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Summary

One of the six points in the ODI’s manifesto for open and trustworthy data ecosystems and a world where data works for everyone is data capability: ‘Everyone must have the opportunity to understand how data can be and is being used. We need data literacy for all, data science skills, and experience using data to help solve problems’.

This paper aims to map the UK government’s activity on ‘data literacy’, as part of the ODI’s work in support of the UK National Data Strategy (NDS). The ODI understands ‘data literacy’ as ‘the ability to think critically about data in different contexts and examine the impact of different approaches when collecting, using and sharing data and information’. It goes beyond the technical skills involved in working with data.

The UK government recognises the importance of data skills – ‘for a data-driven economy and data-rich lives’ – by making it one of the four pillars of the NDS. Within this, it says that ‘foundational data literacy will be required by all’.

How the government approaches ‘data literacy’ for its own workforce, in its attempts to increase the use of data in policymaking and service delivery, engages Mission 3 of the NDS – ‘transforming government’s use of data to drive efficiency and improve public services’. Its policies and initiatives for the wider population engage Mission 1, on ‘unlocking the value of data across the economy’. But the government’s work on Mission 3 will also have an impact on Mission 1, as we argued in our earlier report mapping the organisations responsible for data across the UK government. What the government does internally can also affect the wider economy and society, particularly given its role in leading by example, providing support (eg in publishing resources), and collaborating with others. As a major employer in its own right – public sector employment accounts for more than a sixth of all employment in the UK – efforts to upskill its own workforce may have an impact on other sectors, as it shapes the employment market and workers move in and out of the public sector. ,,,