Open Data – What’s the potential?Using data to drive investment
HACT Seminar Manchester 27th November 2012
Prof Robert Barr OBEManchester Geomatics, University of Liverpool
APPSI and ODUG
manchester.geomatics THEORY INTO PRACTICE
Where I’m going…..
Social policy goes spatialPutting tenants in contextTenants on the mapWhat do we have to gain?Making use of Open DataConclusions
Social policy goes spatial
Rediscovering poverty
• Social policy is marked by periodic realizations that:– Society is becoming more unequal– The ‘poor’ are being left behind
• Characterized by individual households in poverty
• Areas where poor households are concentrated
…… however
• Even when inequality peaks– Most deprived individuals do not live in deprived
areas– Most of those living in ‘deprived’ areas are not
deprived
Putting tenants in context
Tenant information
• Best at point of let – CORE
• Sometimes maintained
Asset information
• Plenty of information about property– Type– Size– Energy efficiency– Investment profile
Areas or Households
• Many housing policies are area based e.g.:– Housing Action Areas– Housing Market Renewal
• …alongside other area based policies– Educational Priority Areas– Inner Cities Programme
• When the pendulum swings:– Troubled Families initiative
Tenants on the map
Closed approach• Buy proprietary Geographical Information
System:– ESRI ArcMap– MapInfo
• Buy proprietary data– Ordnance Survey– Experian– Royal Mail
• Hire an ‘expert’– In-house or a service company /consultant
Open approach
• Use open source software– e.g. Quantum GIS or PostGIS– or an Open Platform (though many are Freemium)
• Use open data– ONS NESS data, ONSPD– Ordnance Survey Open Data– Open Street Map
• Hire an ‘expert’– In-house or a service company / consultant
Making Use of Open Data
What do we have to gain?
What do we have to gain?
• Gaining control of our own data and information
• Getting a better understanding of Social Return on Investment
• Being able to relate the impact of work with tenants on areas
• Being able to relate the impact of area based initiatives on tenants
What do we have to gain?
• Being able to make better investment decisions based on evidence
• Getting an early warning of area based problems e.g. reduction in demand
Conclusions
Conclusions
Social landlords have always needed to place their tenants in context:But•Too expensive•Too difficult•Didn’t know what they would do with the knowledge
Conclusions
The combination of Open data and a managed platform overcomes many of these obstacles.
Platform provides an opportunity to share best practice and benchmark performance against others in a safe and confidential environment.
Costs of development and analysis can be shared
That’s it!
Prof Robert Barr [email protected]