The work, led by our National Statistics Advisory Group, examines how we can capitalise on the increasing amounts of data available and look beyond official statistics to help answer society’s most important questions.
The report advocates for an open and ambitious focus on user needs, calling for statistics producers to collaborate with users in designing and publishing a portfolio of outputs. The value of available data should be maximised while ensuring appropriate governance. Additional data sources, for example outputs that voluntarily apply the Code of Practice to their statistics should be better utilised.
Echoing our manifesto, the report emphasises the importance of measuring policymaking not only by its impact on economic growth but also its effects on wellbeing and sustainability, providing a more well-rounded picture on the state of the nation.
The work follows the independent review of the UK Statistics Authority,
welcomed by the RSS. Our report argues that the Triennial Statistical Assembly that the review proposed should be used to test some of the key principles of public statistics.
Paul Allin, RSS honorary officer for national statistics and lead author on the report, said: ‘Public statistics is all about making sure society’s needs lie at the heart of the data we produce. We’re fortunate to have an excellent official statistics system in the UK as the bedrock for public statistics and I hope what we propose in this report sparks a debate about how we can truly maximise all the data available to us.’