Website decommissioning comes down to one decision for every URL: redirect it with a 301 to the page that now meets the same need, or let it return an error. Google treats a 404 and a 410 the same way, so the planning effort belongs in the redirect list.
The list matters after switch-off because links on other sites and GOV.UK pages do not update themselves, and Google says it stops using a URL that returns a 4xx status code "over time". Drupal.org gives 9 December 2026 as Drupal 10's end of life, which is one point at which a body may choose to retire a site rather than upgrade it.
What does website decommissioning involve?
Website decommissioning involves listing every URL the site serves, deciding what each one does after closure, capturing an archive copy where one is required and keeping control of the domain once the server is gone.
In a closure, some pages will have no new home, and the URL list records a decision for those too. GOV.UK's transition guidance asks central government teams to "create a list of all the URLs on your website", "including URLs of attachments such as PDFs and any short URLs". Any public body can start there.
Should a closed page return 404 or 410 Gone?
A closed page can return either 404 or 410 Gone, because Google handles the two identically. Its documentation on how HTTP status codes affect Google's crawlers states that "All 4xx errors, except 429, are treated the same".
For either code, "the indexing pipeline removes the URL from the index if it was previously indexed", and "the crawling frequency gradually decreases". Nothing on that page says a 410 clears a URL faster. We suggest 410 for pages withdrawn on purpose, because the code records that intent for whoever reads the server logs next year.
Redirect or remove: one decision per URL
Google describes 301 and 308 redirects as meaning "a page has permanently moved to a new location", and says "a server side redirect has the highest chance of being interpreted correctly by Google". Redirects written into the CMS stop working when the CMS is switched off, so a closing site needs its redirect rules at the web server or the edge.
| What happened to the content | What the old URL should do |
|---|---|
| Moved to a page you still run | 301 to that page |
| Moved to GOV.UK (central government) | Redirect agreed with GDS at least 2 weeks ahead, per the transition guidance |
| Archived by The National Archives, no successor | Redirect to the UK Government Web Archive copy, which the same guidance allows |
| Retired service with a GOV.UK start page | Redirect to the start page, per the Service Manual |
| Withdrawn, with nothing to replace it | 404 or 410 |
Sending every old URL to the home page fits none of these cases: someone following a link to a form needs the replacement or a clear sign that it has gone.
How long should redirects stay in place after a site closes?
Redirects should stay in place for at least a year, the period Google gives in its site move documentation: "Keep the redirects for as long as possible, generally at least 1 year." The same page adds: "From users' perspective, consider keeping redirects indefinitely."
That guidance is written for site moves. For a retired government service, the Service Manual is more specific: a service live for longer than 6 months keeps its subdomain redirecting for a year after it retired, "or until the current SSL certificate expires, whichever comes first."
Redirects on an HTTPS site need the domain and a valid certificate for as long as they run.
Do we have to archive a government website before closing it?
A central government body should have The National Archives capture a closing website before it goes. The archive's selection policy, OSP27 (2014), aims to capture "the whole of the UK central government web estate". Where a site closes because its GOV.UK exemption is refused or revoked, GOV.UK's exemption guidance says "You must make sure the National Archives holds a copy of the website before it closes." Councils sit outside the archive's day-to-day scope; OSP27 covers local government only through pilot studies.
The published notice periods do not agree. OSP27 and The National Archives' 2017 guidance for digital and records management teams ask for at least eight weeks' notice, the 2017 closure checklist starts "at least 10 weeks before closure", and GOV.UK's transition guidance says to ask for a copy "4 weeks before you intend to close it." Contact the Web Archiving Team as early as possible.
Its guidance on archiving a website which is closing says the site must "remain live and accessible to the crawlers at all times during the archiving process", which "can take several weeks". Content behind a login is not captured, according to the 2017 guidance. A council closing a site needs its own decision on where an archive copy lives.
Should we keep the domain after the site closes?
We advise keeping the domain registered after a site closes, and The National Archives gives central government the same advice. Its 2017 guidance says ownership "should be retained by the publishing government organisation even after the final crawl", because it "prevents 'cybersquatting'" and keeps the option of redirects to the archive.
For .gov.uk domains, which councils of every tier can hold, GOV.UK's guidance on stopping use of a .gov.uk domain sets out two routes: keep and protect the domain, or delete it from the registry. A kept domain needs renewing every 2 years, otherwise "the domain will be suspended and could become vulnerable to hijacking". It should stop sending email, and its security certificates still need renewing.
Neither source sets a minimum period for keeping the domain, though GOV.UK's domain guidance warns: "Do not simply stop paying your domain renewal fee when you want to stop using your domain."
Finding what still points at the old site
Search Console's Links report is incomplete: Google says its tables "are limited to 1,000 rows" and that the report "isn't a comprehensive list of every link on your site." Add the referrer data in your server logs, and export the logs before the server is removed. Under the default browser referrer policy, a link from another HTTPS site to an HTTPS page passes "the origin (only)", so the logs show which sites send visitors.
AI answers are the other place a closed site can surface. Google's AI features documentation says a page can be shown as a supporting link in AI Overviews and AI Mode only if it is "indexed and eligible to be shown in Google Search with a snippet", so URLs Google drops from its index stop qualifying there. Before switch-off, ask several AI tools the questions the old service answered and note the pages they cite, then repeat after closure. Our piece on why AI answers quote out-of-date pages covers the publishing side.
What to ask your hosting and build supplier before switch-off
- Can you export every URL the site serves, with its status code? A strong answer combines the CMS content list, attachments and server logs. A sitemap export alone can leave out files and short URLs.
- Where will the redirect rules run once the CMS is off, and who keeps them running? A strong answer names the server or edge layer, the supplier responsible and an end date.
- In whose name are the domain and the DNS held? A strong answer is your organisation's registrant account with a documented DNS change process; a domain held in the supplier's account is weak.
- Who renews the TLS certificate after closure, and until when? Look for a named owner and a renewal date that covers the redirect period.
- How long are server and access logs kept after exit, and in what format can we have them? A strong answer gives a retention period and an export before decommissioning. "Logs go with the server" loses the record of which sites sent visitors.
- For central government, will the site stay live and frozen while The National Archives crawls it? Expect a freeze date.
Our piece on business continuity and disaster recovery for websites covers the rest of a hosting exit.
How Axistwelve handles a closing site
Axistwelve runs its own secure hosting in UK data centres and holds ISO 27001:2022 through BSI. If you are planning to close a site, or need somewhere to run a redirect estate after the original platform goes, talk to us about hosting it.
Before you switch the site off
- URL list: export every page, attachment and short URL, with a decision against each, before the website decommissioning date is set.
- Redirect map: put the rules at the web server or edge, and plan to keep them for at least a year.
- Archive: central government should contact The National Archives early; councils need their own archive decision.
- Domain and certificate: keep the domain registered, stop it sending email and assign certificate renewal to a named owner.
- Inbound links: write to the owners of linking pages, including GOV.UK content owners, with the replacement URL for each link.
- Afterwards: check what search and AI tools say about the old service, and make sure the replacement page answers the same questions.
- Platform deadlines: if Drupal 10 end of life is the trigger, read our Drupal 10 end of life piece first, and our note on reducing technical debt for sequencing.
Frequently asked questions
Can we use Google's Change of Address tool when a site closes?
Google's Change of Address tool is for moving a site from one domain or subdomain to another, and Search Console Help says "You must be an owner of both the old and new properties in Search Console." A closure with no successor site has no new property, so the tool plays no part, and the same holds when content moves to a domain you do not own, such as GOV.UK.
Does the Removals tool take a closed site out of Google permanently?
The Search Console Removals tool is temporary: Google says requests "last for about 6 months". On a closed site, a 404 or 410 on each URL takes it out of Google's index over time.
What happens to a retired service's GOV.UK start page?
A retired service's GOV.UK start page is changed to explain that the service is no longer running, according to the Service Manual. The redirect plan should include "serving a redirect from your service to the GOV.UK start page", with the subdomain kept working over SSL for the period the manual sets.
