OPSI brand to be dropped!
Source: The National Archives, UK
The UK National Archives reviews their brands
London: 4 November 2009
In response to a Freedom of Information Request addressed to the UK National Archives the National Archives have revealed that a review of the National Archive brands has been under way since July 2009 at least. The information released states that the move to a single brand and family is only the first step indicating that further changes will be made in the future.
The information released states that: the highly active public sector (PSI) community would need to be managed and communicated carefully.
The presentation to the National Archives Management Board states that one of the challenges in moving towards a single family of brands is public sector information where it states that:
The PSI community is small (100 – 1000, depending on definition) BUT:
- It is highly active in UK and Europe
- It is well connected to government, with strong supporters
- It directly supports our (The National Archives) wider agenda of information re-use.
The presentation to the National Archives Management Board states that: one of the risks is that:
PSI bodies and their representatives (including EU) perceive UK government continuing to downgrade importance of PSI
And that the mitigation is for:
- APPSI (The UK Advisory Panel on Public Sector Information) regulate The National Archives
- Increase investment, communications and marketing support for PSI
The agreed plan is for:
- The OPSI web site to be closed down by 31st March 2010;
- The National Archives web site to be revised by the 31st March 2010;
- All legislation to be placed on one website.
The National Archives plan to move to a single family of brands was not mentioned at the recent Conference PSI in Action held on 20th September 2009 (as this pre-dates the National Archives Management Board meeting) nor the weaknesses perceived by the National Archives Management Board.
To date the UK Advisory Panel on Public Sector Information (APPSI) has made no announcement yet the information released clearly states that APPSI has a revised role in the National Archives plan.
Earlier Freedom of Information requests submitted to UK Public Sector bodies that are involved in implementing the European Union Directive 2003/98/EC within the UK have denied that there was any move to phase out the OPSI and HMSO brands!
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