Campaign: High-value datasets
We’re calling on the Government to make their high-value datasets freely available to support government processes and unlock economic growth.
You can read our recommendations in full in this report.
What’s the problem?
High-value datasets contain no personal data and are held by the government. They would likely be very beneficial to society and the economy were they made freely available. For example, opening up these datasets would support companies creating value-added services, research and innovation, and better-informed policymaking.
In recognition of this, the EU recently mandated that member states make certain high-value datasets, including data on addresses, buildings, land use and companies, freely available. Many of the UK’s non-EU trading partners like Australia and the US have similar strategies in place. Great successes have been reported worldwide.
But several of the UK’s high-value datasets are still only available under prohibitive commercial licences, and their use is further restricted by intellectual property rights caused by confused governance arrangements.
The opportunity
The Government should mandate that high-value datasets be made available under open licensing, in a machine-readable format, and via both API and bulk download.
This would ensure that the UK remained competitive with other countries and it would unlock significant economic and political benefits. For example, better access to land use data could streamline the UK government’s fight against the climate crisis and support SMEs innovating in planning and development. And better access to address data could improve public service delivery, as well as support the private sector.
Publications
Briefing: Geospatial data institutions
May 2024
This briefing compares how countries across the world manage their valuable geospatial datasets.
We find that countries increasingly manage these datasets within a cohesive governance structure - the UK is an outlier.
Written evidence: Access to HM Land Registry data
April 2024
We sent evidence into HM Land Registry’s consultation on its fees and charging structure.
We recommend that HMLR reduce the cost of particular data to make it more useful for research and innovation, and consistently use high-quality UPRNs to support data linking.
Report: The state of the UK’s high-value datasets
December 2023
This report calls for the UK government to make their high-value datasets freely available to support government processes and unlock economic growth. We audit the current state of UK high-value datasets and find they have patchy accessibility. With no plans to improve on this, the UK is falling behind the EU and other comparators.
What needs to happen now?
We will continue to push for open core public datasets, and we are keen to discuss the issue further with anyone interested. Please get in touch at contact@centreforpublicdata.org.