toolkit case studies
Office for National Statistics
The task faced by ONS, of managing the Census for the whole of England and Wales, was so large that the techniques and computing power sufficient to bring GIS into a leading role were not available until the 2001 Census. The advantages and power available from GIS and the digital boundary sets and maps from Ordnance Survey replaced the highly labour intensive process of creating collection areas. In addition, a GIS based process, developed in-house, has provided the opportunity to separate collection areas from statistical reporting areas for the first time. In the output from the 2001 Census, the reporting units, Census Output Areas, will be more consistent, have better shape and more homogeneity.
Census statistics are to be found in virtually all the planning functions undertaken by central and local government, thus these improved systems will play their part in enabling better decision making.
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