1. Economic and Social Data Service June 2005

2. What is the ESDS? national service supporting the archiving, dissemination and use of social and economic data launched January 2003 jointly supported by: –Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) –Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC) initial five year funding commitment

3. UK Data Archive, Essex MIMAS, Manchester Cathie Marsh Centre for Census and Survey Research (CCSR), Manchester Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER), Essex Partners

4. ESDS overview provides access and support for key economic and social data distributed service, bringing together centres of expertise in data creation, dissemination, preservation and use provides seamless and easier access to a range of disparate resources for UK Higher and Further Education sectors core archiving services plus four specialist data services

5. Sources of data Data for research and teaching purposes and used in all sectors and for many different disciplines official agencies - mainly central government international statistical time series individual academics - research grants market research agencies public records/historical sources qualitative and quantitative links to UK census data access to international data via links with other data archives worldwide

6. Collection held at UKDA 5,000+ datasets in the collection 300+ new datasets are added each year 9,000 users 38,000 datasets distributed worldwide history data service in-house (AHDS)

7. Key target groups research users –experienced researchers –new researchers –PhD students and their supervisors teachers and students –research methods –substantive courses data support staff data creators

8. ESDS Core Services ESDS Management –central ESDS website –central 'first stop' help desk service –coherent and flexible collections development policy –central registration service operating across the ESDS and Census Programme –monitoring performance –setting standards ESDS Access and Preservation –collections development strategy –ingest activities - including data and documentation processing –metadata creation –data dissemination services, including value-added dissemination –long-term preservation

9. Specialist data services ESDS Government ESDS International ESDS Longitudinal ESDS Qualidata Greater emphasis on: support and training for the secondary use of data for research, learning and teaching value-added data and documentation enhanced resource discovery improved delivery services outreach and promotion

10. ESDS Government based on substantive themes –year 1: Employment and labour market –year 2: Health –year 3: Social exclusion enhanced products –value-added data and documentation –easier routes through complex documentation –derived variables to provide consistency over time, working with users and producers highlighting research value –workshops on new opportunities e.g. data linkage, synthetic estimation –links with Methods Programme, Census Programme Regular meetings between users and data producers

11. ESDS International access to regularly updated macro-economic time series datasets from selected major international statistical databanks that collectively chart over 50 years of global economic, industrial and political change: International Monetary Fund OECD United Nations World Bank Eurostat International Labour Organisation UK Office for National Statistics access for UK HE/FE scholars access to microdata surveys Eurobarometers International Social Survey Programme other social data via national data archives

12. ESDS Longitudinal ESDS Longitudinal will help users to investigate and use the datasets by: creating sampler files in Nesstar to facilitate the exploration of the content of the data training at introductory and advanced levels on the use of longitudinal data resources in partnership, developing enhanced documentation, and tools for data subsetting and matching

13. ESDS Qualidata data from ESRC individual and programme research grant awards as well as classic social science studies enhanced user guides and digital samplers exemplars and case studies of re-use online access to qualitative data user support and training activities to support secondary analysis of qualitative data enabling access to key non-digital qualitative collections advice for creators of qualitative data resources

14. ESDS: Accessing data web pages - easy to navigate format –web catalogue with variable level searching –subject browsing –major series pages –new service-focused catalogue searches –access to online documentation - pdf user guides and forms registration –one-stop registration with Athens userid/password –online account management and Shopping Basket ordering

15. ESDS: Accessing data web instant download and offline media access to data and metadata online data browsing services (Nesstar, Quali Online, ESDS International macrodata) data are freely available for all but commercial users data supplied in a variety of formats –statistical package formats (eg spss) –databases and spreadsheets –word processed documents –pdf documents

16. ESDS: supporting research and teaching service specific help for each service –dedicated web pages, help desks, FAQs, analysis support generating new researchers –series of workshops around the country teaching datasets, online samplers discussion lists, newsletters, user group meetings

17. Training programme introductory and getting started courses topic-based or thematic courses specific datasets, data series, particular data types support software packages analysis - basic and more advanced weighting analysing hierarchical data analysing longitudinal and qualitative data methodological issues train the trainers workshops

18. Best practice in creating data advisory service for ESRC grant applicants guidance and updated web information on data management and legal and ethical issues programme of outreach events for data creators and depositors working with ESRC to implement a workable Datasets Policy

19. Working with sister resources working closely and maximising synergy with other ESRC investments –SOSIG –NCRM/RMP –E-Social Science –CAQDAS Networking Project –Question Bank –Census programme working with sister services nationally and internationally –CESSDA –ICPSR –AHDS –MIMAS –EDINA

20. Contact www.esds.ac.uk help@esds.ac.uk ESDS FAQ: www.esds.ac.uk/about/faq.asp