Corporate report

Minutes of the Board of Commissoners meeting 26 July 2022

Published 29 September 2022

This was published under the 2022 Truss Conservative government

Geospatial Commission Board of Commissioner’s Meeting Minutes, 26 July 2022

13:30 to 15:10

Attendees

Commissioners: Bernard Silverman (Chair), Nigel Clifford (Deputy Chair), Thalia Baldwin, Louise Heathwaite, Alex Notay, Steve Unger

Nominated Commissioners: Karen Hanghøj, Peter Sparkes

Commission Unit: Jamie Clark, Chris Chambers, Joe Cuddeford, Ros Goodfellow, Mehul Doshi, Amelia Napier, Callum Adams (Minutes by: Liz Conn)

Observers: Alan Corbett (deputising for Albert King), Ken Stewart (deputising for Jim Lennon), David Robert (deputising for Glyn Jones), Fiona James (ONS), David Henderson (OS)

Apologies: Albert King (Scotland), Glyn Jones (Wales), Jim Lennon (Northern Ireland)

External Speaker: Ben Boutcher-West, Chief Digital Officer, Connected Kerb.

1. Minutes and Matters Arising

1.1. Bernard thanked Ordnance Survey for hosting this meeting, and for the morning tour and presentations.

1.2. Apologies were given for Albert King who is moving on to a new role. Alan Corbett will stand in for Scotland until a formal replacement is named. Glyn Jones and Jim Lennon both sent apologies with David Roberts, and Ken Stewart deputising for each of them respectively.

1.3. The July board meeting minutes were agreed with no changes. No other matters were noted.

2. Report from the Nominated Commissioners

2.1. Karen Hanghøj thanked Ordnance Survey for the morning’s presentations and tour, commenting on the potential avenues for future collaboration that this in-person meeting had opened up, before giving a summary of the points raised at the Nominated Commissioners’ meeting on 21 July. Points included:

• welcoming the success of the Transport Location Data Programme so far in terms of urban mobility and keen to highlight benefits  of considering a holistic transport data ecosystem (both terrestrial and marine). Karen also highlighted the Partner Bodies’ willingness to support the Geospatial Commission to help shape and contribute to the future of the programme and ultimately its success in delivering change;
• the Partner Bodies’ support for the proposed Earth Observation (EO) pilot, which they are keen to be involved in. It was highlighted that this is a crowded area within government but there is unique value in bringing Earth Observation and geospatial together to break down the silos that currently exist in this area. The Partner Bodies supported focusing on a few use cases to demonstrate the value of EO within the public sector. Looking beyond the pilot there is an opportunity to consider how HM Government can best engage with technology providers in order to shape the sensors of the future;
• the Partner Bodies’ appreciation of the Value of Data report and the inclusion of their work. The report is valuable in encouraging better understanding and communication between government departments and their common use of geospatial data. The Partner Bodies supported the planned approach to promote this work through the Economics and Analysis professions to maximise impact and reach. They also recommended expanding the examples that are included over time and suggested that wind turbines could be a good use case for future consideration;
• the Partner Bodies’ support for the new shadowing programme which has clear two way benefits and will strengthen the relationships between the organisations.

3. Report from the Director of the Commission

3.1. Thalia provided an update on activities and highlights from across the Geospatial Commission during June and July, which included:

• publication of the Commission’s 2022/23 Annual Plan, which focuses on the Commission’s priorities for this year. The plan sees the Commission consolidating its work streams into fewer, but larger, programmes on property, transport and data supply and was well received. Thalia thanked the Geospatial Commission team and the board for their advice and contributions;
• closing the consultation on potential legislative reform and the proposed future operating model of the National Underground Asset Register (NUAR). There was an excellent response rate to the consultation, with responses received that will help inform the Commission’s work on data sharing and NUAR’s future model. The team is currently in the process of analysing the responses;
• publication of a policy paper on location data ethics, building on the findings from the Public Dialogue. The paper proposes an ABC of shared values to build public trust in the use of location data: accountability, bias and clarity.

4. Transport Location Data Programme: Forward Look

4.1. Callum Adams and Ellie Skinner joined the meeting, presenting on the Transport Location Data Programme’s work to date and setting out the Commission’s ambition for its next phase.

4.2. As highlighted in the UK’s Geospatial Strategy, transport provides a significant location data opportunity. UK transport is also fundamental to achieving key national priorities like decarbonisation and regional growth. The Commission has established a strong foundation in transport, with the thought leadership of its Transport Taskforce, direct funding via its innovation competition and data improvement via the Public Sector Geospatial Agreement.

4.3. The Commission’s most recent work has focused on Electric Vehicle (EV) charge points, where they have identified clear opportunities for location data to play a significant role.

4.4. The board was presented with a list of potential future opportunities the Commission could explore. Their views were welcomed on how and where the Commission should prioritise its next work in the transport arena.

4.5. It was suggested that marine transport should be added to the long list of potential focus areas, with the UK Hydrographic Office working with the Commission to clearly define and identify areas in which the Commission’s input could make a difference and the feasibility of doing so.

4.5. The board thanked Callum and Ellie for joining the meeting and the Commission team for the helpful summary.

5. External speaker - Ben Boutcher-West, Chief Digital Officer, Connected Kerb

5.1.    Ben Boutcher-West and Susanne Knorr joined the meeting and presented the tools and solutions that Connected Kerb offers to Local Authorities (LAs) to support them in carrying out site selection for EV charge points.

5.2.  Ben highlighted the importance of combining spatial and demographic datasets to create a more rounded approach to EV charge point site selection that factors in behavioural insights to understand the usage levels of particular sockets. Ben also highlighted challenges LAs face when carrying out site selection.

5.3. The board discussed the long term models and approaches to charge point selection and how this could potentially change over time. Ben and Susanne explained how they were continuing to evolve the modeland how this will help LAs to further improve their site selection as more EVs appear on the roads.

5.4. The board thanked Ben and Susanne for a really interesting presentation.

6. Improving Public Sector Access to Earth Observation Data: Update

6.1. Amelia Napier joined the meeting. Earth Observation (EO) is a technology that is lauded as being able to solve many problems, however, there is a significant gap between the opportunities presented and the reality of organisations’ capabilities to realise those.

6.2. The Geospatial Commission’s EO pilot forms a key part of informing our future remote sensing policy and any approach to replacing the current Aerial Photography GB (APGB) arrangements. There is already a good understanding of the application and opportunities offered by the data captured via an aerial platform, as well as the direction of travel in terms of where this technology is going, which is less frequent photography but at much higher resolution.

6.3. In terms of satellite data there is a gap in our knowledge around what the market offers over and above the current holdings, and the public sector’s ability to handle and deal with satellite data and what needs to be in place to enable the opportunities to be realised.

6.4. Amelia provided an update on the progress of the pilot which included the hosting of an initial public sector engagement webinar attended by 31 organisations represented by 46 individuals from across the public sector who are keen to be involved in the pilot. The team is engaging with them to help shape the requirements that will be used as the basis of the procurement. Pre-market engagement will also take place in early September to align aspiration and reality in terms of what will be possible through the pilot.

6.5. The board thanked Amelia and team for the helpful update and progress made so far, and asked about the inclusion of UK overseas territories and whether they should be included within the scope. Jamie confirmed that this was not the current intention but that discussions were taking place with defence colleagues about access to international data, subject to funding. Karen also confirmed BGS’s interest and encouraged the creation of a policy group to support the development of the work in this area. The board are keen to hear more updates in due course.

7. Any Other Business

7.1. The September board meeting will be held on 27th September, online.

7.2. Peter Sparkes raised a point about cyber resilience across the Partner Bodies, which he would value a future board-level discussion on.

7.3. Ros Goodfellow highlighted the Partner Body shadowing programme. Applications will open in August, with matching of people to roles in September with a view to job shadowing from October. The Commission thanked the Partner Bodies and their teams for supporting this new initiative.