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All public facing statistics produced by the Public Prosecution Service are designated the title of 'Official Statistics'. The definition of Official Statistics is set out in Section 6 of the Statistics and Registration Service Act 2007. The term refers to any statistical outputs which are designed to inform officials, politicians and wider public debate about the national or regional position of particular issues.
Official Statistics should be produced in accordance with the 'UK Statistics Authority Code of Practice for Official Statistics,' which incorporates eight key principles and three supporting protocols. The Code of Practice is designed to establish best practice standards in the production of statistics that will serve to ensure a coherent and transparent service for statistical users. The UK Statistics Authority, established as part of the Statistics and Registration Service Act 2007, maintains responsibility for development, maintenance and endorsement of the Code.
A key feature of Official Statistics is the legislative requirements surrounding the access to such statistics prior to formal publication. This is known as pre-release access, and refers to the length of time officials and other public figures are permitted access to statistical information before it is disseminated to the wider public. Information on PPS’s Statement of Compliance to Pre-release Access to Official Statistics is available.
Furthermore, PPS demonstrates its support of Official Statistics standards through the publication of an Administrative Data Quality Document and Statement of Administrative Sources used in the production of statistics.