Welcome to the UK Data Service
Trusted access and training to use the UK's largest collection of economic, population and social research data for teaching, learning and public benefit.
Highlights
We're shortlisted in two categories at the British Data Awards 2026!
We’re pleased to announce that the UK Data Service has been shortlisted in the “Data Partnership of the Year” and “Not-For-Profit of the Year” categories for the British Data Awards 2026! The winners will be announced in a ceremony at the Brewery in London on 20 May.
New data linkage and access initiative announced for Longitudinal Population Studies
We’re pleased to announce a new project to help maximise the visibility and long‑term value of data from Longitudinal Population Studies. The initiative will enable UK-based Longitudinal Population Studies to apply to join UK Longitudinal Linkage Collaboration (UK LLC) and/or the UK Data Service at no cost.
Key takeaways from the Crime Surveys User Conference 2026
On 11 March, we were pleased to host the 2026 Crime Surveys User Conference in collaboration with the Office for National Statistics (ONS) and the Scottish Government. The conference featured updates from data producers and an insightful mix of presentations from researchers who have used data from UK crime surveys.
Upcoming training and events
Our impact
Gender Equality Index UK case study
This new Impact Case Study looks at the Gender Equality Index UK: the first index to systematically measure and analyse the socioeconomic outcomes of women and men across all 372 local authorities in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
UK data infrastructure: challenges, opportunities — and a cornerstone
Professor Alison Park, from the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), discusses the importance of UK social science data infrastructures and outlines some of the opportunities and challenges they face.
10,000 data collections: nearly six decades of data impact
This year, the UK Data Service reached an incredible milestone — over 10,000 data collections are now discoverable through our Data Catalogue. But what is the journey to this milestone? What does it matter? And how does it set the stage for the next chapter of data innovation and impact?
Watch our data skills training webinars
Subscribe to our YouTube channel
Watch and learn all the latest data skills from our free webinars, training and video tutorials.
UK Data Service essentials: Introduction, finding and accessing data
This interactive session is ideal for anyone interested in social research and keen to explore the wide range of resources offered by the UK Data Service.
Introduction to secondary analysis for qualitative and quantitative data
Secondary analysis offers a great option for dissertation students who are looking to gain experience working with data but who have limited abilities to go out into the field or would like to study a hard-to-reach population.
Ignite discovery: elevate your research with data deposits
Deposit your research data free, in our ESRC funded data catalogue.
Latest news
Vacancy: Departmental Administrator
University of Essex, UK Data Archive, Faculty of Social Sciences The UK Data Archive is seeking to appoint a Departmental Administrator to join our Business Strategy and Operations team on a part-time, job-share basis. The successful candidate will provide high-quality administrative support to colleagues across the organisation, ensuring the smooth and efficient running of operations. […]
Advancing data curation through the MetaCurate-ML project to improve data discovery
The UK Data Service continues to explore new ways to improve how data is prepared, described, and delivered to researchers. As part of this work, our Research and Development and Curation teams have been working on MetaCurate-ML, a pilot project initially funded through the ESRC Future Data Services programme which subsequently received supplementary funding through […]
Department for Education and UK Data Service collaborate to expand access to research-ready education data
The Department for Education (DfE) and the UK Data Archive have strengthened their long-standing collaboration through a new framework agreement. Building on a history of successfully curating and providing access to DfE and DfE-linked data, this agreement streamlines the process for depositing and sharing new datasets via the UK Data Service. The framework supports the […]
Who makes us special?
Our podcast series, The Experts’ Expert, showcases some of the unique work we do to enable evidence-led research for public benefit.
