Was this summary information adequate?

Is there any additional information to aid comparison between the 2001 Census and the 2011 Census that you would like to see provided for use with the next Census?

Our aim is to provide metadata that is useful and appropriate to our users. To guide us it is helpful to know what changes/new information or products would be desirable to improve on the metadata provided for the previous Census. Your opinions matter.

As always with topics on this blog, please provide any examples of websites that provide information related to the topic of discussion that you found particularly useful.

Please let us know your thoughts about training needs and census user support in general.

ONS has already made some progress in re-thinking how statistics can be presented for different audiences. For example, the interactive, animated population pyramid has proven popular with a wide-ranging audience. A tactile, playful approach to data presentation certainly seems to have its place. However, we are also aware that - in addition to downloading data, people might also to access data directly using Web 2.0 technologies. Such a mechanism might be useful for integrating data with data from other locations.

We are interested to hear about people's expectations of how they will access and interpet Census data. Do users want tables of data and nothing else? Or do graphs, maps and other visual mechanisms have a role to play? Do people need guidance in interpreting Census data? What about places to share stories about census data? Do you already have plans for how you would like to engage with Census data? If so, please let us know.

New regulations will come into effect for the next Census that will require the National Statistics Institutes of member states to make their data available in data cubes as specified by Eurostat. Member states have contributed to the development of these specifications. Eurostat plans to build a web portal that can access data held by those member states who have web systems that are able to exchange data automatically with other websites, and are carrying out some pilot studies.

The UK Census Offices are at an early stage in planning outputs, and the systems that will deliver them, and it is too soon for them to be involved with the pilot work or commit to developing such a system. However, we are interested in hearing about similar projects, especially those involving web access to data cubes, and learning about your experiences using web portals that access multiple web sites.

(As a reminder the survey focussed on high level issues and asked firstly about previous experience and use of census data and secondly about high level requirements for 2011 census data including 2001/2011 comparisons, access and dissemination, metadata, SDC and output priorities).

We are aware that users were very unhappy about the effects of the late addition of Small Cell Adjustment in the 2001 Census, particularly to tables with low counts such as the OA level Origin/destination tables which resulted in users reporting that such outputs were “unfit for purpose”. Whichever SDC method is applied the data quality of sparse tables are going to be disproportionately affected. For these types of tables we are considering the option of applying lower levels of SDC and making the output available to users only under special licence or accessed in data labs with outputs checked prior to removal. For example, some outputs from the Origin/Destination tables could be made available publicly at Super Output Area (SOA)/Data Zone level, made available under licence at Output Area (OA) level, and allow users interested in specific journeys access to detailed micro-data in a safe setting.

What would you feel about access arrangements such as this?

This output consultation website will remain open. We are keen to engage as widely as possible with users on output issues so please continue to visit the site, see what other users are saying and give us your views.

The potential benefits to be gained from this area of continuing develop are obviously an important consideration for the presentation and web delivery of data from the 2011 Census. Decisions in this area should be strongly influenced by the depth and range of functionality that are either required, or that users feel are at least desirable.

What experience of using data presented in cubes have users had? What are some of the best examples, and some of the worst? What specific features or functions are considered to be crucial, and what would be a nice option?

Some things to consider are:

• being able to interrogate multiple cubes at the same time - is this essential, or should more consideration be given to providing single cube presentation, but with a better provision of a data source and API, web service delivery to data 'mashup' services provided by 3rd parties such as Swivel or Yahoo Pipes
• the range of online interrogation and manipulation tools provided - are advanced manipulation and visualization tools essential, or again are such needs better fulfilled by elementary functionality supplemented by enhanced service provision to 3rd party web 2.0 tools
• range us data formats that have been or will be used and appreciated - beyond simple csv and other elementary formats, what experience is their of using XML, SDMX, JSON, or KML
• metadata - depth and tightness of integration within and across cubes

We have had a good response from across the user communities, in particular from Local Authorities. The Census Output Consultation website will not be closing so you please continue to make your views known on output issues. Results from the survey will be reported on the blog as they become available

We produced vast amounts of metadata to support the 2001 Census outputs. We have it on the ONS Website/Nomis/NESS on the CDs and in the printed volumes. The most detailed metadata is available on the ONS website - but would you know where to find it?

I'm talking about footnotes, definitions, classifications, methodology, disclosure, geography and more but would be very interested to know:
• What 2001 Census Outputs metadata resource/s you used?
• Which was most useful?
• What metadata resources you would like retained for 2011 Census Outputs?
• What improvements you would like to see either to content or access?
• New ideas for metadata resources or methods of access?
We want your views both good and bad.

Have you used any websites that provided fabulous metadata for large datasets provided with easy accessibility, if yes - what were they and why were they good (please provide link if possible)?

Those of you that have completed our questionnaire have provided us with an insight to some areas of metadata that would be useful for the 2011 Census but now is your chance to elaborate on your comments.

I will be posting some metadata topics for discussion, some may be of interest to you and some not, but if you have any comments on any of the following please let us know:
• Metadata to aid comparison of 2001 and 2011 data
• Definitions/Glossary - is it essential to have a printed version as well as an electronic version on the website?
• Quality indicators (What type of indicators and at what level of detail)
• Information about Census methodology
• A user community developed Census folksonomy

Please let us know of any other metadata related topics you would like to introduce for discussion.

The Registrar Generals’ Statement of Agreement on the Conduct of the 2011 includes an aim for consistency in UK output. The degree to which this is achievable is however largely dependent on the degree of consistency in questionnaire content of the UK Censuses, which is outside the scope of outputs and this consultation. However, within that constraint, there is still a decision to be made about the extent to which variables common to the UK Censuses are “joined-up”. How important is it to ensure that these variables have a common definition and either common categories or categories that can be combined to produce a (less detailed) common category at UK level? Would this satisfy user requirements or is it important for the UK Census Offices to actually produce UK level outputs? What are the arguments for “going this extra mile”?

• Data feeds
• Differential access
• Types of output products including
- flexible user defined tables
- UK level outputs
• Metadata
• Statistical Disclosure Control

To facilitate that I intend picking up on different themes raised in the questionnaire on a regular basis and starting “threads” of discussion on the blog. In my next posting I will list forthcoming themes but please use the blog to suggest or start discussions on other high level output issues/themes that you consider to be important. To kick off, I would like to pick up on the theme of accessing Census data via the web.

We will be introducing themes related to areas of questioning in the survey on the blog throughout the consultation period. As well as using the blog to expand on your responses to the survey you can also raise other output issues and ideas you think are important but at this stage the focus needs to be on high level issues rather than detail such as possible table content. We can’t promise to meet all user expectations but we want your views to inform the development of our overall output strategy and help us to prioritise and target our resources.

The blog is open to everyone who is interested in and uses census data from the casual to the experienced user and from across the different census communities. We look forward to hearing your views over the coming 12 weeks formal consultation period and beyond.

Each thread starts with the original blog post and replies are formed from the user comments and questions, and subsequent replies from the Census offices. This forms a reporduction of the comment thread style from the original website.

User comments are credited as appropriate unless the original author was anonymous.