RSS Social Statistics Section Meeting

One day meeting

Linking survey and administrative data and statistical disclosure control

Thursday May 19th 2005,  9.30am - 5pm.

Royal Statistical Society, 12 Errol Street, London


This one day meeting looks at two distinct yet related areas in the use of 
micro-level survey data collected from individuals within the population. 
There is growing interest in the research potential of linking micro-records 
from different sources. This includes matching administrative data held by 
different government departments or agencies and, increasingly frequently, 
matching survey data collected from individuals with administrative records 
held by government departments. Linking survey data collected from 
individuals to administrative data raises legal and ethical issues, issues 
of consent from survey respondents and technical challenges in correctly 
matching records.  In the context of the UK where access to data for 
secondary analysis is encouraged and promoted, these linked datasets can 
pose problems as the potential for disclosure may be increased.  For the 
wider research community, access to what are potentially valuable and 
powerful datasets may therefore be limited in some way.

Recent work on statistical disclosure control has been concerned to develop 
methods for identifying sample records which are unique within the 
population and therefore carry a risk of disclosure, and providing methods 
to reduce this risk.  As data linkage at the individual level becomes more 
frequent, questions about how best to protect the anonymity of survey 
respondents or individuals within the population and the level at which data 
can be released for wider use become critical.

The first session for the day is concerned with the ethical and practical 
elements involved in linking data from different sources.  This session 
includes papers from recent projects where such data linkage has been 
carried out.  The second session of the day focuses on issues of statistical 
disclosure control, reporting results from recent projects assessing the 
level of risk of disclosure and the techniques and strategies that have been 
developed to reduce the risk.

A round table panel discussion 'Disclosure risks and data access: 
identifying problems and finding solutions' will conclude the day, drawing 
together the key issues raised throughout the day and identifying future 
areas of work.


Details of the programme for the day and registration form are below.

Registration forms are also available from [log in to unmask] and details 
of the meeting can be found at www.rss.org.uk/diary or 
www.rss.org.uk/socialstatistics


We would like to thank the following organisations for supporting this 
meeting:

The Statistics Commission

Institute for Social and Economic Research, University of Essex

National Centre for Social Research, London.


9.30      Registration and tea/ coffee

Morning session:  Linking Survey and Administrative Data

Chair:   Christine Bycroft, ONS

10.00    Setting out the main issues
Peter Elias, University of Warwick

10.20    Data linkages in the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing: 
Respondent consents and survey procedures
            Carli Lessof,Kate Cox, National Centre for Social Research/ 
James Banks, IFS

11.00    Patterns of consent: evidence from a general household survey
Stephen Jenkins, ISER, University of Essex

11.40    Tea/coffee

12.00    DWP Experiences of data sharing
Iain Bell, DWP

12.40    Discussant: Heather Joshi, CLS, Institute of Education

13.00    Lunch

Afternoon session:  Statistical Disclosure Control

Chair:   John Hollis, Greater London Authority

13.50    An overview of statistical disclosure control
Mark Elliot, University of Manchester

14.30    ONS policies for confidentiality and data disclosure
Paul Jackson, ONS

14.50        Confidentiality Protection for ONS Microdata: methods for 
assessing and
             managing risk, including different access arrangements.
Jane Longhurst, ONS

15.10    Discussant: Emily Grundy, London School of Hygiene & Tropical 
Medicine

15.30    Tea/coffee

15.50    Round table panel and general discussion
'Disclosure risks and data access: identifying problems and finding 
solutions'

Peter Elias (Chair), University of Warwick;
Nick Buck, Director, UK Longitudinal Studies Centre, University of Essex
Sue Duncan , Government Chief Social Researcher, The Prime Minister's 
Strategy Unit
                Cabinet Office
            Marta Haworth, Director, Analytical Methodology and Research 
Division, ONS
Kevin Shurer, Director, UK Data Archive
            Dette Cowden, Scottish Executive
            Angela Donkin, DWP

16.45        Close

BOOKING

FEES  (including lunch, tea and coffee)

 £35 for non RSS fellows
 £22 for RSS fellows
£19 for CStats



Chris Kershaw
Secretary of the RSS Social Statistics Committee.