Communicating statistics

Improving the communication of statistics and analysis is a priority for the Government Statistical Service (GSS) and the Analysis Function.

Guidance available

There are several resources available to help you present statistics more clearly, including:

• presentation and dissemination guidance
• data visualisation guidance
• accessibility guidance

You can also find a guide for writing about statistics on the Style.ONS website.

Support available

Training

You can learn more about data visualisation on the ‘Introduction to data visualisation’ e-learning course.

Basecamps

Basecamps are online spaces with a message board where you can ask questions and share ideas. There are also areas to share documents and advertise events.

You can:

• join the Presentation and Dissemination Basecamp
• join the Accessibility for Statistics Basecamp

Clinics

Accessibility drop-in clinics take place on the last Wednesday of every month. You can find information and joining instructions for the accessibility clinics on the events page.

Other support for accessibility

If you have more general questions about accessibility there is plenty of support available. For example:

• the UK Government Digital Slack has a channel for accessibility
• the Basecamp for the Cross-government Content Community is a good place to ask accessibility questions
• the cross-government accessibility community is also a good place to go for help.

If you want a better understanding of access needs, you might find the following resources useful:

• Accessibility empathy for users of spreadsheets (blog post)
• Empathy prompts website
• Accessibility personas from the Government Digital Service
• Accessibility posters from Home Office

Future work

We are reviewing our guidance to incorporate the accessibility legislation. We are currently reviewing guidance about data visualisation for infographics, and tables and charts.

We always welcome feedback on our guidance. Please use the feedback forms on the guidance pages to let us know what you think!

Champion networks

The presentation and web dissemination champions work across the GSS to improve the way statistics are presented and distributed. They meet regularly and share best practice.

You can:

• read more about the presentation champion network
• read more about the web dissemination champion network

Contact

For general questions about communicating statistics, please email GSSHelp@statistics.gov.uk.

You can speak to your presentation or web dissemination champion to find out more about communicating statistics in your department.