GeoConvert: Creating that Spatial Relationship David Rawnsley Mimas, University of Manchester

1. GeoConvert: Creating that Spatial Relationship David RawnsleyMimas, University of Manchester

2. Overview • GeoConvert is an online geography matching and conversion tool for UK academics. • GeoConvert allows registered users to obtain and manipulate complex geographical and postcode data in a straightforward way. • A solution to a specific UK problem but it can be applied to any country.

3. The Problem • Many types of geography in the UK • Administrative • Electoral • Postal • Health • European • Census • Statistical

4. A Little UK Geography Strategic Health Authorities - 2006 Parliamentary Constituencies 2005 Counties, Districts, Unitary Authorities - 1998

5. Further Complication UK Wales Scotland England Northern Ireland Unitary Authority GOR Council Area District Councils UA County ST Electoral Division ST Postcode Sector District CAS Postcode Sector LLSOA Ward CAS Electoral Division Intermediate Zones ST Ward MSOA Data Zones LSOA CAS Ward English and Welsh Output Areas Scottish Output Areas Northern Irish Output Areas

6. A Partial Solution • The NSPD • Produced by the Office for National Statistics • A long list of UK Postcodes • Also has other geographical zones • Postcode metadata • New version every quarter

7. Problems With The NSPD • It’s huge – 1.37 Gb at last count • It’s cumbersome – flat file with many rows or basic Access database • Horrible variable names – ‘OSHLTHAU’ • It keeps changing • Very little support from ONS • Why can’t someone tame it?

8. Our Hero At Last • What is it? • Online web based access to NSPD • Range of functions • Provides a framework for integrating data • Regularly updated • Help and support provided • FAQs • Original documentation • Glossary • User Guides

9. GeoConvert

10. What Does It Actually Do? • 3 functions • Postcode related information • Geography matching • Geographical data conversion

11. Why Should I Use It? • Prizes! • It enables datasets to be linked much more easily • It enables researchers to link their own data to many more datasets • It enables data to be linked historically • It allows users to quickly and easily get access to widely used deprivation and classification data

12. How Does It Do It? • Postcode information direct from NSPD • Use postcodes as a population proxy • Dissection and re-aggregation of filtered postcodes between zones to achieve measure of proportional distribution of population • Lots of complicated database stuff • Lots of complicated interface stuff • UK specific but the solution can be applied to any country

13. Isn’t Some Of That A Bit Dodgy? • Dependent on accuracy of ‘how much?’ and ‘where?’ • Boundary fuzziness due to unique allocation of postcodes • Ideal data is population related with homogenous distribution • male, female = good • clusters of cancer patients = bad • Based on current population • current to historical works best • Partial input = partial output

14. What Might It Do Next? • A better population proxy? • Different population proxies • More metadata • Confidence measures • Standards based XML output • Integration with external data sources • Machine to machine • Pipetastic • http://geoconvert.mimas.ac.uk