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ACCESSING LOCAL STATISTICS

A GUIDE TO GM COUNCIL WEBSITES

Given the availability of robust, comparable information on Neighbourhood Statistics, why should you also take time to visit your local council website?

First, council websites provide useful clues to your council’s own priorities for action: Oldham Info, for example, organises statistics according to the themes prioritised by Oldham Partnership. Finding out your council’s priorities makes it easier to identify key local issues, and to develop ideas and projects in partnership with local agencies.

Second, in addition to the small area geographies used on Neighbourhood Statistics, you will find that information is presented for the geographies that are most relevant to the organisation and business of your council. Ward-level information is important to all councils, and all GM councils now provide profiles for 2004 ward boundaries. You may also, depending on your council, find statistics for other areas such as:

­District Assembly (e.g. Tameside)

­Local Area Partnerships (e.g. Bury)

­Neighbourhood Area (e.g. Salford)

­Neighbourhood Renewal Area (e.g. Rochdale)

­Township (e.g. Wigan)

A third advantage is that council websites provide a wealth of other local information. In addition to local maps and statistics, you may find information on neighbourhood action plans, regeneration priorities, information on specialist services, and contact information for local councillors and ward coordinators.

So council websites complement Neighbourhood Statistics. However, access, presentation and the amount of information available varies considerably.

Some councils, for example Rochdale MBC, have dedicated local information websites, providing not only interactive maps and data but online guidance and training manuals. Users are normally required to register with the site, but registration is straightforward. Wigan W.I.S.D.O.M. restricts access, but any organisation associated with the Wigan Partnership may access the site.

Other councils provide a range of area and thematic reports which may be downloaded free of charge. For example, Salford City Council provides comprehensive ward profiles drawing on recent data sets as well as information from the 2001 Census. However, finding what is available on the main website and how to access the information is not always obvious. In addition, since council websites undergo constant development, the location of research and statistics pages may change.

The accompanying table lists websites for all ten Greater Manchester councils. In the case of councils with dedicated information websites, the name of the website and the URL are listed. For councils including research and statisticspages within their main website, the homepage for each council is given, together with suggestions on how to access the most relevant pages.

To ensure that this guide is kept up-to-date, your feedback is welcomed. If you are aware of updates and corrections, please contact:

Alison Peacock,

Mission Planning Officer

Manchester Diocese

0161-828 1447

Manchester Diocese Church & Society Department

July 2009

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Local Authority / Key Website / Notes
Bolton / Bolton MBC
/ A range of reports can be downloaded from these pages covering a range of social and economic information They include area and thematic reports and Bolton research Group publications. Use the A-Z index to access “Statistics and Census Information”.
Bury / Bury MBC
/ Click on the “social issues” tab on the homepage and follow the link to “population and migration” to access the “statistical and census information page for a range of area and thematic reports.
Manchester / Manchester City Council
/ The city council has data on Manchester's economy and population,taken from the national census, surveys and other datasets. Use the A-Z Index to access “Statistics about Manchester” and download a area and thematic reports. Ward profiles may be found under “Policy Unit Publications”.
Oldham / Oldham Info
/ The site offers quick online access to local information, allowing users to zoom in on a map of the borough and call up the information for defined areas including wards, area committees and programme areas such as New Deal, Surestart, SRB, and Housing Market Renewal. It is possible to create and analyse user-defined areas. The statistics data has been organised according to the Oldham Partnership thematic partnerships to assist users wishing to focus on particular themes.
Rochdale / Rochdale Stats and Maps
/ Stats and Maps provides easy online access to statistics about health, social, economic and environmental factors. Statistics can be displayed on the map, in a table or as a graph. Users can display data for standard areas such as wards. You can also define your own area of interest using a map tool and the website will produce statistics for that area too.
Salford / Salford City Council

/ Click on the “Living” tab and drill down via “Planning and Building” and “Research and Information” to access comprehensive ward profiles (updated in May 2009). Information on Salford’s eight neighbourhood areas may be accessed via the link to “Communities in Salford”. The interactive map service may be accessed from “quick links” on the homepage.
Stockport / Profiling Stockport Live
/ An information sharing and reporting site which is used for a variety of purposes including area profiling, statistical visualisation, performance management, and neighbourhood monitoring. The data in the Profile has come from a number of sources: Census information, the Indices of Deprivation, health data, educational data, housing data and local data from service providers, such as take up of Welfare Rights advice.
Tameside / Tameside PIP
(Partnership Information Portal)
/ PIP provides easy access to statistics and indicators at differing geographical levels across the borough. The statistics cover a number of themes including demographics, educational achievement, health, employment and public perceptions.
Trafford / Trafford MBC
/ Ward profiles, annually updated, may be accessed by entering your postcode on the homepage or following the “Neighbourhood Forums” or “Citizen’s Portal” links.
Wigan / Wigan W.I.S.D.O.M
(Information System of Dynamic Online Maps)
/ W.I.S.D.O.M. provides access to statistics at a variety of spatial levels including Output Area, Lower Super Output Area, Ward, Township and Local Authority Districts. The statistics cover a range of themes including deprivation, health and social care, economic activity, children and young people, housing, crime and disorder, leisure and culture, environment, transport and demographics. Access is currently restricted to people and organisations associated with Wigan Borough Partnership

Manchester Diocese Church & Society Department

July 2009