Blog

High tempo harmonisation: How the GSS Harmonisation Team are responding to the pandemic

I drink a lot of Pepsi. I really do mean A LOT. As I am writing this it is only 1pm and I am already on my eighth can, but to be honest I don’t think I could have done the work I’ve been doing recently without it. Among other things, I am half of […]

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The GSS user engagement strategy – let’s talk (new) tactics!

It’s been six months since we started work to develop a GSS user engagement strategy. How time flies! As you can imagine things have been a bit up and down since our last blog post at the end of February. However, I’m pleased to say that by the end of March we had: spoken to […]

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Do you understand your survey non-response rates?

Response rates to traditional social surveys have been steadily dropping over the last few decades. This can pose a serious issue for those of us responsible for producing estimates of population level characteristics such as household income. What’s the threat? Falling response rates increase the risk of non-response bias, if there are fundamental differences between […]

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Improving statistics on rough sleeping: how BPI helped MHCLG

The Best Practice and Impact (BPI) division, based at the Office for National Statistics (ONS), provides a range of services for the whole Government Statistical Service (GSS) to help improve government statistics. One service we offer is free consultancy. This can be tailored to any challenges or obstacles that your department faces. Recently, the Quality […]

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Working together to make statistical data fit for the web

The Connected Open Government Statistics (COGS) project is a huge data transformation effort. Sure, we could throw a load of people at the task and get it sorted. Yes, that could happen, but it definitely should not happen. Turning this effort into a sustainable practice for all departments is the real goal. That requires cooperation. […]

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Hidden in plain sight

Two years ago I was nearly killed in a car crash. It was through no fault of my own – a bus decided to pick a fight with my car. This left me with a spine broken in several places and severe spinal damage which will stay with me for life. Along with the health […]

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My journey as an immigrant

Since starting in Migration and Borders Analysis (MBA), I’ve had a lot of time to reflect on my own status as an immigrant. At the MBA awayday at the Migration Museum in Lambeth, we were urged to think about migration stories. It surprised me that I’ve never even considered mine! So, as any good social […]

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The Civil Service Hearing and Visual Disability Networks

Hi, my name is Simon Skerritt. I work in the Analysis Function in the Civil Service and I am proud to be part of the Analysis Function Data and Insight (D&I) Group. In 2017, I founded the Civil Service Hearing and Visual Disability Networks, which have become sub networks of the Civil Service Disability Network […]

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Demystifying the Best Practice and Impact team (BPI): my secondment experience

Why did I participate? When I learnt about this two-week secondment opportunity with the BPI team around the corner (literally!), I wanted to join almost instantly. Before this experience, I had a vague idea of the division’s functions and its place in the organisational structure at the Office for National Statistics. I decided that a […]

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Two weeks with Best Practice and Impact

I was first introduced to the idea of secondments with the Best Practice and Impact (BPI) team during my GSS Induction training, and I was immediately intrigued. I had no experience of a stats team who didn’t produce any statistical releases, and I was determined to find out how that worked.   I quickly realised […]

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