Public inquiries · Inquiries Act 2005
Meet the notice. Show how you met it.
Answer Rule 9 requests and section 21 notices with consistent redactions and ciphers, provenance for every document, and a record of every decision.
Bring a single tranche.
What the law asks
Under the Inquiries Act 2005, an inquiry chair can require documents and evidence by notice (section 21) and restrict what is published (section 19). Most inquiries ask first by written request under rule 9 of the Inquiry Rules 2006.
The terms of reference of the Independent Inquiry into Grooming Gangs (31 March 2026) reach local authorities, police, health and education.
Where it goes wrong
Ciphers drift between tranches, so the same person is named differently in different documents.
Nobody can say quickly where a document came from.
Once published, a missed redaction can't be recalled.
How Smartbox handles it
Different regimes. The same four steps.
Smartbox is the redaction, release and publication layer beside your review platform.
Discover
Take in material with its custodian, source and hash recorded.
Decide
Apply ciphers and restriction categories consistently across every tranche.
Act
Burn redactions in and check each copy before release.
Prove
Release disclosure tranches through one point, sealed with a manifest, with provenance on demand.
Bring a single tranche to a working session.
What you can show afterwards
- Consistent ciphers at scale.
- Redactions in the bytes.
- Provenance on demand.
Questions
Does Smartbox replace our review platform?
No. It sits beside it as the redaction, release and publication layer.Can ciphers stay consistent across tranches?
Yes. Ciphers are held centrally and applied the same way in every tranche.
Beta open now · General availability January 2027
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