When I heard that the government had pulled the plug on unconscious bias training, I remember thinking that it felt like a backwards step. But a review found limited evidence that it creates behaviour change, and could even lead to "unintended negative consequences.” So, what was going on there that meant not only was it not very effective, but could actually be making things worse?
As it’s Mental Health Awareness Week this week, I wanted to write a blog to shine a light on some of the work we’ve been doing at the Essex Centre for Data Analytics and at Essex County Council. Mental health …
If you were to ask me when I was young what would be the greatest thing I wanted to achieve, I would have told you I wanted to be an astronaut. Fortunately for everyone, including me, outer space does not …
This year has been shall we say - very different to what we are all used to, however we would like to share a bit of positivity around some great work that the Open Data team have delivered in this …
Our Data & Analytics team is an absolute rag-tag ensemble. The kind of motley crew usually seen in family films such as Mighty Ducks, Monsters University, Stand By Me, etc.
Any project in a local authority setting has a certain degree of bureaucracy. And that’s good, bureaucracy makes sure people are kept in the loop, makes sure services are fit for purpose, makes sure we are accountable and transparent. But bureaucracy can also make our workdays too long, frustrate us and distract us from our, and the organisation’s, motivation.
I would have been studying hard for upcoming deadlines at The University of Essex, revising for modules like Econometrics and Mathematical Methods. However, I decided early on in my degree that I needed to gain experience, and the best way was through an industrial placement.
This year has been undeniably tough! However, we have found silver linings wherever possible; gone above and beyond to support each other; and worked tremendously hard to enable others to make difficult decisions. Last year Data and Analytics set five …
What does capability mean for analytics? I’m nearing the end of my second month as the new Head of ecda. It’s an exciting role and I’m lucky to be well supported by senior stakeholders who can see how using data …
This post is a bit of a departure from our usual content, but I hope you’ll allow me some shameless plugging. I was recently shortlisted for a ‘women in government’ writing competition with Apolitical which means I have now been published on their website. I write about how what feels like our biggest disadvantage as women, being talked over, interrupted and underestimated, can be transformed into our biggest power.
Yesterday I took a day out to attend not one, but two online virtual events. First up the LARIA webinar on Predicting the Future, which launched the LGA’s guide on The Use of Predictive Analytics in Local Government, swiftly followed …