Summary
Requirements - To harmonise existing local information systems.
Solution - A Data Observatory providing an online networked data and information store.
Value - An invaluable resources to researchers, statisticians and all those involved in policy making.
DORIC
Local Information System
DORIC is a sub-regional Data Observatory for Cheshire, Halton & Warrington. Its purpose is to serve as a research and planning tool for use by all public service providers and as a source of reliable, accessible and timely information about the sub-region to business and the community.
Requirements
Cheshire Council worked with Fluent Technology previously to create a local information system for Cheshire and its neighbourhoods, this project was called LiLAC. The success and efficiencies of the LiLAC project in the Cheshire region resulted in the sub-regions of Cheshire, Halton and Warrington all needing a way to collect data and share information with all their partners including Cheshire West & Chester Council, Cheshire East Council, Halton Borough Council, Warrington Borough Council, Cheshire Constabulary, Cheshire Fire & Rescue Service, Central & Eastern Cheshire PCT, Halton & St Helens PCT, Warrington PCT and Western Cheshire PCT.
They formed the DORIC partnership and a local information system and data observatory was identified as vital in order for the partners to work effectively together. The motivation for the project was therefore to harmonise existing information systems in order to reduce the amount of time spent on data collection and increasing the availability of the data and information.
Solution
Using ORIGIN, Fluent Technology designed and developed the easy to use web portal DORIC Online that is available to the all partners, the local community and the public. The solution provides invaluable resources to researchers, statisticians and those involved in policy making. It is directly accessible to elected members, decision makers and officers in public organisations. In addition it is an important tool for the public who can easily access information and statistics about their local area via the internet.
The DORIC approach is not simply a technological one. Providing information in the most effective and efficient manner relies on all the partner organisations benefiting from the capacities of research and intelligence professionals working in, or on behalf of, any of them. This forms the basis for the Research & Intelligence Collaborative.
Future Initiatives
The intention of DORIC online was to become a host for other business transformational processes that can offer the partnership genuine and direct savings. This is already being realised with the planned introduction of new process to use DORIC to deliver initiatives such as the helping the PCTs in the partnership deliver their Joint Strategic Needs Assessment in a more efficient and effective manner, assisting the police with crime and disorder reduction planning and helping the Council community engagement teams with public consultations and online surveys.
Value
The system has unique features and benefits including:
- Increased consistency of data definitions across all partners and stakeholders.
- Increased volume of ‘self service’ for information requests by the public and partners.
- More timely publishing of information to the public.
- Integration with Neighbourhood Statistics Data Exchange (NeSS) to provide users with other freely available public data.
- Integration with back-office systems to automatically process and upload data.
- A home for their JSNA.