Statistically Speaking: A new podcast from the Office for National Statistics  

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How do you count a whole nation in a day or track the spread of a pandemic?  These and other big topics are on the agenda as ONS launches its new monthly podcast: Statistically Speaking 

Statistically Speaking hears from the people behind the numbers and takes a deep dive into the inner workings of ONS and the latest hot topics from the world of data. 

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Self-isolation and worker absences

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As infection rates increased throughout December and early January, we saw impacts across a range of sectors as more people were isolating following a positive COVID test result. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) needed to assess the scale of self-isolation rapidly, and understand which sectors were most hit by worker absences. Tess Carter explains how data we published today help to provide those insights, and how they compare with our other data sources.  

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Leaving no one behind

As part of our drive to ensure UK statistics reflect the experiences of everyone in society, we have today published a detailed plan on how we will collectively improve the inclusivity of UK data and evidence so that no one is left behind.  Debra Prestwood describes some of the improvements we can expect to see in the coming months. 

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Building the richest picture of our population

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Population statistics underpin a vast array of analysis, from unemployment rates to health outcomes, and are vital to decisions about all public services. Pete Benton explains how, this year, with new census outputs and more frequent statistics from new data sources, the ONS will deliver richer and more timely insights than ever before.   

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