Strengthening confidence and support

This section outlines the landscape of independent reviews, the development work being undertaken within the Government Statistical Service (GSS) and our work to update the Code of Practice for Statistics.

Independent reviews and findings

On 1 April 2025, the UK Statistics Authority (the Authority) and the Cabinet Office jointly launched an independent review into ONS’s performance and culture led by Sir Robert Devereux, former Permanent Secretary at the Department for Work and Pensions. Its aim was to assess how effectively ONS delivers its core statistical outputs and major programmes, as well as to evaluate its organisational culture, leadership and structural dynamics. It also examined ONS’s sponsorship relationships with the Cabinet Office and HM Treasury.

The findings of the Devereux Review of the Office for National Statistics performance and culture, and a joint response from the Authority and Cabinet Office, were published on 26 June 2025. The review made three recommendations: ONS needs a focused and consistent effort to improve core statistics; changes are needed in the way in which ONS is led; and the governance of the ONS and the wider system merits further consideration. The Authority and Cabinet Office have agreed with all of the recommendations.

On 7 April, the House of Commons Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee (PACAC), which is responsible for overseeing the Authority’s work on behalf of Parliament, announced a separate inquiry into the work of the UK Statistics Authority. The ongoing inquiry aims to assess how well the Authority is fulfilling its statutory duties and whether it is equipped to meet the challenges of a rapidly evolving data landscape. The Committee has published the written evidence received in response to this inquiry, including evidence provided by the Authority covering both ONS and OSR. In addition, two hearings have taken place on 1 July and 8 July with oral evidence provided by Sir Robert Chote, Chair of the UK Statistics Authority; Emma Rourke, Acting National Statistician; and Ed Humpherson, Director General for Regulation. The inquiry report is expected in autumn 2025.

On 7 April, we published our Systemic Review of ONS Economic Statistics. Prompted in part by common issues in our regulatory work, the review aimed to identify high-level, cross-cutting issues across ONS’s economic statistics and support ONS through systemic recommendations for improvement. We plan to review ONS’s response to our report in autumn 2025 and then publish the overall findings, including relevant insights from Sir Robert Devereux’s review.

These reviews also coincide with changing leadership in the Government Statistical Service (GSS), ONS and the Authority. In May 2025, Sir Ian Diamond stepped down as National Statistician. Sir Ian decided that due to ongoing health issues, he was unable to commit to the role as desired and highlighted the need for energetic leadership for the next phase of delivery for ONS, including overseeing the implementation of the Devereux review findings. In July 2025, Sir Robert Chote announced that he would be stepping down from his role as the Chair of the UK Statistics Authority Board in autumn 2025.

The reviews discussed above are being undertaken in the broader context of the publication, in 2024, of two further wide-ranging reviews:

The Independent Review of the UK Statistics Authority, published in March 2024, was commissioned by the Cabinet Office as part of its Public Bodies Reviews program and conducted by Professor Denise Lievesley CBE. The review focused on the governance, accountability, efficacy and efficiency of the Authority. The Authority responded to the review in September 2024.

A key recommendation of this review was for the Board to establish a triennial statistical assembly to consult widely with statistics users and producers to understand the range of views regarding the priorities and data needs for the UK. The inaugural Statistic Assembly was held in January 2025 and was attended by a wide range of stakeholders, including from central, local and devolved governments, business and industry, academia, civil society and charities. The Independent report on the 2025 UK Statistics Assembly was published in March 2025. The Authority has committed to working across the statistical system to act on the high-level recommendations from the Assembly. Feedback from stakeholders following the Assembly was very positive. Where relevant, we have highlighted specific findings and user views captured in the UK Statistics Assembly Independent Report within this report.

The PACAC report Transforming the UK’s Evidence Base was published in May 2024. The report set out the findings of its inquiry exploring the changing statistics and data landscape, and the UK’s readiness to respond to it. The Authority responded to the report in November 2024.

This period of review and reflection is particularly significant given the key role that official statistics play in informing public debate, shaping policy and supporting democratic accountability. Understanding and fostering trustworthiness in official statistics is essential – not only for the credibility of the statistics themselves, but for the institutions that produce and regulate them.

The Authority’s existing five-year strategy Statistics for the Public Good, which sets out its aims, priorities, mission and values for the UK official statistical system, is coming to an end. A refreshed version is due to be published later in the year to cover the 2025/2030 period. The ongoing reviews and inquiries discussed in this section offer an opportunity to assess how well the UK statistical system is delivering on its responsibilities and where improvements may be needed.

Government Statistical Service (GSS) developments

We have previously highlighted that there was a growing perception of a loss of identity of the Government Statistical Service (GSS) – both its distinct identity as part of a broader analytical function and the impact of limited resources on support for the GSS and GSS activity. Heads of Profession (who are accountable for professional statistical matters in departments and agencies) have acted to enhance the identity of the profession through the development and publication of the GSS vision – Strength in Numbers – in October 2024. We welcomed its publication, as did statistics producers and users.

The GSS vision sets out four areas of work (Coordination, Cooperation and Leadership; Capability and Community; Setting Standards; Transformation and Innovation), each underpinned with a vision statement. The document sets out a vision for furthering cooperation and impact, alongside strengthening the identity of the GSS.

The National Statistician also appointed three deputy heads of the Government Statistical Service to work together, with the aim of getting the best out of the GSS community. They operate together to oversee the implementation of the GSS vision, building future capability and linking the profession to the UK Statistics Authority and the broader Analysis Function. These have been positive steps in promoting and developing the identity of statisticians in government.

While still in early stages, the GSS has taken steps to ensure that the profession is focused on delivering against the vision. One aspect is the partnership between the Royal Statistical Society (RSS) and the GSS to consider the future role of statisticians and the statistical profession. This is reflecting on how the role of statisticians will evolve and what skills the profession will need in the future.

As part of this work, a round table was held in November 2024, and a summary report was published in April 2025. The report sets out the areas that are likely to remain consistent, areas that are likely to evolve and the drivers of change. These drivers include changing technology and data, public perception of trust and transparency, budgetary constraints and skills. The RSS and GSS are currently seeking feedback to inform the next stages of their work.

The GSS vision set out the ambition for a permanent central GSS support team that had a sustainable funding model. Central GSS activity is currently funded by a mix of:

• ONS resource dedicated to the GSS
• wider ONS resource to support the GSS, ONS and Analysis Function
• volunteer-led initiatives
• individual-funded activities

While resourcing remains a challenge, the Deputy Heads of the GSS have taken additional oversight to ensure that resources are directed to the highest-priority activities to deliver for the GSS. It is our view that certain services can be delivered more cost-effectively by the GSS centrally rather than by individual producer organisations. We have seen enhanced clarity on priorities in areas such as coherence and harmonisation. These are welcome steps, as much of this work requires central coordination to be effectively and efficiently delivered across the system.

Updating the Code of Practice for Statistics

The Code of Practice for Statistics (the Code) ensures that statistics are not just numbers but reliable tools for understanding the world. When statistics and data are produced in line with the core principles of Trustworthiness, Quality and Value (TQV) set out in the Code, they serve the public good.

We manage and maintain the Code, which has set the standards for the production of official statistics since 2009. The second edition, introducing the TQV framework, was published in 2018. The Code is not only a set of guidelines but also a source of inspiration and support for producers and users of statistics. It has become firmly embedded in the work of analysts producing official statistics.

It is important that the Code remains relevant as, in recent years, there have been substantial changes in the data landscape. These include the rapid growth of AI technology, an increased desire for statistics from users and developments in the ways statistics are produced and disseminated. This year, we consulted on a proposed refreshed version of the Code. The consultation ran for 16 weeks, closing in February 2025, and we published our consultation findings in May 2025.

We received 61 consultation responses, with 43 of these responses coming from organisations and individuals in official statistics producer settings. The producer organisations reflected the four nations and different sizes and types of producer bodies from government departments, agencies and organisations listed on an OS Order. We also received 17 responses from other non-producer stakeholder settings. Respondents covered a range of interests, including regulatory, public bodies, commercial, fact checking and genealogy.

The responses we received from across the statistical system show the commitment of producers and wider stakeholders to the Code and the value of official statistics. The consultation responses showed strong overall support for the proposed design of Code 3.0, which retains the current Code framework of Trustworthiness, Quality and Value. We received many insightful and valuable comments on areas we could further strengthen, in particular in the detail of the ‘Standards for Official Statistics’, which set out specific statistical practices that those producing official statistics must follow.

Code 3.0 also introduces a new component which sets out what anyone communicating statistics in public bodies needs to do to ensure an open, clear and accessible approach. These standards embed our existing principles of intelligent transparency more clearly in the framework of the Code and were welcomed overall by consultation respondents.

The comments received through the consultation have informed our redrafting of the Code, which we are further testing with key stakeholders. All the feedback that we have received will be used to support a refreshed Code that supports our vision that statistics should serve the public good. We aim to release the refreshed Code of Practice in autumn 2025.

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