Power of Data 2022
We’re hosting Power of Data 2022, a one day conference on Thursday 20th October in central London. The day is about how joining up data across organisations can help government to tackle complex issues. We will hear about examples of what’s happening in practice and how open standards and collaborative approaches to data are helping to support government strategy and policies.
We’ll be hearing from the following brilliant speakers and panellists on topics including levelling up, food poverty, opening health data safely and disseminating statistics around climate change. Tickets are free to the public, third and academic sectors. Agenda below!
Tom Smith
Tom Smith is Director of the Spatial Data Unit and the first Chief Data Officer for the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Committees (DLUHC) — a role that fulfils a lifelong fascination with using data to better understand and tackle public issues.
Tom previously launched, and directed, the UK’s Data Science Campus, which delivers an ambitious data science and capability programme across the Office for National Statistics, UK and globally. As founding director at the UK’s Joint Biosecurity Centre, Tom developed the initial proposals and built data & data science team to deliver a step change in the UK’s pandemic response capability. Prior to that, he co-founded research and data company Oxford Consultants for Social Inclusion (OCSI). Tom has had board and advisory roles at the UN, Royal Society, Royal Statistics Society, Environment Agency, Open Data User Group, media and academic groups.
Sam Hall
Sam is the Chief Digital Officer based at the Welsh Local Government Association.
Her role is to drive innovation, change and service improvement across all 22 local authorities. Through the adoption of agile practices, raising digital and data skills and fostering collaboration, the aim is to fast-forward Wales into a future focussed and digitally savvy nation. Sam has over 30 years’ experience in public sector, both in central and local government. She has delivered projects with the Government Digital Service and was the head of digital delivery and then service design for the 2021 Census. Sam was also CIO & Head of IT and Digital at Birmingham City council before returning to Wales in to take up this role, the first of its kind for Wales.
Jess Morley
Jess is a researcher at the University of Oxford, where she is director of policy at the Bennett Institute for Applied Data Science and a PhD researcher at the Oxford Internet Institute. Her work focuses on the use of patient data for research and analysis, most notably as the lead researcher for the recently published Goldacre Review Better, Broader, Safer. Prior to working in academia Jess was a civil servant at the Department of Health and latterly NHSX.
Bill Roberts
Bill Roberts is our CEO at Swirrl (recently acquired by TPXimpact). Swirrl specialises in software for government organisations to publish their data in standards-based machine-readable ways. We work with the Office for National Statistics, Defra, DLUHC, the Scottish Government and others on ensuring open government data can have the maximum positive impact. Swirrl is a member of the W3C.
Jon Mitchell
Jon works with the Environment Agency’s Data and Information Department on publishing and integrating data to better the environment. As a contractor he provides strategic and technical data advice in support of the Data Services Platform, making environmental data openly available to a wide range of users, with success measured by over 1billion API calls per year.
Panelists
Some of our speakers will be speaking on panels too, so there’ll be plenty of opportunity for questions and discussions. We’re also fortunate to welcome the following people to our panels for the day:
Charles Baird
Charles works at the Central Digital and Data Office as the head of the Data Architecture team. This team works to improve data sharing across government: focusing on the technical elements and providing advice and practical support to departments, as well as producing tools and guidance to further this aim (for example the government API catalogue and associated API standards). Prior to joining the Civil Service in 2020, he had more than twenty years experience as a technologist in the private sector, most recently specialising in the delivery of large data projects.
Paul Maltby
Paul is the Chief Digital Officer at the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities where he is focussed on improving the Department’s digital services, working with local government to develop their digital capacity, and driving digital and data reform to the planning system and housing sectors.
He previously led the government’s new data agenda as Director of Data in the Cabinet Office’s Government Digital Service, with responsibility for open data, data science in government, data infrastructure and data legislation. Paul has a background in public service innovation and reform in government with spells in Leicestershire County Council, the Home Office and the Prime Minister’s Strategy Unit.
Ross Bowen
Ross is a statistician who’s worked across several government departments. He’s now revolutionising data publishing at the ONS as part of the Integrated Data Programme. When Ross discovered the world of linked-data, he was immediately excited for its potential in helping people better explore and understand statistics. At home in Bridgend you’ll often find him practising the piano or pretending to be a superstar DJ.
Gavin Freeguard
Gavin Freeguard is a freelance consultant working on research, policy and advocacy around data, digital, government and data visualisation. He is an associate at the Institute for Government (where he was previously programme director for data and digital government), special adviser at the Open Data Institute, a member of the Public Digital network and has done consultancy work for organisations including the Ada Lovelace Institute, Royal Statistical Society, Connected by Data, Full Fact and mySociety. His website is gavinfreeguard.com.
Vivienne Avery
Vivienne manages the Greater London Authority’s Demography and Policy Analysis team at City Hall. Prior to joining the GLA, Vivienne spent 20 years as a government analyst in ONS, DWP and DCMS and has also worked in the voluntary sector for Age UK.
Her team produce and manage population projections for London and a number of other specialist analytical outputs for London organisations such as TfL and London Boroughs. Her strategic crime analysis team built and manage Safestats — a data platform bringing together different sources of data on crime and public safety within London and are working to improve data available to reduce violence in the city. A social policy team have built up a Social Evidence Base to measure new priorities such as social integration and economic fairness.
Since Covid-19 the team have been experimenting with new data and outputs to meet an increase in demand for the latest evidence across all areas of the city.
Jamie Whyte
Jamie is a delivery manager for Swirrl (now part of TPX Impact). He oversees a range of data projects for several government departments including Environment Agency, DLUHC, Scottish Government and the Greater London Authority. Jamie is interested in many aspects of data: standards, analytics, ethics, accessibility, engagement, and many more existing and emerging themes. He is a director of Open Data Manchester.
Paul Clough
Paul is Head of Data Science and AI at Peak Indicators, a UK-based Business Intelligence and Analytics company; recently acquired by TPXimpact.com. Paul also works part-time at the University of Sheffield where he’s Professor of Search and Retrieval in the Information School. Amongst other things, Paul has been coordinator of the MSc Data Science programme and Director of Research. His research interests include AI and Data Science, Information Retrieval, Data Analytics and Natural Language Processing. Paul is also an AI Ethics advisory group member for the Machine Intelligence Garage funded by Digital Catapult which helps AI start-ups develop and build ethical practices into their business.
This event is free for the public, third and academic sectors (tickets here!) and is aimed at you if you’re …
- setting or implementing public sector data strategy
- responsible for publishing government open data
- analysing data to inform public or private sector strategy
- making policies informed by data
- building our data infrastructure
- enhancing our data ecosystem
Agenda
9.30–10.30
Registration: tea/coffee
10.30–12.15 Session 1
Bill Roberts: Welcome and Introduction
Tom Smith: Data and Levelling Up. The challenges and successes of using data to better understand and tackle public issues
Sam Hall: Joining up data sources to support food poverty in Wales
Discussion Panel 1: “Are data strategies fit for purpose?” Chair: Paul Maltby. Panel: Tom Smith, Sam Hall, Charles Baird, Gavin Freeguard.
12.15–13.15 Lunch
13.15–14.15 Session 2
Bill Roberts: Joined up data for joined up government
Jon Mitchell: FAIR data, Water and Climate Challenge
14.15–14.40 Tea/coffee break
14:40–15:50 Session 3
Jess Morley: Better, Broader, Safer: Using Health Data for Research and Analysis
Discussion Panel 2: How is Data Analysis Changing? Chair: Jamie Whyte Panel: Jess Morley, Ross Bowen, Vivienne Avery, Paul Clough.
15: 50 Closing
Bill Roberts
16.00 Onwards:
Drinks and Networking in the Garden Room, Museum of London
Hope to see you there! #PowerOfData22
