Times they are a-changing: and with them, two key ONS surveys

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has had a huge impact on our daily lives, from how we live as a society to the running of businesses and workplaces. Here Tim Vizard and Emily Hopson look at how two surveys we introduced at the very beginning of the pandemic have been helping to inform our understanding of its consequences – and the changes we are making now as we learn to live with Covid.

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Making everybody count: How we’re transforming the Labour Force Survey

Picture of workers

The Labour Force Survey has for many years been the cornerstone of ONS statistics on UK employment. While now complemented by other, often faster sources of information like real-time PAYE data, it remains the richest source of data on many aspects of the world of work and wider society. Darren Morgan discusses the challenges this survey faced during the pandemic and how we now plan to transform it. 

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One population – five billion statistics

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One year on from Census Day, and the most comprehensive quality assurance ever of census data in England and Wales is underway. This is to ensure the Office for National Statistics produces the best possible information for every local area. Here Pete Benton describes the scale of the work, puts a figure on the number of statistics he estimates will be published – and even admits to getting a reminder letter during his own data collection operation. 

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