Records Management Program that is appropriate and relevant to their functional requirements utilising the Standards and Codes approved by the Director of Territory Records. The Director will ensure that there is a consistent approach to implementing the Standards across government so that records use common terminology and recordkeeping can easily be monitored. A thesaurus of classification terms and disposal schedules for the records of government functions have been developed by the Territory Records Office. An agency’s Records Management Program, which will be the public face of an agency’s recordkeeping practices, will be the primary vehicle for accountability and is to be open for public inspection.
The Territory Records Act 2002 commenced on the 1 July 2003. Part 3 (Access to records) commenced on the 1 July 2008. Records of ACT Government agencies are available under the Access provisions of the Territory Records Act 2002 and the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act 2016. Records access requests can be made through the ArchivesACT website.
Useful Links
- Archives ACT website
- Yarralumla Nursery Records
- Documenting a Democracy
- Auditor-General's Report on Records Management
- Report to the Public Accounts Committee on Records Management No. 1
- Report to the Public Accounts Committee on Records Management No. 2
- Report to the Public Accounts Committee on Records Management No.
- Territory Records Act 2002
- Report of the Review of Operation of the Territory Records Act 2002
- Digital Recordkeeping Pathway Report
- dataACT
- History of open access
- Other Records and Archives Related Links