03 February 2025
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Late 2023 the Ministry of Justice proposed destruction of original wills. Genealogist Richard Holt led the petition to prevent this action
Professional genealogist Richard Holt reports on the Government’s response to the consultation and invites us to ‘remain vigilant of a number of issues raised’
In December 2023 the Ministry of Justice published a consultation proposing the destruction of original wills following digitisation.
What was the Government's response to the Ministry of Justice proposal to destroy historic wills?
I would like to thank Family Tree readers for your efforts in responding to the consultation, signing the petition and writing to your MPs.
The Government’s response has finally been published and can read in full at the following link: www.gov.uk/government/consultations/storage-and-retention-of-original-will-documents.
Why has the proposed destruction of the wills been stepped down?
Almost 1,600 organisations and individuals responded to the consultation, many of whom were described as family historians and genealogists.
The issues raised in those responses have been listened to by the Government who has decided “that it will not pursue any reform that involves the destruction of original will documents.”
This is a win for family historians worldwide, however the battle is not entirely over.
We need to remain vigilant of a number of issues raised in the response including future changes to legislation, born-digital wills and changes to fees for digital copies.
About the Ministry of Justice and storage of wills going forward
It appears that the Ministry of Justice is now more fully aware of its responsibilities under the Public Records Act, including how this legislation affects the storage and retention of these documents. However, uncertainty still remains when it comes to accessing many of these valuable records.
Justice minister Sarah Sackman stated that the documents “will remain in storage, and – on request – are available for all to access,” but in reality, much of the vast archive cannot be accessed. This includes many original wills where only office copies are supplied. It also includes other documents submitted during the probate application process.
As a community, we need clarification on how we can access records that can’t be ordered via the Probate Search Service and, despite such a positive response to the consultation, we should not stop seeking these answers.
Editor’s note: Richard Holt established the petition to #SaveOurWills
