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----- Original Message -----
From: "Jack, Sharon" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Monday, December 16, 2002 12:31 PM
Subject: New UK social science data service to be launched


> New UK social science data service to be launched
>
> The ESRC and JISC are to jointly-fund a new data archiving and
dissemination
> service, to be known as the Economic and Social Data Service (ESDS). This
> new service, with committed funding for five years, will come into
operation
> in January 2003. It will be run as a collaborative venture between: the UK
> Data Archive (UKDA) and the Institute for Social and Economic Research
> (ISER), both based at the University of Essex; and Manchester Information
> and Associated Services (MIMAS) and the Cathie Marsh Centre for Census and
> Survey Research (CCSR) both at the University of Manchester. The new
> service, to be managed and co-ordinated by the UKDA, will effectively
> develop and replace the existing archiving and social science data
> dissemination services currently offered by the UKDA and MIMAS - with the
> exception of the Census services.
>
> A key feature of the ESDS will be the development and maintenance of a
more
> integrated approach to data archiving and dissemination, establishing a
> strategic vision that produces greater interoperability and synergy
between
> the varied ESRC and JISC portfolio of social science data and information
> resources. In line with this policy, early goals will be to create a
> 'one-stop-shop' authenticated registration and data access system,
together
> with a social science data 'Universal Portal'. Both will aim to provide
more
> seamless and easier access to a range of disparate resources.
>
> Within the new service the UKDA will generally continue to operate its
> central role in the acquisition, preservation, dissemination and promotion
> of social science data. This will be further augmented by MIMAS providing
a
> new specialist service giving online access to a large collection of
> international and UK-national macro time-series data, such as IMF, OECD
and
> similar data. Equally, the CCSR will work to provide data enhancements to
a
> number of heavily-used government surveys, as well as organising a number
of
> specialist training events and user support activities relating to these
> data.
>
> The UKDA will continue to host a specialist unit for the support of
> qualitative data (Qualidata) which will place an emphasis on the creation
of
> enhanced, online qualitative data resources within the new service. The
UKDA
> will work with the UK Longitudinal Studies Centre, based within ISER, to
> both develop and provide a number of data enhancements that will
facilitate
> the use of existing longitudinal data collections.
>
> The joint team is convinced that the gains to the end user from this new
> integrated service will be significant and that it provides the
opportunity
> to build a world-class resource for the social sciences. The next issue of
> UK DAtabytes will be devoted to detailing the new service.
>
>
> Sharon Jack
> UK Data Archive Mail List Administrator
> UK Data Archive, University of Essex
> Wivenhoe Park, Colchester, Essex, CO4 3SQ, UK
> Tel: +(44 1206) 872032    Fax: (+44 1206) 872003
> www.data-archive.ac.uk
> Email: [log in to unmask]
>
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