Improving the accessibility of Official Statistics: HMRC’s uktradeinfo website

1. Improving the accessibility of Official Statistics:HMRC’s uktradeinfo website

2. Background • HMRC publishes a broad range of National Statistics, from tax receipts to child trust funds • HMRC’s Trade Statistics unit collects and publishes UK import and export trade-in-goods data as the Overseas Trade Statistics (OTS) and Regional Trade Statistics (RTS) • UK trade-in-goods statistics are collected from UK Customs declarations • (Non-EU trade) and the Intrastat survey of businesses (EU trade) • OTS & RTS releases and detailed trade data are published via HMRC’s dedicated trade statistics website uktradeinfo.com

3. Timeline: uktradeinfo • 2000 launched as a paid-for subscription site for niche users • 2006 became free to use, with registration access to detailed data • 2011 broad programme of customer engagement to update requirement • 2012 re-launched with open access, with 25,000+ unique monthly visitors

4. Drivers for change • EU procurement rules dictating need to re-tender site contract • Code of Practice for Official Statistics challenging data dissemination and presentation standards • Increasing user expectation and demand from new technology • Downward pressure on budgets, need to deliver cost savings

5. Trade statistics user engagement • Wide range of users across government, commercial, academic, financial, press and public sectors • Online survey of data users • Registered data users targeted • News items • Email Alert Service • Email responses with survey promotion signatures • Harvesting of customer enquiry, feedback and complaint information

6. Trade statistics user engagement…continued • 1:1 engagement with key stakeholder users via dedicated Client Managers • Opinion sought from the International Business Statistics User Group • Questions inserted in formal Intrastat Triennial Review survey • Annual review of non-web output customers • UKSA Code of Practice compliance assessment observations

7. User Engagement Outcomes • Quicker access to detailed data required • Registration requirement useful to HMRC but barrier to casual users • But…frequent users want ability to save self-built detailed data tables • Users want EU and Non-EU data presented together • More data fields e.g. port • Metadata not easy to find • Ability to build time series essential • Multiple download options requested

8. What did we deliver? 1 • New website with 20% cost reduction • Requirement to register to access detailed data removed • Homepage dashboard to provide quick access to latest National Statistics releases • Social media sharing links • Dynamically updated monthly trade bar chart on homepage with 1 click access to detailed trade data • Dedicated consultation area on homepage alongside latest news • Feedback link on every page

9. What did we deliver? 2 • Dedicated release areas for OTS and RTS products with metadata content in tabs alongside • Pre-prepared ‘cuts’ of the data in downloadable spreadsheets based on previous popular requests • Quick line graph visualisation of the latest monthly data • Simplified, downloadable commentary with enhanced data graphics • Quick links from the monthly release to the detailed underlying data interactive tables • Easy archive access for past releases

10. What did we deliver? 3 • SQL trade database presenting EU and Non-EU data in same table • Monthly updated data in time series from 1996 to current year • Detailed data simultaneously published with National Statistics aggregate release • Improved disclosure control meaning more data legitimately published • Additional data field – UK ‘port’ added for Non-EU trade for all years

11. What did we deliver? 4 • Easy access to metadata, simple charts and trade maps • Save table view – allowing built tables to be stored (3 months) without registration and URLs shared via email/social media etc. • Long-term table storage and Alert Service choices via combined voluntary registration • Drag and drop data field manipulation • Spreadsheet, CSV and PDF export facility

12. What did we deliver? 5 • Downloadable versions of the complete monthly dataset in open-data machine readable format • 7 year downloadable data archive • Latest month available for self-service download within 30 minutes of National Statistics release • Reduced customer enquiries and data handling overhead as a result of user self-service • Improved site usage metrics and analytics allowing improved understanding of customer journey

13. What do our users think? 2013/14 annual web survey results indicate: • 27% are very satisfied • 52% are satisfied • 15% are neither satisfied nor dissatisfied • 4% are dissatisfied • 1% are very dissatisfied • 1% don’t know

14. Developments underway • Simultaneous release of Non-EU and EU OTS National Statistics (currently approx. 1 week apart) • Collaboration with BIS and ONS to develop pre-prepared, media-friendly trade map visualisations • Publication of interactive table building tutorials on YouTube • DevExpress software upgrade (now IE6 no longer supported) allowing improved functionality • Building engagement via the ‘Business and Trade Statistics’ community on StatsUserNet

15. Feedback always appreciated! Thank you for viewing this presentation. Feedback to the presenter can be provided by emailing: richard.batterham@hmrc.gsi.gov.uk Feedback on the uktradeinfo website or HMRC National Statistics by: uktradeinfo Customer Feedback Form email to uktradeinfo@hmrc.gsi.gov.uk contacting HMRC National Statistics Producers joining the Business & Trade Statistics community at StatsUserNet Or use the individual page feedback links at the bottom of all uktradeinfo pages. THANK YOU