This summary describes the ‘Connecting Data across Public Services in Bath & North East Somerset’ project, a research partnership between the University of Bath Institute for Policy Research, Bath and North East Somerset Council and the local Clinical Commissioning Group.

The objective of the research is to realise the benefits of connected ‘big data’ by generating new insights into public need and service effectiveness and developing an evidence-base to inform policy and practice innovation. Policy making processes are currently being shaped at the intersection of a number of competing agendas: the drive to make better use of existing and new forms of data in evidence-informed decision-making; the challenges of significant public sector spending restrictions; and the benefits and challenges of information sharing and linked data.

By recognising and managing the dynamics and tensions between and within these agendas, this project anticipates that the findings will directly inform policy and practice priorities for public services and residents of Bath & North East Somerset, and develop our understanding of the processes and techniques by which big data can benefit policy making.

The project is funded by a Transformation Challenge Award.