Welcome to the wiki on winning the argument for localgov data.
This was created after the local data panel met in the West Midlands in Spring 2010 (and subsequently set up the Local Data blog). It has been created by Michael Grimes (Citizenship Foundation), Stuart Harrison (Lichfield Council) and Dan Slee (Walsall Council).
As well as the background information below, we are collecting counter-arguments for use in winning the case for open local data.
A wiki allows authors to edit, create and collaborate on arguments for releasing data.
The inspiration comes from the debate on social media.
In many places the adoption of social media has far to go. In the places where it has been a success those who argued for it within local government drew from online resources which set out argument and counter argument. This is the purpose of this wiki.
The novice as well as the geek. You shouldn't have to be able to code to grasp the argument. This is about making the argument easy to understand to the layman.
Data is information gathered by local and central government. A collection of data is known as a dataset. This can cover a myriad of subjects. For example, it can cover the names of ward councillors. It can be the co-ordinates of leisure centres. It can be the location of road traffic collisions across a given area. (More on data)
It helps transparency. It helps accountability. It helps decision makers make good decisions and to explain them. It helps democracy.
Bright people at Cambridge University calculate that freeing up data can lead to a £6 billion industry in the UK alone. That's through building applications and maps to help interpret the information more clearly.
The release of data is an issue that crosses party and national boundaries.
In so far as the release of good quality raw data can support democratic debate, data itself has a political dimension, but the movement to open up access to government data is backed by leaders from across the political spectrum.
Having trouble making the case for open data? Check out our rebuffs to common arguments.
The list of Education Data Uses on the Data.gov.uk wiki includes many examples of local uses of open data.