Blending Data Science and Statistics across Government

Across government, departments are beginning to use data science techniques to realise the value of data and make more effective, data informed decisions. The Cabinet Office Government Digital Service, Office for National Statistics and Government Office for Science have collaborated to form the Government Data Science Partnership, to support departments to apply the potential of data science to their challenges. This paper outlines how data science and statistical practice are being blended across government. It explores this relationship via two case studies. The first case study is in the context of the production of official statistics, specifically the production of price indices. The second outlines how open source software is being used to reduce production time of official statistics whilst maintaining and improving the quality of the publications.