MC1287368 - Team site homepages will automatically collapse inactive News web parts

Updated April 28, 2026: We have updated the timeline. Thank you for your patience. 

Introduction

To help reduce visual clutter and keep SharePoint team site homepages focused on active content, we’re introducing an automatic collapse behavior for the News web part. When a team site homepage hasn’t been edited in 30 days and no news has been published on the site, the News web part will collapse by default. This change will help surface relevant information while preserving existing News authoring and configuration capabilities.

When this will happen

• Targeted Release: Rollout will begin in late April 2026 and is expected to complete byearly May 2026 (previously late April 2026April).
• General Availability (Worldwide, GCC, GCC High, and DoD): Rollout will begin in early May 2026 (previously late April 2026April) and is expected to complete by mid-late May 2026(previously mid-May).

How this affects your organization

Who is affected

• All Microsoft 365 tenants using SharePoint Online
• Team site homepages that include the News web part

What will happen

• The News web part will automatically collapse on a team site homepage if the homepage has not been edited for 30 days and no News posts have been published.
• This behavior will be enabled by default.
• Site owners and users will be able to expand the News web part at any time.
• Publishing new News posts or editing the homepage will restore normal visibility of the News web part.
• This change will not affect News authoring workflows, configuration options, or permissions.

What you can do to prepare

• No action will be required from administrators.
• You may want to inform site owners about this automatic behavior.
• Consider updating internal SharePoint documentation or helpdesk guidance if you describe default homepage behavior.

Compliance considerations