Understanding Society is running a new half-day online course to introduce potential new users to its data and evidence. The event takes place on Thursday 7 July from midday until 5pm, covering:
- what information Understanding Society collects
- how this is information collected, how often and who from
- how the information is structured, and how to find what you need
- examples of how the data have been used, and content of particular relevance
The course is free, and tailored to businesses, trade unions, regulators and strategic consultancies. It will also include a summary of the user support we offer, and how organisations can work with the Policy and Partnerships Unit.
Raj Patel, Associate Director, Policy and Partnerships at Understanding Society, says: “Organisations need high quality data and evidence to manage major economic and social headwinds driven by the transition to net zero, the changing nature of work and employment, productivity and wellbeing, inequality and diversity, ‘levelling-up’, and housing needs. Understanding Society is the largest longitudinal study of its kind and provides crucial information on citizens, workers and consumers in the UK.
“This free online course is a combination of lectures, a demonstration and an advice session, designed for staff with a role in consumer or market research, data science, social research, policy analysis, human resources, regulation, environment, public affairs, corporate responsibility, and investor relations.
“We’ll guide participants through the key features and design of Understanding Society, including content, structure and how to access both the data and published research. There will be case studies of how leading organisations are using the data already.”
Topical uses of Understanding Society include:
- Ofgem using published research based on our data in its decision on the tariff cap
- a report from the Northern Health Science Alliance which says poorer health in the most deprived areas cost the UK’s economy £30 billion a year
- PricewaterhouseCoopers using our data to understand the impact of leisure on quality of life for the Airports Commission (PDF)
- McKinsey UK have used our data to analyse the labour market – the increasing numbers of resignations in particular
When the half-day session is complete, participants who are also researchers can sign up for one of Understanding Society’s regular two-day hands-on training courses on data management.
EmploymentPolitics and social attitudes
