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Secondment at BBC News: Expanding my skill set as a consultant statistician

I read the advert for the Government Statistical Service (GSS) secondment at BBC News in a departmental GSS email and it was the first time I had heard of the opportunity. I recalled attending a talk by Robert Cuffe, Head of Statistics for BBC News, which had been organised by my Head of Profession at […]

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My Charity Next secondment

Abbie Cochrane, a Government Statistical Service (GSS) Fast Streamer, recently spent time on a secondment working for Scope between autumn 2020 and spring 2021. Charity Next interviewed her about her placement. Please give a brief overview of your host organisation, and the main responsibilities of your placement there. My host organisation was Scope, a disability […]

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My secondment at BBC News: I never appreciated how creative journalists are

Since graduating I have only ever worked in the Civil Service but always wondered what it would be like to work elsewhere. Fortunately, with the support of my manager, Deputy Director and the wide range of professional development opportunities in the Civil Service I have been lucky enough to complete a three-month analytical secondment at […]

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Why I am championing the use of the online skills tool

Throughout 2020, the Government Analysis Function trialled an online skills tool with volunteers from across each of the analytical professions. The tool offered the opportunity for users to self-reflect against the professional skills needed for various analytical career paths, supported career planning, development planning and could be used to help structure career conversations. As leaders […]

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Delivering training courses from home

The Government Statistician Group (GSG) induction course is a mandatory course for all new members of the GSG profession. The course introduces you to statistics and data science across government. It also gives you the opportunity to meet fellow members of the profession. When the pandemic struck we set about adapting our one day face to face course to something that we could offer […]

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My secondment at BBC News: How to pitch stats and influence people

In July 2019 I started my three month secondment at BBC News. As a Consultant Statistician (a job title that felt a little scary!), I helped journalists with pretty much anything relating to data and stats. This broad remit meant that the secondment was by far the most varied job I’ve ever worked. A day […]

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Statistical leadership: make your analytical insights count

Data and analysis are fundamental to understanding and addressing many of society’s most important issues, and this has never been more apparent than during the coronavirus pandemic. At the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR) we see strong statistical leadership as essential for: supporting confidence in the statistics and data published by government ensuring that the […]

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My unexpected secondment at the BBC

I had forgotten about my unsuccessful application to work at the BBC for three months until, in mid-September 2020, I received an email asking if I was still interested. The catch? It was due to start in three weeks. The main advantage of being a reserve replacement is that I didn’t have time to panic, […]

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My leadership and learning journey

I started in the statistics profession as a statistical officer at the Ministry of Defence (MOD). My degree was in Sociology, and being surrounded by people so knowledgeable about statistics I felt I needed to develop my own knowledge further. My managers at the MOD were really supportive and provided funding for me to do […]

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Fast Stream: my advice for a career in the statistical service

I began my career in the Government Statistics Service (GSS) fast stream and I found it to be a fantastic start in the Civil Service. Firstly, because it gave me a range of opportunities: building a well-rounded skillset in different statistical roles moving easily across departments going out of my comfort zone in a secondment […]

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