FAQs

Welcome to the FAQs page. Here you will find the most frequently asked questions about the SASPAC software, Census data, and SASPAC training.

If you cannot find the information you are looking for, please do not hesitate to contact us and we will answer your question as soon as possible.

SASPAC

What is SASPAC?

Who uses SASPAC?

Who owns SASPAC?

Who manages and supports SASPAC?

How much does SASPAC cost?

Is there a multi-user licence?

Is there a trial version available?

Census

What Census data is available through SASPAC?

How do I find out when new data has been released?

How does SASPAC distribute the Census data?

Training

Where is SASPAC training held?

How much does training cost?

How many attendees participate in a training session?

How often are training days run?

Do I need to know about the Census before I attend the training course?

What is SASPAC?
SASPAC (Small Area Statistics PACkage) is a software package designed to facilitate the storage, interrogation, and analysis of the large quantity of small area statistics information produced by the UK Census Offices. These datasets are derived from responses to the decennial Census questionnaires and hold aggregated data relating to a variety of geographic areas. Operating in a Windows-based environment SASPAC allows users to search, query, analyse and export data from the 1971, 1981, 1991, 2001, and 2011 Censuses.

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Who uses SASPAC?
Following the publication of the 2001 Census results, there were over 380 organisations using the software across the UK. A majority of these are from the public sector with users in local, central and regional government. Others are from a range of health sector organisations, including PCTs, Strategic Health Authorities and Health Observatories. SASPAC also has users in academia and the private sector.

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Who owns SASPAC?
SASPAC is a ‘not for profit‘ initiative that is owned by the Local Government Association (LGA)

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Who manages and supports SASPAC?
SASPAC is managed by the Intelligence Unit within the Greater London Authority (GLA) on behalf of its users. It is currently supported by its developers: Jacobs Ltd. Mapshore – the mapping element of SASPAC – is developed and supported by Pebbleshore Ltd. Development and support of InstantAtlas for SASPAC  is provided by GeoWise Ltd.

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How much does SASPAC cost?
The software is supported by annual user subscriptions, which are used to maintain and develop the software as well as providing a helpdesk support service. Currently the purchase price of the software to organisations in the public sector is £1,500 + VAT in year one and subsequent year’s Support Scheme fees are then £675 + VAT per annum. The purchase cost of the software to organisations in the private sector is £3,000 + VAT per annum and the ongoing annual Support Scheme cost after this initial year is £1,350 + VAT.

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Is there a multi-user licence?
A SASPAC licence covers the whole organisation and not simply the purchasing department or individual – that is, it is an organisation licence, and the software may be installed on as many machines as required within the organisation, or on a network/thin-client.

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Is there a trial version available?
The trial version is available for evaluation purposes for a 4 week period, after which a licence must be purchased or the software removed from the PC/network. Contact the helpdesk for more information.

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What Census data is available through SASPAC?
2011 Census Key Statistics (KS), Quick Statistics (QS) and Commissioned Tables (CT) for a variety of geographies are available through the Data page of our website. The full list of available geographies and datasets for 2011 Census data is shown below. Data for previous Censuses is also available.

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Data sets
  KS             QS            CT
England and Wales (as one  entity)
   √               √             √
National to District geographies in England and Wales
   √               √             √
Upper Super Output Areas in Wales (USOAs)
   √               √             √
Middle Super Output Areas in England and Wales (MSOAs)
   √               √             √
Lower Super Output Areas in England and Wales (LSOAs)
   √               √             √
Wards in England and Wales
   √               √             √
Output Areas in England and Wales (OAs)
   √               √             √
Output Areas by Region
   √               √             √
Westminster parliamentary constituencies
   √               √             √
Parishes (England) and Communities (Wales)
   √               √             √
Primary care organisations (PCOs) in England/local health boards (LHB) in Wales and Strategic Health Authorities (SHA) in England
   √               √             √
National Assembly for Wales Constituencies & Electoral Regions
   √               √             √
National Parks
   √              N/A          N/A
A bulk download of all these geographies is also available, this and all the above datasets may be downloaded here.

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How do I find out when new data has been released?
Check our latest blogs on the homepage to find information on newly released data. If you would like to receive automatic email updates when a new blog is posted, you can subscribe via the ‘Email Subscription’ box on the right-hand side. We also have a Corrections and Updates Log which details all new data released as well as updates to current datasets.

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How does SASPAC distribute Census data?
The SASPAC team distribute the data separately to the software in a System File (.SYS) format. These are essentially large matrices of data for the different geographical hierarchies available from the Census (e.g. wards, local authorities, parishes…etc). The data files may be downloaded from our Data page and should be copied to the local machine or networked location for access by the software.

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Where is SASPAC training held?
The majority of the training days take place at City Hall, London. However, on location training is possible provided a suitable training room is available. For full details, please see the Requirements for Training document.

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How much does training cost?
Training at City Hall, London costs £150 + VAT per person per day. Training for  up to eight people on location costs £850 + VAT per day. Additional charges are incurred for groups over eight.

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How many attendees participate in a training session?
The maximum number of attendees for training at City Hall is 8 per training day. Numbers for on location vary depending on the facilities available. Additional trainers will be provided for large groups.

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How often are training days run?
This depends on demand. Training days often occur more frequently after the release of a new version of the SASPAC software. Information on the most recent software release and a software release timeline can be found here. The current training dates are published here. External training can be run at any time providing appropriate facilities are available.

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Do I need to know about the Census before I attend the training course?
Our training programmes provide a full introduction to both the Census datasets and the operation of SASPAC. Basic computer literacy and an interest in data analysis are all that are required.

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