Annex 1: The assessment process

A1.1 This assessment was conducted from September 2021 to February 2022.

A1.2 This report was prepared by the Office for Statistics Regulation and approved by the Regulation Committee on behalf of the Board of the UK Statistics Authority, based on the advice of the Director General for Regulation.

A1.3 The regulatory team – Chris Davies, Will Richardson and Hannah Jeffery – agreed the scope of and timetable for this assessment with representatives of WRA in September 2021. Documentary evidence for the assessment was provided by WRA in November 2021.

A1.4 The regulatory team discussed and met with the statistics team in October 2021 to review compliance with the Code of Practice for Statistics, taking account of the evidence provided and research performed.

A1.5 A key part of the assessment was talking to the people who use the statistics, to help us to understand the current value of the statistics, and where there is the potential to increase this. We conducted ten interviews with current and potential users of these statistics. These users worked in Departments within the Welsh Government, UK Government and local authorities. Our engagement gave us valuable insight into the extent to which the statistics meet different users’ needs and the extent to which users feel that the statistics’ producers engage with them.