Trustworthiness: trustworthiness is about the people, systems and processes used for producing the dashboard.
Tips for organisations producing dashboards:
- Encourage collaboration between expert teams. Statisticians/analysts should have oversight of the statistical validity of messaging and presentation of official statistics in a dashboard.
- Consider and seek approval for maintenance of the dashboard at the start, thinking about people and technological resources and sustainability until the dashboard is retired.
- Embed processes to manage sign-off and consistency of dashboard standards.
- Release statistics via a dashboard in a transparent and orderly way.
- Manage risks around data sensitivities and disclosure.
Professional capability, collaboration, governance and standards
Developing a dashboard often involves people with different skillsets – each of whom plays an important role relevant to their area of expertise.
As the experts in compiling the statistics, as well as understanding the strengths and limitations of them, statisticians/analysts should have oversight of the statistical validity of the messaging around, and presentation of, official statistics in a dashboard. Dashboard developers and data visualisation teams are technical experts who create dashboards and consider how data are accessed and consumed by different users.
To ensure that the product is of a high standard, it is important for everyone to coordinate efforts in the development and ongoing use of a dashboard.
Governance and sign-off/approval procedures for dashboards should be agreed and should involve seeking the advice/approval from the Head of Profession for Statistics especially in relation to the publication of official statistics. In addition, plans for maintaining a dashboard should be agreed before it is created, so that appropriate technological and financial resources can be put in place for the lifetime of the dashboard.
The Department for Education (DfE) has developed its own standards and guidance to support publishing dashboards. The explore education statistics service (EES) is the primary route for publishing official statistics. DfE has clear governance in place that outlines responsibilities, governance and the level of approval that is required when developing a public-facing dashboard. This approach ensures consistency across official statistics where a dashboard is used and is a good example for others to follow.
Producers should have processes in place to ensure that there is consistency in the standards used in the development of dashboards for official statistics. Collaboration between organisations is also an essential part of sharing best practice and lessons learned. Producers should make use of networks, such as the GSS presentation champions network, and seek other opportunities to facilitate engagement.
Orderly release
Organisations that release their statistics via a dashboard should commit to doing so in an open and transparent manner that promotes public confidence.
Key points to consider:
- Not updating the dashboard before the statistics publication goes live.
- Differentiating between dashboard functionality/technology updates and data updates is important. Software updates or technology fixes to a dashboard do not need to be pre-announced.
- Any scheduled or unscheduled updates to data contained in the dashboard should be made clear and handled transparently. A notice should be included or linked to within the dashboard that describes the frequency, reason and likely scale and impact of any data changes. Update dates and times should be recorded and refreshed as part of the dashboard’s supporting information so that users understand what data points the dashboard is presenting.
Managing risks around data sensitivity
Organisations are expected to securely manage data in ways that are consistent with relevant legislation. This includes the release of data and statistics via a dashboard. Some dashboards may allow users to interrogate data by including individual variables at much lower levels than in published data tables. Producers should consider and mitigate any risks around data sensitivities as part of existing processes. Extra care and additional steps may be required to ensure that data available in a dashboard are not disclosive.
The Government Data Quality Hub, or DQ Hub, published guidance on anonymisation and data confidentiality, which includes relevant links to learn more about statistical control methods and managing the risk of data protection.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) public health dashboard presents public health data from across England. It includes clear and helpful information for users in its ‘About’ menu, including its update schedule and any planned changes. Users can see, via the ‘What’s new’ and ‘What’s coming’ pages, a transparent timeline of any changes or planned changes to the data presented in the dashboard. This includes any changes to metrics included in the dashboards, data issues and any corrections. A ‘last updated’ date and time stamp are also included at the top of each page. The privacy statement makes it clear that no information that could identify individuals is published on the dashboard. A link is also included containing further information on how UKHSA collects and uses personal data.