Principles for using dashboards to communicate official statistics

Producers should weigh up the advantages, disadvantages and risks of using a dashboard before developing one.

OSR has developed a set of guiding principles for statistics producers to follow when using a dashboard for official statistics and data so that users can have confidence in the final product. These principles are in line with the standards of Trustworthiness, Quality and Value in the Code of Practice for Statistics.

At a minimum, a dashboard should:

• adhere to accessibility legislation and guidelines, where possible.
• contain clear, visible links to the data source and the producer of the data.
• include appropriate labelling of the statistics’ status. For example, if it’s an accredited official statistic, the badge should be upfront and visible.
• have clear, concise and prominent information about the strengths and limitations of the statistics. Statisticians/analysts should assess what information about quality, users need to appropriately interpret the data, taking a layered approach (described on page 6).
• include information about revisions and corrections.
• be coherent with any other products available as part of the statistical release, such as the main statistical bulletin (usually html) and any quality and methodology information. This should include links for users to navigate to the various products.
• contain accurate details of the update schedule, the date of last update and links to other sources where the data may be available in different formats, including archived data.
• come with a plan for maintaining, updating and retiring the dashboard, so that it continues to meet user needs.
• contain the contact details of the relevant producer team.