The Local Area Research and Intelligence Association (LARIA) held a one-day event last week, Thursday 16 November 2023, at the Local Government Association in Westminster, London. HSCWRU researcher Caroline Norrie went along and was treated to a range of presentations about local authorities’ innovative ways of using data to improve inclusion.

One notable presentation was on Luton Council’s work using the minimum income standard (MIS), a measure of the cost of living created by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, which details what different household types need to spend in order to reach a minimum socially acceptable standard of living.

Also of interest was news from Doncaster about their Health Determinants Research Collaboration (HDRC) and details from Essex Council about work using natural language data analysis techniques to achieve a more holistic and richer view of service user survey data.

Qualitative approaches were presented by representatives from Kirklees Council who shared an impactful awareness-raising animation created as part of co-production activities with local residents experiencing poverty. The afternoon was brought to a close with representatives from the Office for National Statistics who summarised the different services they offer to local authorities aiming to maximise the benefits of their data.