Access to the majority of microdata only requires registration, agreement to an End User Licence (EUL) and the registration
of usage details. These data are fully anonymised and certain variables may be suppressed to minimise the risk of disclosure.
Special Licence (SL) data collections are also anonymised but contain more detailed information. All SL data collections require
users to complete a set of forms to provide, for example, details of the intended use of the data. Users will be directed
to the relevant forms during the ordering process. The completed forms are sent to the data depositor for approval, and permission has to
be received by ESDS before access to the data is granted.
Users who obtain access to SL data are required to read and follow the
Guide
to good practice: micro data handling and security. This includes additional guidance on avoiding inadvertent statistical
disclosure, storing and accessing data securely and how to permanently destroy copies of the data.
ONS Approved Researcher access
The Statistics and Registration Service Act 2007 requires any registered user requiring ONS SL data, to be accredited by the UK
Statistics Authority as an Approved Researcher by completing the Approved Researcher forms.
To apply for accreditation a user must:
- provide evidence that he/she is a fit and proper person
- detail the purpose of the research
- create an online order for the data required
- sign a declaration that he/she understands the confidentiality obligations, including physical security, owed to those data
The evidence required includes details of previous research projects and publications, information about the intended use of the
data, and a justification for access and planned outputs. New users may need to provide the contact details of a senior member
of staff who will support their application.
The following SL datasets require completion of the Approved Researcher forms:
Other Special Licence studies
Other depositors, including the Centre for Longitudinal Studies, use their own SL forms. These include:
History of the Special Licence
It was recognised that some researchers needed access to more detailed data. To facilitate this,
and to increase the range of data available for statistical research, the Office for National Statistics (ONS), in
collaboration with the UK Data Archive and ESDS Government, developed a Special Licence (SL) to provide access to
social survey datasets that were detailed, yet anonymised. The original SL was launched in September 2005.
The coming into force of the Statistics and Registration Service Act in April 2008 brought an end to the original SL
arrangements. Access to ONS SL data continues but under a new legal framework set out in the Act. From April 2008,
any registered user requiring ONS SL data has to be accredited by the UK Statistics Authority as an Approved Researcher.
ONS intends to deposit all social survey datasets in a form suitable for use under the current EUL, but does not intend
to review the status of datasets deposited before June 2005 and currently available under the EUL.
This does not rule out the possibility of additions to the collection of SL versions of these earlier datasets in the future.
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