New RDS business plan published

Research Data Scotland (RDS) has published its latest business plan.

RDS’s mission is to promote and advance health and social wellbeing in Scotland by enabling access to public sector data about people, places and businesses. This year, from April 2023 to March 2024, is our second year operating as a not-for-profit charitable organisation.  

This year’s business plan continues work at pace to improve access to Scotland’s already excellent public sector data, which is stored in lots of individual systems, across many different organisations.

Engaging with the public

At the heart of what we do is the trust from the public, business and others to handle their data responsibly. Public engagement remains a critical activity throughout the whole organisation’s activities and, in particular, our three focus areas for the next 12 months, which are strengthening collaboration, demonstrating trustworthiness; shaping our services for the future; and a system wide approach to unlocking Scotland’s data.

Strengthening collaboration, demonstrating trustworthiness

Priorities under this theme over the next year include: 

• We are joining with Scottish Centre for Administrative Data Research (SCADR) who deliver ADR Scotland public panel to co-host and expand their public panel on data. We also intend to explore the potential of a youth panel
• A further round of projects led by Regional Safe Havens, via a Systems Development Fund, to simplify and align arrangements for access to data, collaborating on public engagement, industry use of data, information governance, and communications
• Developing further partnership arrangements with other organisations in Scotland who provide data access services, both with the intention of federating data, and of enhancing the range of services available.

Shaping our services for the future

Under this theme, our relentless focus will continue to be on simplification, alignment and speeding up of the system for research data access. Key deliverables include: 

• Researcher Access Service: phased delivery of end-to-end minimum viable digital service for 'simple' data access
• New improved website including an overhaul of the metadata catalogue
• Commissioning and overseeing delivery of developments to the National Safe Haven, including services that enable researchers to bring together either key open datasets alongside case level data or one that allows them to bring their own data in ways that integrate with existing RDS curated datasets.

A system wide approach to unlocking Scotland’s data

We plan to widen the range of data available for research in the public good. Deliverables in this area include:

• ​​​​​​Developing approaches to producing synthetic versions of datasets that have public and data controller support, agreeing Scotland wide policy, and funding delivery of synthetic versions of research datasets
• Working collaboratively with Public Health Scotland to widen the range of health and care data available in Scotland such as exploring possibilities for making data on primary care, hospital and care home prescribing, medical imaging, genomics and laboratories available for research in a safe and secure manner
• Support the delivery of the ADR Scotland programme developing undertaking practical data activities to bring together a prioritised set of administrative data available for research and updating datasets already in the National Safe Haven.

Professor Roger Halliday, Interim CEO of RDS, said: "I’m delighted to publish our 2023 to 2024 business plan.  

"As we move into our second year of operating as a not-for-profit charitable organisation, Research Data Scotland is moving at pace to ensure Scotland’s public sector data can be accessed quickly and with less friction."

Find out more

Read Professor Roger Halliday’s blog

Read the 2023 to 2024 RDS business plan