Consultation on Access to BRES Estimates on Nomis

Consultation on access to BRES estimates on Nomis

Consultation on access to Business Register and Employment Survey (BRES) estimates on Nomis

24February 2016

Background

Nomis ( is a service provided by the Office for National Statistics, ONS, to give you free access to the most detailed and up-to-date UK labour market statistics from official sources, including annual employment estimates from the Business Register and Employment Survey (BRES).

BRES estimatescan be accessed on Nomisat detailed levels of geography (down to lower super output area) and industry (down to 5-digit SIC). Since such detailed levels of aggregation are made available, some of the information may potentially be disclosive. For this reason, those wishing to access this data need to apply for a Chancellor of the Exchequers Notice (CEN) giving a valid statistical purpose, while demonstrating that they can handle confidential information appropriately.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has undertaken a review of how disclosive data are disseminated across the organisation, as well as the statistical disclosure control methods applied to business survey outputs.

We propose to have two different levels of access to BRES data on Nomis (public access and safeguarded), both of which will involve the use of rounding to address issues of confidentiality. While the safeguarded estimates will give more accuracy, being rounded to a lower base, users will be required to sign up to certain conditions regarding their use of the data.

It is important that the current method of accessing data on Nomis is changed . However, we would like to take on board your comments wherever possible in order to ensure a smooth transition for all users.

The proposal

We propose to have two different levels of access to BRES data (public access and safeguarded), both of which will involve the use of rounding to address issues of confidentiality. While the safeguarded estimates will give more accuracy, being rounded to a lower base, users will be required to sign up to certain conditions regarding their use of the data.The rounding thresholds have not yet been finalised, but an example of the sort of rounding that is likely to be applied to estimates is given below.

Similar rules will apply to historical estimates of annual employment that are also currently available on Nomis by applying for a CEN.

This solution will mean that:

• the estimates will be protected without the need for users to carry out their own disclosure control
• we can put more informationdirectly into the public domain
• Increased uncertainty caused by sampling variability at lower levels of aggregation will be addressed through the use of rounding

It is important to note that the current method of accessing data on Nomis needs to be changed to bring it in line with the rest of the organisation. However, we would like to take on board your comments wherever possible in order to ensure a smooth transition for all users.

How to respond

You can respond using our online questionnaire. If you have any questions regarding the proposed changes, please email the BRES team at .

Questions

We invite your comments on the impact that these changes will have on your work. In particular we would be interested in your thoughts on the following questions:

1. What impact will using rounded estimates have on your organisation?
2. What will thebenefits and drawbacks be to you/your organisation of using a publically available dataset as an alternative to the safeguarded dataset, based on the rounding thresholds provided in the consultation document?
3. What will the impact be to you/your organisation of no longer being required to complete an application for BRES data?

About you

To help us better understand your needs, we would like to know a bit about you. We only intend to use this information for analysis purposes.

Top of Form

Are you answering this questionnaire on behalf of an organisation or as an individual?

What is your name?

What is your organisation (if applicable)?

What is your email address?

What is your telephone number?

What sector do you work in? This will assist us in monitoring the range of users the consultation has reached.

Your response

Top of Form

May we contact you to discuss your response to this consultation? This may be to follow up any specific points that we need to clarify.

Are you happy for us to contact you about future ONS consultations and surveys?

Overall, how satisfied were you with our consultation service today? (Please choose from: very satisfied, satisfied, neither, dissatisfied, very dissatisfied)

Consultation timetable

This consultation will run from 24February 2016 to 5 April 2016

After the consultation

We will publish a summary of the comments made approximately 12 weeks after the consultation closes.

Getting in Touch

If you have any queries or comments about the consultation process, please email Simeon Bowen at or call 0845 601 3034.

You can also write to us at the following address:

Consultation Coordinator,

Room 1.101

Office for National Statistics,

Government Buildings,

Cardiff Road,

Newport,

South Wales,

NP10 8XG.

For further information on ONS consultations, please visit

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Confidentiality and data protection

As someone who is interested in ONS statistics, we’d welcome your views. We may use your contact details to get in touch about future surveys or consultations. You can opt out at any time by emailing .

The information you send us may be passed to other parts of Government. Your response might be made available if required under a Freedom of Information request.

Individual responses will not be disclosed when we report the outcomes of this consultation.

Accessibility

All material relating to this consultation can be provided in Braille, large print or audio formats on request. British Sign Language interpreters can also be requested for any supporting events.