Open Data

Since the Open Data team came together in August 2019, they have been working to make the best use of data across the county, to tackle some of our biggest issues, to unlock the potential of data to improve decision making and outcomes.

In celebration of Open Data Day 7 March 2020, the team's Joe Skeel shares what the team are working on.

We have a great Open Data team at ECC – as you can tell from the cheery picture!

Open Data is important for ECC, its partners in the public sector, local businesses and citizens because it enables us to drive innovation, growth and trust across the county. Ultimately a lot of time and effort goes into producing different datasets, reports, interactive tools and by making them open and sharing them with everyone they have more use, and don’t just sit in a file forever and collect dust!

This array of data is showcased and hosted on our very own platform. Follow this link to view some of the work we have already produced https://data.essex.gov.uk/ have a browse and let us know your thoughts!

We have enabled the passenger transport team to cut down the time spent on answering customer queries by giving them a platform to publish their data. Now their future plans are:

“to open up the bus stop allocations for the transport hubs around the County. This will include Colchester Town Centre, which is a complex network of stops and requires careful co-ordination and planning. It is hoped by doing this, operators will be able to register and plan their services more effectively. We also plan to open up our route information as ESRI Shape Files during the 1st Quarter of 2020, this will allow transport modellers, and other stakeholders, to self-serve and access the 500+ routes in Essex within their mapping software."

We not only help our transport colleagues, but also our technology sector too. Who we envisage will be able to create end user applications and digital products or services for the people of Essex.
We also produced and published the skills insight tool for the Economic Growth Team, a publication that previously took up an entire role just to collate the data required. Time saved = success!!

Keen to expand on our work we’ve been thinking recently about what is possible. I think the image to the right really shows how far and wide this project can go and how much potential it has not just for ECC but for everyone in Essex.

I see Open Data as a “one stop shop” for all publishable data, but we need your help to know what to prioritise sharing. Get in touch and tell us what data you want to see us share.

I hope you’re doing something to mark International Open Data Day, if not get in touch and find out how Open Data could help you or showcase a great piece of work you have produced open.data@essex.gov.uk. We look forward to working with you soon!

Page updated 7 March 2020.