Newsletter

Autumn update

Welcome to our Autumn news,


As we rapidly head towards a potential second wave of COVID-19, the longer term social and economic impacts are yet to be evidenced but there are already signs of shorter-term challenges. This quarter promises to be an impactful time in the world of economic and social data services as we host our first COVID-19 Data Dive in October as part of the UKRI rapid research response to the pandemic.

By bringing together major social, economic and population studies in a single place, we provide an opportunity for researchers, policy and charity experts to collaborate and draw out critical questions about the impacts of the pandemic that will need to be addressed in the future. We highlight the latest COVID-19 longitudinal data from our key collaborations and continue to run a full calendar of free online events, training and webinars – from introductory sessions around data types to more complex data skills modules that can also be accessed on-demand.
 
Plus, we announce the winners of our 2020 Undergraduate Dissertation Award and call for papers for the Labour Force and Annual Population Surveys user conference in November. We explore the qualitative and quantitative UK Data Service collections for insights into the refugee experience and finally, we look forward to launching our new website at the end of October.

- Gemma Hakins, Director of Communications, UK Data Service

ghakins@essex.ac.uk

Features

COVID-19 Data Dive: Exploring the social and economic impacts of the pandemic


The UK Data Service has organised a free, two-day Data Dive as part of the rapid research response to the pandemic.

The event is jointly organised by the UK Data Service, Understanding Society, UCL Centre for Longitudinal Studies (CLS) and the Welfare at a (Social) Distance research project. Read more about the event and how to sign up.

Photo by Chris Liverani on Unsplash

COVID-19 data - news updates


UK Data Service launches dedicated COVID-19 theme page

New coronavirus data released from Understanding Society COVID-19 study

New data from The Centre for Longitudinal Studies examines the impact of COVID-19 on thousands of UK citizens

Photo by Jakob Cotton on Unsplash

Winners of the UK Data Service Dissertation Award 2020


The winners:
Valeria Pasco Garfias, BSc (Hons) in Economics, University of Manchester
William Holy-Hasted, Human, Social and Political Sciences, University of Cambridge
Elizabeth Livesey, BA Social Science (Sociology & Philosophy), University of Manchester

The Dissertation Award celebrates outstanding undergraduate dissertations based on excellent reuse of data available through the UK Data Service

Events and Webinars online

Training webinars - Data in the Spotlight


Take a look at our free online training programme of regular introductory webinars

These introduce different aspects of the UK Data Service and explain our key datasets. 

We also provide a wide programme of online training and events, including specialist and one-off webinars such as: Data and resources for teaching 28 September and Social Network Analysis: Techniques and Methods of Analysis 29 September. To find out more, please visit our events pages.

Call for papers: Labour Force and Annual Population Surveys User Conference 2020


Do you use the UK Labour Force Survey (LFS) and/or Annual Population Survey (APS)?
Submissions are now open for the LFS and APS User Conference 24 November  2020.

This free conference, organised by the UK Data Service will contain a mixture of presentations from the Office for National Statistics and researchers who have used data from LFS and APS.

News

11 new studies join the CLOSER consortium


The CLOSER consortium helps researchers find and use Longitudinal studies. We're delighted to see the addition of the 11 new studies to the consortium.

We look forward to the possibility of acquiring more harmonised cohort datasets for the research community, to add to the CLOSER harmonised datasets currently available.

For details of the new studies read the full news story.

Newly released data available for Next Steps study


Newly released survey variables for Next Steps sweeps 1-7 (ages 14-20) are now available to download from the UK Data Service under the standard End User Licence (EUL), including additional variables and files

Recruiting - Research Fellow in Data Science and End Use Energy Demand


One of our collaborative projects is currently recruiting:  Smart Energy Research Lab is looking to recruit a Research Fellow in Data Science and End Use Energy Demand (based at UCL). 

With gas and electricity smart meters soon to be in most UK homes, there is an unprecedented opportunity to utilise the high quality energy data they can provide for scientific research in the public interest. The research conducted via the Smart Energy Research Lab will help to make the UK’s energy system more sustainable, affordable and reliable.

As a core member of the SERL team, this post will undertake research across the SERL research programme and provide key input to the design and development of the SERL research portal.

Explore the UK Data Service collection for insights into the refugee experience


The complexities of sharing and archiving qualitative research data relating to refugees and immigration, when participants may be vulnerable and some of the topics sensitive, was explored in a seminar hosted by the UK Data Service at the University of Essex last November.

Researchers who are looking to gain insights into the refugee experience can explore datasets held in the UK Data Service collection from the main website.

Cartoon Image drawn by Simon Pearsall from Pearsall cartoons.
Read more news from the UK Data Service

Making COVID data available to researchers


If you are undertaking COVID-19 related data collection, our depositor services are fully open for business. We can publish your data rapidly in our self-deposit system, ReShare or our curated collection, where it will get a DOI.

Contact us at: https://beta.ukdataservice.ac.uk/help?id=depositingData.

In the news: data in the UK Data Service collection

Coronavirus: British study says lockdown mental health impacts worst for women, the young and parents


 From www.smh.com.acu - 23 July, 10:33

The first major examination of Britain's strict coronavirus lockdown has found the mental health of women, the young and people living with children have been most affected by the upheaval.

This article references research which uses data available in the UK Data Service collection:

Understanding Society

UK gender divide over paid and unpaid work narrows but remains wide

 

The gender divide between the amount of paid and unpaid work being carried out has decreased since the mid-1970s, according to a thinktank, but it remains significant. 

This article references research which uses data available in the UK Data Service collection:

Labour Force Survey
United Kingdom Time Use Survey
Read more Scoops

Data Impact Blog

How can we calculate levels of deprivation or poverty in the UK?


Across two blog posts, we explore how researchers have used data from the UK Data Service collection to develop approaches to measuring poverty and deprivation, and how these measures can help policymakers find ways to reduce their effect on the lives of people in the UK.


Photo by Arek Socha on Pixabay

COVID-19: Social surveys are now more important than ever

 
Social surveys have given insights into the lifestyles, attitudes, finances, employment and inequalities in the population for over 50 years.

Never have these data been more important than now during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The UK Data Service holds several key datasets that provide a wealth of data that can be used to describe the population in a variety of contexts.

Patty Doran and Vanessa Higgins highlight how the range of survey and longitudinal data can give context for the current inequalities being experienced due to the coronavirus lockdown.
 
Photo by Gerd Altmann on Pixabay

Case studies

Which fathers are involved in looking after their children? Identifying the conditions associated with paternal involvement

 
Most fathers agree that they should be as involved in childcare as the mother (see Norman's PhD thesis), and many would prefer to spend more time caring for their children than they currently do (see research by Working Families and the Equality and Human Rights Commission). However, fathers continue to do less childcare compared to mothers.

Helen Norman’s case study explores the findings, reach and impact of the Involved Fathers research project, which used the Millennium Cohort Study (MCS). Project findings were submitted as evidence to the UK Parliamentary Women and Equalities Committee (WEC) 2017 inquiry on ‘Fathers and the Workplace’ and Helen was invited to advise the Business and Industrial Strategy’s Shared Parental Leave Advisory Group. Read on to explore the case study.

Photo by pasja1000 on Pixabay

How does the minimum wage impact on employment and hours?

 
Data Impact Fellow James Cockett and colleagues at the Institute for Employment Studies undertook research (commissioned by the Low Pay Commission) to estimate the impact of the introduction of the National Living Wage (NLW) in 2016, and its upratings in 2017 and 2018, on employment retention and hours worked.
The main focus was on how the introduction and upratings of the NLW affected employees aged 25 or over, but the research also looked at differences in impact for this group compared to younger employees. It also explored variations in impact between men and women and part-time and full-time employees, as well as differences by other characteristics, such as the nature of the employer or employment contract.
The research used the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, covering the period from 2011 to 2018, and the longitudinal Labour Force Survey.


Photo by Louis Hansel@shotsoflouis on Unsplash

Let us showcase your work


Write for us: the Data Impact Blog is a hub for anyone interested in maximising the impact of social, population and economic data in research and policy. If you would like to contribute to the blog, please contact victoria.moody@jisc.ac.uk
 
Case studies: every day, data from the UK Data Service collection are used to inform research, influence policy and teach the next generation of social scientists. If you would like to submit a case study, simply download the form.
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