Abstract

In this talk we will introduce an ongoing international project, led by ONS and supported by Wellcome,
to develop a global statistical framework for monitoring the impacts of climate change on health.
From this example we will expand on the increasingly complex conceptual, methodological and practical
challenges facing the health domain in official statistics and the need to draw on an ever wider range
of data science and geospatial techniques and more diverse (including non-official) data sources. We will
discuss how this tends to push official statistics beyond its traditional ‘comfort zone’ and the potential benefits,
but also new or increased risks to organisational relationships and statistical quality and sustainability. Finally,
we will use the specific project as an example to discuss mitigation of the risks and ways forward.