Research: Future Economies Data Observatory (FEDO)

A new tool for analysing and visualising official data from multiple sources - making it easier for policymakers to examine economic data at local level.

Research summary

Launch date: Autumn 2021

The Future Economies Data Observatory (FEDO) is a new online tool to help analysts and policymakers examine economic data, particularly at a sub-regional level.

It provides interactive access to a large variety of online datasets, including:

official data from Office for National Statistics
housing transaction records from the Land Registry
all National Online Manpower Information System datasets (NOMIS)
data for all active companies in the UK from Companies House

FEDO helps visualise data from different sources, by presenting variables on a single screen.

And it allows data to be downloaded simply, with all dates and geography codes formatted for easy analysis.

Users will be able to access the system from Autumn 2021. Basic features are available free. Advanced features will be available to paid subscribers.

Features of future releases

API to access all data across multiple sources, providing a repository of small-geography economic data in a structured, linked format to support easier access to cleaned and cubed data from multiple sources. Expected in 2021.
Imputation of all economic data to a small-area level, not less than Middle layer Super Output Areas. Expected in 2022. (subscribers only)
Quarterly-updated forecasting model for all economies across the UK. Expected in 2022. (subscribers only)

FEDO has been developed by Future Economies Analytics (FEA), a dedicated economic data analytics unit within Future Economies Research Centre.