Retire outdated content
You can either:
- withdraw the content - this keeps the content on the site, but it does not appear in internal search results and there’ll be a banner to it to explain that the content is no longer current
- unpublish the content - this removes the content from the site completely and lets you set up a redirect to current content
Some content can be ‘retired’ automatically. This is called ‘history mode’, which can be applied to certain content if the government changes. This:
- puts a banner on the content to explain that it was published under a previous government
- makes the content appear less prominently in internal search results
If you want to retire mainstream content, you can only unpublish it. Ask the Government Digital Service (GDS) if you want to unpublish mainstream content.
When to withdraw content
Guidance should usually be updated rather than withdrawn. However, you can withdraw and create a new content item if there’s a new and distinct user need.
Other content can be withdrawn if it’s no longer current. For example:
- news articles and press releases that are over a year old
- details about expired schemes and services
- policy papers that are not current or relevant
- content that shows earlier versions of infrastructure plan changes, such as old plans for the HS2 train line route - withdraw eveything but the most up to date plans
Do not withdraw consultations unless you know that a subsequent consultation directly supersedes an existing one.
A broad test to keep in mind when deciding to withdraw a content item is, ‘will leaving it as it is get in the way of a non-specialist user?’ For example, an old policy announcement about a benefit that’s appearing in the search results above the guide on how to claim that benefit.
You can edit content after you withdraw it. You can also ‘unwithdraw’ it later if you change your mind.
What happens to withdrawn content
Withdrawing content means it’s still available at the same URL. You will not be able to create any new versions of the content while it’s withdrawn but you can edit the public explanatory text that appears on the page.
Links to the withdrawn content on other pages will not be automatically removed from other pages.
It will not appear on:
- internal site search results
- document collections
- the list of announcements on a person’s profile page
- topic pages
It will still appear in:
- Google search results, and attachments can still be reached directly from Google
- featured link slots on organisation pages if you’ve featured it - you’ll have to un-feature the content separately
The guidance on how to update content on GOV.UK explains how to withdraw content.
When to unpublish content
Content should not normally be unpublished from the GOV.UK website.
However, you can unpublish a page when:
- the content has been included in another page
- the user need is better met elsewhere on GOV.UK
- you published it in error, or before you were meant to
- someone has exercised their right to erasure (right to be forgotten)
- it contains someone’s personal details
- it contains details of a spent conviction
- it’s out of proposition for GOV.UK
- it infringes copyright
- it’s defamatory or obscene
You can republish content later if you change your mind.
Unpublished content will go into an ‘unpublished’ state in Whitehall publisher. You cannot delete this unpublished content from Whitehall publisher.
The guidance on how to update content on GOV.UK explains how to unpublish content.
When history mode gets applied
History mode is applied to content when:
- the government changes following a general election
- the ‘first published’ date of the content or the ‘delivered on’ date for a speech is during a previous government
- it was published through Whitehall Publisher
- it was tagged to an organisation that is associated with government policy when it was first published (for example, ministerial departments)
- the ‘political’ box has been ticked (see more details about this box in our guidance on how to update content on GOV.UK)
History mode applies to these content types automatically:
- consultations
- calls for evidence
- corporate or annual reports
- government responses
- impact assessments
- news stories
- policy papers
- press releases
- speeches
It can also apply to detailed guides and document collections if the ‘political’ box has been ticked.
It applies to these content types if they were associated with a minister when they were first published:
- case studies
- correspondence
- decision
- forms
- FOI releases
- guidance
- independent reports
- international treaties
- maps
- notices
- promotional material
- regulations
- statutory guidance
- transparency data
It cannot be applied to:
- accredited official statistics
- fatality notices
- manuals
- ‘mainstream’ content
- official statistics
Content in history mode does not need to be ‘withdrawn’ as well, unless you find evidence that users need a link to a newer document that replaced it.
Before a general election, affected organisations will be asked by GDS to do a history mode audit of their content. If you’re part of that audit, you’ll be able to:
- see what content will go into history mode if the government changes
- prevent content from going into history mode if you think there is a problem
If you think content should be removed from history mode after it’s been applied, ask GDS for help.