Skip to main content

Beta Help improve the content and publishing guidance. Give your feedback (opens in new tab).

Skip past section navigation
Make content requests

Ask for history mode to be removed

If Whitehall content is in ‘history mode’, you cannot update or unpublish it.

You can ask the Government Digital Service (GDS) to:

  • turn off history mode
  • change the ‘associated government’ of content in history mode, if the content was actually first published under a different government

Use the content advice form to make your request.

You’ll need a Signon account with ‘content requesters’ permissions to access the form. Speak to your GOV.UK lead or managing editor if you want access.

Note:

Read more about when history mode will be applied to content.

Asking GDS to turn off history mode

GDS can turn off history mode if you need to:

  • fix an error like a broken link or a typo - they will turn history mode back on when you’re done
  • add a response to a consultation or a call for evidence - if it’s a response from a new government, history mode can be kept off
  • remove an associated minister if they should not be tagged to the current content - this may be the thing putting the content into history mode

GDS cannot turn off history mode if you only want to update the content to keep it current.

If you want to see all the content you have that’s in history mode, go to the ‘Documents’ tab in Whitehall Publisher. Filter the search results as needed, and then select ‘Export as CSV’. The CSV file will have a column saying if the content has history mode applied.

If GDS cannot turn off history mode

If you have content in history mode that’s still current, consider if it should be in a different content type that will not go into history mode.

For example, if it has current guidance for users, consider using a detailed guide or a ‘guidance’ or ‘statutory guidance’ publication. You could then either:

  • create a new version of the content with an explanation that it’s an updated version of the content in history mode, and ask GDS to withdraw the content in history mode
  • ask GDS to change the existing content into the new content type, if you chose the wrong content type initially

If you need to add new attachments to content in history mode, consider creating a new document collection. You could then create separate publications for the new attachments and group the old and new content together in the document collection.