Help! I’m an Accidental Government Information Librarian presents ... Historical Economic Data Sources & Economic Time Travel

The Government Resources Section of the North Carolina Library Association is holding a series of webinars designed to increase familiarity with government information resources, and the best strategies for navigating them.

 

Session #29 on historical economic data sources  will take place online on August 21 from 12:00 – 1:00 p.m. (Eastern). Please RSVP for the Session by August 20 at 5:00 pm using this link: https://tinyurl.com/grs-session29

In economics, historical data aren’t necessarily 200 years old; historical data could be two weeks old. That’s because economic data are revised, frequently. And those revisions mean that the historical data librarians find for patrons may not be the same values that an individual would have seen when the data were initially released. Economic data are made from estimates. Over time, more information becomes available and these estimates are revised. Policy-makers, businesses, and consumers make economic and financial decisions based on unrevised data available at a point in time. These unrevised are useful for studying historic decisions and economic policies. This webinar will describe sources available for uncovering historical economic data and methods for using those sources that provide a window into the past.  

 

Pamela Campbell is a Senior Librarian at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. She has been working with government documents for nearly four years, with a focus on economic history. Pamela is part of the team that provides FRASER <http://fraser.stlouisfed.org/>, a digital library dedicated to preserving the nation’s economic history.

 

Technical requirements: The webinar will be via Blackboard Collaborate. The conneting PC must have JAVA. On RSVP, a link will be sent that can be used to test the software. No microphone is needed as a chat system is available in the software, but speakers or headphones will be necessary.

 

If you have any questions, please contact Lynda Kellam (lmkellam@uncg.edu).   

The session will be recorded and made available after the live session, linked from the NCLA GRS web page (http://www.nclaonline.org/government-resources).

HMRC consultation on data sharing

Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is seeking views on the department sharing non identifiable information for the creation of general, aggregate and anonymised datasets, and on proposed safeguards.

The consultation also covers the potential benefits, costs / risks and necessary safeguards for proposals to share VAT registration data, either publicly or under controlled conditions for specified purposes, for example, credit rating. Views are welcome on the principles underlying these proposals and on the suggested approaches to implementation.

The consultation will run until the 24th September 2013. You can find out more information and download the consultation documentation from https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/sharing-and-publishing-data-for-public-benefit.

Beyond 2011 programme - National Records of Scotland public engagement events

The Beyond 2011 programme was initiated by the National Records of Scotland (NRS) to propose viable alternative options to the traditional census in Scotland. The census has long been the benchmark for capturing a comprehensive, consolidated and accurate snapshot of the population.  However, various sources indicate that the current system of providing population and key socio-demographic statistics is no longer meeting all user needs.  

The Beyond 2011 programme will produce an options paper for Scottish Government ministers, describing the work that has been completed in the research phase and detailing the options for the next phases. 

As part of this research phase, NRS need to determine what the user requirements are for producing small area population and socio-demographic statistics and would like to invite your views.  A series of public engagement events in the morning and afternoon (times to be confirmed) of the 19th and 21st February 2013 will be held at the Dome, New Register House, Edinburgh (http://www.gro-scotland.gov.uk/contacts/opentime/colormap.html). 

If you would like to attend or for more information please contact beyond2011@gro-scotland.gsi.gov.uk by the 21st January 2013 and state your preferred date and session. 

The Beyond 2011 programme also has a group on the Knowledge Hub which can be accessed from https://knowledgehub.local.gov.uk/group/scottishbeyond2011programmebeyond2011scotland.  Registration is required.

Manchester Statistical Society Meeting: The Quality of Data

The quality of data in Britain

 

Tuesday 15 January 2013 at 5.30pm (refreshments available from 5.15pm)

Jil Matheson

National Statistician, Head of the Government Statistical Service & Chief Executive of the UK Statistics Authority

Manchester Statistical Society

Questioning Social & Economic Issues

 President: Dr Philip Lund

http://www.manstatsoc.org/

Britain has a rich history of data that has been used to inform and influence public debate for many years. Our views around what we mean by ‘quality’ have been built on this tradition of data. But with mountains of data now being generated every day, are our traditional measures of quality still the right ones to use? The public increasingly only sees statistics through the media - so how can they know the quality of what they see, and how does this affect their trust in statistics? Statisticians need to consider where we fit in to this new world of data and how we respond to the challenges that it presents us.

 

Jil Matheson was appointed National Statistician, Head of the Government Statistical Service and Chief Executive of the UK Statistics Authority in September 2009.

The meeting will be held at the Manchester Cathedral Visitor Centre, 10 Cateaton Street, Manchester M3 1SQ, starting at 5.30 and ending about 7pm.

Please notify your intention to attend by Friday 11 January 2013 at the latest. Bookings received after this date may not be accepted.

Please send an email to brian.robson@manchester.ac.uk if you are likely to attend.

The Changing Shape of UK Business: An event to promote the use and understanding of business statistics

As part of the Office for National Statistics' drive to promote the use and understanding of business statistics, the Office for National Statistics and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills are jointly coordinating an event:
The Changing Shape of UK Business

Understanding the structure, content and performance of UK business

The event is an opportunity producers of business statistics, to engage with a wide range of stakeholders. The event will be opened by Andrew Dilnot CBE, Chair of the UK Statistics Authority, and former Director of the Institute of Fiscal Studies. It will feature a range of talks from users, producers and suppliers of business statistics, not just from central government and the Devolved Administrations, but also local government, business representatives and researchers. The event will also include a  session to discuss the priorities for users and producers of business statistics over the next few years.

The objectives of the event are to:

• share what we know about the structure, content and performance of UK business;
• raise awareness of the importance and coverage of our statistics;
• hear from users about the range of uses to which our statistics are put; and
• discuss future plans and priorities with a range of users.

Venue and date

The all-day event will take place at the St Giles Hotel, central London, on Tuesday 6 November 2012.

Presentations

The organisers are hoping to bring together a collection of speakers from a range of backgrounds in order to share and learn from one another's experiences of using business statistics in different contexts.

Therefore they are calling for presentations on users experiences using business statistics  - for example, what statistics you use, how you use them, and what decisions or research are informed by them. Presentation slots will be 20 minutes, which will include some time for questions, and the organisers are more than happy to discuss proposed talks.

The deadline for submission of abstracts is Tuesday 11 September 2012, and the deadline to receive presentations will be Tuesday 23 October 2012. Please send abstracts to Katy Nicholls, katy.nicholls@ons.gsi.gov.uk .

Registration

Please visit event web page to download the registration form and to find more information on the agenda and logistical arrangements: http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/media-centre/events/the-changing-shape-of-uk-businesses/index.html.

The deadline for registration is Friday 12 October 2012. There will be no charge for attendees at this event, but please note that numbers are limited.

UK Census 2011 - second round of results released

The latest table layouts for the second release of 2011 Census tables have been added to the website. See the links below.

Key Statistics

http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/census/2011/census-data/2011-census-prospectus/release-plans-for-2011-census-statistics/second-release-of-2011-census-statistics/key-statistics--table-layouts.xls

Quick Statistics

http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/census/2011/census-data/2011-census-prospectus/release-plans-for-2011-census-statistics/second-release-of-2011-census-statistics/quick-statistics--table-layouts.xls

You may also find this link to the 2001/2011 Table Comparison helpful http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/census/2011/census-data/2011-census-prospectus/release-plans-for-2011-census-statistics/second-release-of-2011-census-statistics/table-look-up-file.xls

2011 Census homepage :-http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/census/2011/index.html

2011 Census News and Events

http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/census/2011/the-2011-census/news-and-events/index.html

Intergrated Household Survey Consultation

In light of the diminishing sample size of the Integrated Household Survey and subsequent loss of statistical precision for Sexual Identity estimates at the Local Authority level, ONS is asking for feedback from IHS data users on this proposal for the future of the IHS datasets.

ONS do not believe quarterly annual IHS datasets, comprising only the Annual Population Survey and the Living Costs and Food Survey, provide value for money and propose to reduce the IHS to one annual dataset per year – based on the January to December fieldwork period.

The last quarterly dataset ONS is planning to produce will be the April 2011 to March 2012 dataset, which will comprise four quarters of APS and LCF and only three quarters of GLF. This experimental dataset is due to be released in September 2012, with its associated Statistical Bulletin. The next dataset will be the January to December 2012 dataset, due to be released in June 2013. This means that datasets Jul11-Jun12 and Oct11-Sep12 will be omitted from production and delivery.

ONS are interested in IHS data users' views on this proposal and would appreciate feedback by the end of October 2012, using the email addresses below: 

caroline.jones@ons.gsi.gov.uk
dean.fletcher@ons.gsi.gov.uk
simon.woodsford@ons.gsi.gov.uk

UK Census 2011 First Results Released

The first results from the 2011 Census were made available today from 11am. Please see the link below for access to the estimates and supporting information: www.ons.gov.uk/census

2011 Census homepage: http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/census/2011/index.html

2011 Census News and Events: http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/census/2011/the-2011-census/news-and-events/index.html

ESDS R Guide to Large-Scale Government Surveys

ESDS Government has produced a new guide, The R Guide to ESDS Large-Scale Government Surveys. The aim of this guide is to provide an introduction to analysing large scale government surveys with the help of the R statistical software package. This document is targeted at two categories of users:

1. Those outside higher education, or who do not have access to one of the commonly used statistical packages such as Stata, SPSS or SAS (as R is free of charge) but who would like to conduct their own analysis beyond what is usually published by data producers such as the Office for National Statistics (for example statistics for specific groups of the population).

2. More advanced users who are already familiar with one of the aforementioned packages but would like to learn how to carry out their analyses in R. The guide, therefore, focuses on providing step-by-step examples of common operations most users carry out in the course of their research: how to open data sets, do basic data manipulation operations, produce simple descriptive statistics or weighted contingency tables. This is meant to provide the first category of users with a range of procedures that will help them produce straightforward and robust analyses tailored to their needs without spending too much time on learning the inner workings of R. The second category of users will find a number of familiar operations from which they will be able to further expand their R skills.

It should be noted however that this guide is not an introduction to R. Beginners should use it in conjunction with one of the more comprehensive guides available online. Links and information about R resources are available at the end of the guide, which is available from http://www.esds.ac.uk/government/resources/analysis/

Statistics on Wealth Inequality

A meeting of the Official Statistics Section will take place on 21 May 2012 from 5 to 7pm with tea/coffee served in the basement from 4.30pm.

RSS, Errol Street, EC1Y 8LX

Speakers

Elaine Chamberlain, Statistician, Wealth and Assets Survey, Office for National Statistics
John Hills, Professor of Social Policy at the London School of Economics and Director of the Research Centre for the Analysis of Social Exclusion

Summary

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) conducted the first wave of the Wealth and Assets Survey between July 2006 and June 2008.  This survey is unique in both its comprehensive coverage of assets (financial, property, pensions, possessions), debts and savings, attitudes towards debt and savings and the characteristics of households, but also in its coverage of all persons living in private households in Great Britain.

The second wave of the survey, returning to households who responded in wave 1, commenced in July 2008, finishing in June 2010.

Elaine will speak about the results from wave 2 of the survey, the first of which were published in December 2011:  http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/was/wealth-in-great-britain-wave-2/2008-2010--part-1-/pra---was-wave-2--part-1-.pdf. Further data, including the first longitudinal data from the survey, are due to be published in the first half of 2012.

John will range more widely over statistics available on wealth and income inequality and their implications, and will also respond to the ONS presentation.

Attendance

Attendance is free and open to all, but pre-registration is recommended. You can register by email meetings@rss.org.uk or by phone (020) 7638 8998. 

For further information about the meeting contact Philip Turnbull (pturnbullmk@gmail.com).

2011 Census Prospectus

The 2011 Census Prospectus is now live on the ONS website: http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/census/2011/census-data/2011-census-prospectus/index.html

It contains information about the staged releases of the 2011 Census statistics, and details new developments.

The 2011 Census Prospectus is a dynamic document and will be updated regularly.

2011 Census homepage :- http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/census/2011/index.html

2011 Census News and Events http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/census/2011/the-2011-census/news-and-events/index.html

National Hack the Government Day

Rewired State, in partnership with the Government Digital Service are holding the fourth annual National Hack the Government Day.

If you would like to code a better country, by taking government data and creating prototypes of tools, services, applications or even websites then go along on the 21st April 2012.

The day will be all about having free rein, doing whatever you fancy and showing it at the end to an audience of interested people, including government, industry and press at a 'show and tell'.

Drinks and nibbles will be provided throughout the day (as well as lunch).

To sign up to the Hack day, or for a ticket to the 'show and tell' please see http://rewiredstate.org/events/nhtg12

Data for research on Wales: What do you need?

The Welsh Government is currently undertaking a project to identify ways in which it can help to maximise the use of detailed survey and administrative data for research purposes. As part of this project we are seeking views on the data needs of researchers working on issues for which data for Wales is required.

If you have any feedback on the questions below – or any other comments on how to improve access to data for Wales or how to maximise the use of existing data for research  purposes please email Tanvi Desai on Tanvi.Desai@wales.gsi.gov.uk by Wednesday 4th April 2012. 

• do you have any problems accessing the data you need for your work/research on Wales?
• if you do, is this because

®    as far as you know the data you need do not exist?

®    the data do exist, but are not accessible?

®    the data exist, are accessible, but you do not have the necessary infrastructure (eg. sufficient processing, computing power to analyse data, adequate set up to safeguard sensitive data)

Please provide as much detail as possible on the following:

• Description of data you believe do not exist;
• Name and source of any datasets you have difficulty accessing;
• The nature of the access difficulty (is it cost, timeliness, restrictions on the level of detail etc?);
• Any infrastructure that could help your work whether you need more processing and storage space on IT systems, an area where sensitive data can be analysed securely (eg. a safe room), more information on available data etc.

Measuring National Well-being

A joint meeting of the Official Statistics and Social Statistics Sections will take place on

8th March 2012 at 5pm with tea/coffee from 4.30pm, at the RSS, 12 Errol Street EC1Y 8LX

Speakers

Paul Allin, Director: Measuring National Well-being (MNW) programme, Office for National Statistics

Charles Seaford, Head of the Centre for Well-being, New Economics Foundation, will respond as a discussant.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) Measuring National Well-being (MNW) programme aims to develop and publish an accepted and trusted set of National Statistics to understand and monitor well-being.

The programme was launched in November 2010 with a national debate on ‘What matters to you?’ to improve understanding of what should be included in measures of the nation’s well-being. Further information on the programme is at http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/user-guidance/well-being/index.html

ONS has been undertaking  a consultation seeking views on a proposed set of domains (aspects of national well-being) and headline indicators which were outlined in the discussion paper “Measuring National Well-being - Discussion paper on domains and measures” (31 October 2011). The domains and indicators were developed from responses to the national debate, research into well-being and international initiatives.

In addition, ONS have recently released initial experimental results looking at individuals assessments of their own well-being, collected via ONS’s Opinions survey.

Attendance is free and open to all, but pre-registration is recommended. You can register by email meetings@rss.org.uk or by phone (020) 7638 8998. 
For further information about the meeting contact Charles Lound or David Matz (charles.lound@ons.gsi.gov.uk or david.matz@homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk)

NHS Lifestyle Surveys Consultation

The NHS Information Centre (IC) publishes the following Lifestyles survey publications: 

• Health Survey for England – Health, Lifestyles and Social Care
• Smoking, Drinking and Drug Use Among Young People in England
• Infant Feeding Survey

The findings are used to provide an insight into the health and behaviour of people in England. The longevity of the surveys also enables changing trends to be studied over time. They can be used to help decision makers improve policies and services and ultimately improve the health of population in this country.

The NHS IC has launched a public consultation on the Lifestyles surveys with the following aims:

• to engage with the users of the surveys to develop a more complete understanding of the use made of this data
• to ensure the surveys are relevant and meaningful to the needs of users
• to seek the views of users on the content and format of the publications

This consultation will run for 12 weeks from Friday 30 December 2011 to Friday 23 March 2012. Please ensure you submit any comments prior to the closing date so they can be considered.

Further details, along with the full consultation document are available at

www.ic.nhs.uk/work-with-us/consultations/lifestyles-surveys-consultation-review

If you would like to know more about the consultation or if you have any queries, please contact the Lifestyles Statistics Section Head: 

Paul Eastwood

Email: paul.eastwood@ic.nhs.uk

Telephone: 0113 254 2509

Business Microdata Workshop

Researchers interested to know more about how business microdata might expand or accelerate their work are invited to a free workshop in London. The Secure Data Service, a partner of both the UK Data Archive and the Economic and Social Data Service (ESDS), is hosting the workshop in support of the ESRC Secondary Data Analysis Initiative.

The half-day event, set for 21 February 2012 from 13.00 to 16.00, will be moved to the Medical Research Council offices in London to accommodate additional researchers.

The programme will provide an introduction to the range of business data made available to qualified and approved researchers through the Secure Data Service. This data is collected by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), and other government agencies. These data are confidential and collected under statistics legislation. Because they are highly identifiable, they can only be accessed under secure conditions. Attendees will learn how the Secure Data Service works, including details on how to apply. There will also be a surgery session to respond to user needs and questions.

This is one of a series of events organised by ESDS in support of the ESRC Secondary Data Analysis Initiative. These events are designed for researchers who are not current users of these ESRC-funded data resources, and who wish to apply for grants under this Initiative. It is not suitable for students.

The course is free to attend, but booking is essential. See details and booking form at the link below:

http://www.esds.ac.uk/news/eventdetail.asp?id=3060

Immigration Statistics July-Sept 2011

The Home Office has published Immigration Statistics July – September 2011. This release provides the latest provisional figures on those subject to immigration control, for the period up to the end of September 2011 and is available from http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/publications/science-research-statistics/research-statistics/immigration-asylum-research/immigration-q3-2011/

 The release includes a number of new developments that are detailed on the Summary page http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/publications/science-research-statistics/research-statistics/immigration-asylum-research/immigration-q3-2011/immigration-q3-summary 

If you have any questions or comments about this release, please send an email to MigrationStatsEnquiries@homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk 

Also released today are migration- and population–related data from Office for National Statistics, Department for Work and Pensions and National Records of Scotland, all of which can be accessed from http://www.statistics.gov.uk/hub/index.html 

Opinions and Lifestyle Survey User Meeting - Call for Papers

ESDS Government is organising an Opinions and Lifestyle User Meeting for Wednesday 21 March 2012 at the Royal Statistical Society, London.  

The Opinions and Lifestyle Survey is a new survey that will be created in 2012 as a result of merging the ONS Opinions survey with some of the previous General Lifestyle Survey questions. For more information on this please follow this link: http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/about-ons/consultations/closed-consultations/2011/the-future-of-the-glf-survey/index.html

The User Meeting will provide users will valuable information from ONS on the content and methodology of the new survey. The meeting will also comprise a number of papers from users of the current ONS Opinions Survey and the General Lifestyle Survey. We, therefore, invite offers of presentations from researchers based on the analysis of either the ONS Opinions Survey or the General Lifestyle Survey.

Details of previous user meetings can be found at http://www.ccsr.ac.uk/esds/events/types/user/

Please send your title and abstract, of around 200 words, to gillian.meadows@manchester.ac.uk as soon as possible but by 23 December at the latest.

Select Committee Inquiry: The Census and Social Science

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY COMMITTEE

No. 98 (10-12): 9 November 2011

NEW INQUIRY ANNOUNCED: The census and social science

In July 2010 the Government announced that the Census, the official population count carried out by Government every 10 years, would be axed after 2011. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) set up the Beyond 2011 Programme to investigate and assess alternative options for producing the population and socio-demographic data required in England and Wales.

The Science and Technology Committee has agreed to conduct a short inquiry looking at the impact of ending the Census on social science research. It is anticipated that this will feed into the work of the ONS.

Terms of Reference

The Committee seeks written submissions on the following matters:

1. How do social scientists use Census data?
2. What impact will the ending of the Census have on social science research?
3. What alternatives to the Census would provide population and socio-demographic data of equivalent or higher quality?
4. What other existing sources of population and socio-demographic data could be improved upon?

Submitting written evidence

The Committee invites written submissions on these issues by noon on Wednesday 30 November 2011.

Each submission should:

a) be no more than 3,000 words in length;
b) be in Word format with as little use of colour or logos as possible;
c) have numbered paragraphs; and
d) include a declaration of interests.

A copy of the submission should be sent by e-mail to scitechcom@parliament.uk and marked "Census". An additional paper copy should be sent in due course (not by the deadline) to:

The Clerk
Science and Technology Committee
House of Commons
7 Millbank
London SW1P 3JA

Please note that:

·                     ▪ Material already published elsewhere should not form the basis of a submission, but may be referred to within a proposed memorandum, in which case a hard copy of the published work should be included.

·                     ▪ Memoranda submitted must be kept confidential until published by the Committee, unless publication by the person or organisation submitting it is specifically authorised.

·                     ▪ Once submitted, evidence is the property of the Committee. The Committee normally, though not always, chooses to make public the written evidence it receives, by publishing it on the internet (where it will be searchable), by printing it or by making it available through the Parliamentary Archives. If there is any information you believe to be sensitive you should highlight it and explain what harm you believe would result from its disclosure. The Committee will take this into account in deciding whether to publish or further disclose the evidence.

·                     ▪ Select Committees are unable to investigate individual cases.

More information on submitting evidence to Select Committees may be found on the parliamentary website at: http://www.parliament.uk/get-involved/have-your-say/take-part-in-committee-inquiries/witness/

FURTHER INFORMATION

Committee Membership:

Andrew Miller (Labour, Ellesmere Port and Neston) (Chair)
Gavin Barwell (Conservative, Croydon Central)
Gregg McClymont (Labour, Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East)
Stephen McPartland (Conservative, Stevenage)
Stephen Metcalfe (Conservative, South Basildon and East Thurrock)
David Morris (Conservative, Morecambe and Lunesdale)
Stephen Mosley (Conservative, City of Chester)
Pamela Nash (Labour, Airdrie and Shotts)
Jonathan Reynolds (Labour/Co-operative, Stalybridge and Hyde)
Graham Stringer (Labour, Blackley and Broughton)
Roger Williams (Liberal Democrat, Brecon and Radnorshire)

Specific Committee Information:  scitechcom@parliament.uk / 020 7219 2793
Media Information: Rebecca Jones  jonesbl@parliament.uk / 020 7219 5693
Committee Website: www.parliament.uk/science
Watch committees and parliamentary debates online:  www.parliamentlive.tv

Publications / Reports / Reference Material: Copies of all select committee reports are available from the Parliamentary Bookshop (12 Bridge St, Westminster, 020 7219 3890) or the Stationery Office (0845 7023474).  Committee reports, press releases, evidence transcripts, Bills; research papers, a directory of MPs, plus Hansard (from 8am daily) and much more, can be found on www.parliament.uk

Call for papers - Living Costs and Food Survey user meeting

ESDS Government is organising it's first LCF user meeting for Tuesday 20 March 2012 at the Royal Statistical Society, London. The programme will contain a mixture of papers from data producers and researchers. We invite offers of presentations based on analysis of the Living Costs and Food Survey and the former Expenditure and Food Survey. Presenters will have 20 minutes for their talk followed by 10 minutes for questions.

Details of previous user meetings can be found at http://www.ccsr.ac.uk/esds/events/types/user/

Please send your title and abstract, of around 200 words, to gillian.meadows@manchester.ac.uk as soon as possible but by 9 December at the latest.