How RDS works with eDRIS
Discover how we work together with our eDRIS colleagues to provide data access support.
Research for public good
Learn about the concept of public good and what evidence researchers must submit to show that their research will benefit the public.
What do we mean by public good?
When we refer to ‘public good’, also known as public benefit, it means that there should be some ‘net good’ accruing to the public; it has both a benefit aspect and a public aspect. The benefit aspect requires the achievement of good, not outweighed by any associated risk.
Good is interpreted in a broad and flexible manner and can be direct, indirect, immediate, or long-term. Benefit needs to be identifiable, even if it cannot be immediately quantified or measured. The public aspect requires demonstrable benefit to accrue to the public, or a section of the public.
Further information can be found on this blog post by the National Data Guardian.
What evidence must researchers provide in order to access data?
Data must be used ethically, for research that delivers clear public benefit. This is required as part of the UKSA Data Ethics Principles.
As part of their application for data access, researchers are required to answer several questions about the public good they expect their research project to deliver.
Should their access request be approved, this statement will be featured on the public Data Use Register. Members of the public can read about how each project will benefit them on the Data Use Register. Researchers must also publish their results to enable use, scrutiny, and further research.
This is a key component of The Five Safes framework, a set of principles which enable data services to provide safe research access to data. These principles relate to data, projects, people, settings, and outputs.
How is public good assessed for the Researcher Access Service?
All applications for access to data must conform to the principles in the Five Safes framework.
Users are led through a multi-stage process and must submit evidence to show that:
1. Their application meets all the required criteria, which includes:
- The research proposal conforms to the UKSA Data Ethics Principles (this will be built into the requirements of the RAS application process that will be in place from 30 October 2025)
- Funding through a recognised organisation
- Each team member must be an accredited researcher
- A declaration that details of the application can be shared on a public register
2. They understand the implications of breaching the user agreement that forms part of the application process.
On the specific question of public good, users are asked to describe the area of public good their application aligns with and provide a statement of benefits. These are listed below for reference.
A designated RAS Approval Panel is responsible for assuring that the required evidence is in place. The panel will check that the area(s) of public good the researcher has selected align with their statement of public good and the application as a whole, and that the benefits stated are clear and unambiguous.
If there is any doubt, the approvers can query what has been submitted, or choose to reject the application.
Public good definitions
Researchers are asked to align their research project with one or more of the following areas:
- Help the system to better understand the health and care needs of populations
- Lead to the identification or improvement of treatments or interventions or health and care system design to improve health and care outcomes or experience
- Help to manage the response to communicable diseases and other risks to public health such as pandemic planning and research
- Advance understanding of regional and national trends in health and social care needs
- Advance understanding of the need for or effectiveness of preventative health and care measures for particular populations or conditions such as obesity and diabetes
- Better inform those planning health services and programmes for example initiatives to improve equity of access experience and outcomes in the short or long term
- Inform decisions about how to effectively allocate and evaluate funding according to health needs
- Support knowledge creation or exploratory research (and the innovations and developments that might result from that exploratory work)
- Advance understanding of the needs of carers supporting family members
- Evidence base for public policy decision-making
- Evidence base for public service delivery
- Replication validation or challenge existing research
- Improve the quality coverage or presentation of existing statistical information
How to write a statement of public good
General approach
The RAS application asks the following question: “Please summarise how your research project will deliver public good.” Your response to this is considered your ‘statement of public good’. This will initially be reviewed by the Public Impact Advisory Group (PIAG) for feedback before it goes to the RAS panel for approval.
The definitions of public good that are stated in the RAS application dropdown menu are starting points. Any elaboration on these points helps the panel to determine that the research has a valuable, public-minded purpose.
Researchers are also encouraged to use a SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound) approach to crafting their statements of public good.
Length
The RAS Approval Panel are looking for quality, not quantity. It would be better to have one or two well evidenced examples, rather than multiple selections without much detail. Researchers are encouraged to think about the most pertinent statements to their work when selecting from the dropdown list, rather than completing a tick-box exercise.
Specific criteria
The Panel are looking for enough evidence and clear statements to give them confidence that a research project will achieve public benefit. This includes:
- Evidence that the research links back to the bigger picture and that findings will feed into improving existing services and structures, for example, the NHS, government or other elements of the public sector.
- Clearly stated ambitions of how the research will be published and disseminated.
- Indication of the population that will benefit from this research and what the likely scale of impact will be.
- Stated intentions that the researcher will engage the public in their work, either as a substantive element of the research or following its publication.
- Quantifiable or measurable aspects of the research. Where this is not possible at an early stage, it is useful to state expectations, for example, “reduced risk of…”, “better evidence for…”
Reusing information from funding applications
Researchers often must demonstrate public good to gain funding. Relevant information from funding applications may be repeated on RAS applications to craft statements of public good, as these statements form part of the Data Use Register and are tied to the decision-making record.
Further information
National Data Guardian
Further information on public good can be found on this blog post by the National Data Guardian.
UKSA ethics guidance
Find out more at the UK Statistics Authority website: Considering public good in research and statistics: ethics guidance
Public Benefit and Privacy Panels (PBPP)
Find out more about the application process for the Public Benefit and Privacy Panel for Health and Social Care (HSC-PBPP) and the SG & NRS Data Access Panel, previously known as the Statistics Public Benefit and Privacy Panel (S-PBPP).
Research Data Scotland (RDS)
Complete our pre-application checklist to understand what is involved in a data access request and how to compete the enquiry form.
About the Public Impact Advisory Group (PIAG) pilot
A new Public Impact Advisory Group (PIAG) will provide early feedback on Researcher Access Service applications.
More resources
Information governance for researchers
Discover key principles and legal considerations of information governance (IG) when accessing data.
Trusted Research Environments
There are a range of trusted research environments (TREs) in Scotland providing access to secure data.
Research data security
Find help for navigating data security as you work with secure and sensitive data for your research project.
Researcher approvals and accreditation
Find details on approved organisations in the UK and how to apply for researcher accreditation.
Terminology for researchers
Our list of common terms will help you understand more about how public sector data is used for research.