New Services for Social Science Research:
The Administrative Data Liaison Service and the Secure Data Service
14 December 2009, 5.30pm, at the Royal Statistical Society
Speakers:
Dr Chris Dibben, University of St Andrews
Melanie Wright, University of Essex
The Economic and Social Research Council has funded two new services to
enhance researcher access to data previously unavailable or difficult to
access for research.
The Administrative Data Liaison Service (ADLS) will act as a focal point
for knowledge about the availability of UK administrative data, their
suitability for specific research purposes, and the procedures required to
gain access to and use such data. Administrative data, information
collected by organisations for routine management processes, has the
potential to provide a relatively cheap, potentially less intrusive and
yet comprehensive resource for research. Many northern European countries
(notably Denmark and Sweden) have placed a much greater emphasis on the
development of this type of data than the UK and as a consequence have
managed to replace national censuses and major surveys, reducing costs to
the taxpayer and the burden on citizens from requests for information.
However, it is not an easy resource to use and one that also requires
careful consideration of its quality and reliability and the ethical and
legal issues that underpin its use.
The Secure Data Service (SDS) will enable safe and secure remote access by
bona fide researchers to data heretofore deemed too sensitive, detailed,
confidential or potentially disclosive to be made available under standard
licensing and dissemination arrangements. Users will be able to access
highly detailed and sensitive social data remotely either from their
JANET-connected desktop computer, or from a bespoke thin client in a
secure room in their home institution, thus eliminating the need for
costly and time consuming travel to onsite data enclaves. Users will be
required to attend a training course. Once access is granted, the user can
return at their leisure to run their analyses, draft papers, share draft
outputs with other authorised team members - all securely located on the
central SDS servers.
Attendance is free but pre-registration is recommended. You can register
by email: [log in to unmask] or by phone (020) 7638 8998. For a map and
directions see www.rss.org.uk/findus. We anticipate the seminar will
finish at around 7 pm.
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