What to change
Ask for evidence from the published address, not the editing system setting alone. A preview restriction may be copied into the page or supplied by the host, so changing one checkbox can leave the other restriction active. The supplier should identify which layer introduced the exclusion, correct that layer and show that future public releases will not inherit the same setting. A search-exclusion instruction is not access protection. Ask the supplier to keep any private preview behind its intended sign-in or other access controls.
A worked example
Illustrative example
Illustrative test: Compare a published guide with its preview excluded from search; only the public version should permit indexing. Suppose your practice publishes a new guide to preparing an enquiry, but staff can find it only through the direct link. The supplier discovers that the public copy retained its preview exclusion. Ask them to show the corrected public instruction and the still-restricted preview side by side. Record when the correction went live so later search observations are not confused with the earlier blocked version.
What this means for your practice
A guide can be ready for visitors while still carrying the instruction used to keep its unfinished preview out of search. Your supplier may call this instruction noindex. It asks a search engine not to include the page. Start by confirming that the guide is approved for public discovery. Ask the supplier to check the live address, because the editor's settings may not describe what is actually published. The useful outcome is removal of the accidental restriction, plus a check that later releases will not restore it. Allowing a public page to be considered for search does not guarantee when it will appear or how prominently it will rank.
How to check the result
The supplier demonstrates that the live guide has no accidental search-exclusion instruction, while the preview keeps its intended protection.
A mistake to avoid
Removing preview protection everywhere creates a different exposure problem.
Turn reading into a next step
Your action checklist
Work through these checks with your team or supplier. Tick the ones you have resolved and leave unknowns open.
Record what you know, what is still missing and the answer you need from your team or supplier.
Use project decisions only, without personal, patient or confidential details. Entries stay in this page and are not submitted to Kay & Co. Copy or download before leaving; this page does not save your notes.
Further reading
These sources provide background for the topic. The practice examples and checklist are illustrative planning suggestions from Kay & Co.
Related guides
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