The National Data Strategy Forum

The National Data Strategy Forum is co-chaired by John Whittingdale, Minister of State for Media and Data, and Sue Daley, Director for Technology and Innovation at techUK and was launched as part of the government response to the National Data Strategy. It is a series of stakeholder discussions convened by DCMS to help shape the development of the future vision of the Strategy, as well as ensure continued collaboration with key advocates and influencers from a cross-section of stakeholder groups.

techUK welcomes the Government’s consultative and inclusive approach to operationalising the Strategy. Establishing a Forum through which collaboration could be achieved with industry and other stakeholders was one of the recommendations highlighted in techUK’s response to the consultation.

The first of the series of discussions of the National Data Strategy Forum took place on 22 June 2021 and brought together around 30 policy experts from the wider data community in the UK. The discussions centered around the themes of increasing public trust, driving cross-sector coordination, boosting data literacy and skills, and enabling innovation. More detail about the first session of the Forum could be found in Minister Whittingdale's blog published on 2 July. 

In the blog, the Minister shared the three challenges that he has put to participants in the Forum. These include:

• Firstly, to work with the UK Government to develop collaborative programmes of work to support the delivery of the National Data Strategy; by providing insight and expertise and helping forge the right connections with others in the data ecosystem – both domestic and international.
• Secondly, to support the Government's engagement with the wider public about the potential benefits of data use; and help to embed the principles and goals of the National Data Strategy more widely.
• And thirdly, to help shape the development of the future vision for the Strategy. Working to identify future opportunities, and provide constructive challenge to help make the NDS the best it can be.

As next steps, techUK is working closely with DCMS to set out how to focus the energy and enthusiasm of our initial discussion into a more detailed plan for future Forum activities, giving careful consideration to the many points, ideas and suggestions from the Forum discussion. 

If you would like to get involved in future Forum discussions, you could let DCMS know by completing this short form. Discussions themselves will be limited to ensure conversations can be focused and action oriented, however for each Forum discussion DCMS will prioritise diversity of representation, bringing together multidisciplinary expertise and fresh perspectives from up and down the country. 

To stay up to date on more opportunities to get involved, and the Forum, please sign up to the UK Government's NDS newsletter.

Sue Daley

Director, Technology and Innovation

Sue leads techUK's Technology and Innovation work.

This includes work programmes on cloud, data protection, data analytics, AI, digital ethics, Digital Identity and Internet of Things as well as emerging and transformative technologies and innovation policy. She has been recognised as one of the most influential people in UK tech by Computer Weekly's UKtech50 Longlist and in 2021 was inducted into the Computer Weekly Most Influential Women in UK Tech Hall of Fame. A key influencer in driving forward the data agenda in the UK Sue is co-chair of the UK government's National Data Strategy Forum. As well as being recognised in the UK's Big Data 100 and the Global Top 100 Data Visionaries for 2020 Sue has also been shortlisted for the Milton Keynes Women Leaders Awards and was a judge for the Loebner Prize in AI. In addition to being a regular industry speaker on issues including AI ethics, data protection and cyber security, Sue was recently a judge for the UK Tech 50 and is a regular judge of the annual UK Cloud Awards.

Prior to joining techUK in January 2015 Sue was responsible for Symantec's Government Relations in the UK and Ireland. She has spoken at events including the UK-China Internet Forum in Beijing, UN IGF and European RSA on issues ranging from data usage and privacy, cloud computing and online child safety. Before joining Symantec, Sue was senior policy advisor at the Confederation of British Industry (CBI). Sue has an BA degree on History and American Studies from Leeds University and a Masters Degree on International Relations and Diplomacy from the University of Birmingham. Sue is a keen sportswoman and in 2016 achieved a lifelong ambition to swim the English Channel.

Email:

[email protected]

Phone:

020 7331 2055

Twitter:

@ChannelSwimSue,@ChannelSwimSue

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