Data curator

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Sector: Libraries, Museums and Galleries
Contract Type: Permanent
Hours: Full Time

DATA CURATOR

Job reference number: 047378
Contract type: Fixed term 9 months
Closing date: 6 January 2025 at 23:59
Salary: £39,818 per annum
Grade: G6

About the role
The Data Curator in the Data for London team is the public face of the DataStore and the first point of contact for many users. You will manage the London Datastore data registry, maintaining its quality and promoting its use, making key London data accessible and easier for users to find. You will be responsible for maintaining our current level of service to ensure that these descriptions of data feed through to the Pan-London Library.

You will upload new data releases, update the London Datastore homepage, and distribute an E-Zine every month. Supported by colleagues, you will also host a community of practice on data sharing and publishing, convening those publishing data from across the GLA to discuss common issues and best practices.

You also have a unique opportunity to contribute to the development of the Data for London Platform. Because you maintain relationships with many of London's data publishers, you can provide key insights into the user needs and pain points of data publishers all around London. So you will be key to our user research efforts and ensure all voices are heard.

More broadly, you will also contribute your own knowledge on the practical realities of data curation, helping design how future data catalogues will be structured and organised to help our users find what they need without lots of manual work.

Finally, as connections are made with other sources of structured metadata across London, you will check for quality and consistency across them all. Therefore, in the job description, wherever it says 'London Datastore', please assume that the same task will be required for the Data for London Library.

The data curator is responsible for line management of a data analytics apprentice, who they can task with data curation work as well as continuous improvement of the London Datastore service.

Principal accountabilities

• Maintain the London Datastore homepage, updating statistics and briefings with the latest data.
• Take proposed open data releases and prepare them for release, including quality assurance, reformatting, and writing accurate descriptions.
• Communicate with data publishers across the London ecosystem (for example, City Intelligence Unit, Transport for London, London Fire Brigade) to onboard new data onto the London Datastore or new metadata onto the Data for London Library.
• Prepare a monthly newsletter with the latest open data, performing analysis to calculate important statistics about London.
• Monitor and respond to any requests that are received in the datastore inbox.
• Contribute to the Data for London rebuild process, advocating for the needs of data publishers and data users and adding your experiences of maintaining a data platform.
• Line manage a data analytics apprentice, tasking them with work that furthers their development.

Person specification
Technical requirements/experience/qualifications
To be considered for the role you must meet the following essential criteria:

• Skills in data processing and analysis, for example through Excel, PowerBI, and Python.
• Skills in data quality assurance, confirming adherence to the Code of Practice for Statistics and checking the trustworthiness, quality, and value of datasets.
• Experience working with analytical and data governance colleagues, understanding and serving their needs.
• Experience with an online content management system for files and rich text (e.g., a blog).

Behavioural competencies
Research and Analysis
... is gathering intelligence (information, opinion, and data) from varied sources, making sense of it, testing its validity and drawing conclusions that can lead to practical benefits.
Communicating & Influencing
... is presenting information and arguments clearly and convincingly so that others see us as credible and articulate, and engage with us.
Stakeholder Focus
... is consulting with, listening to and understanding the needs of those our work impacts and using this knowledge to shape what we do and manage others' expectations.
Problem Solving
... is analysing and interpreting situations from a variety of viewpoints and finding creative, workable and timely solutions.
Responding to Pressure and Change
... is being flexible and adapting positively, to sustain performance when the situation changes, workload increases, tensions rise or priorities shift.

Application Process & Additional Information
Please note all applications for this vacancy must be submitted via our online recruitment system. We do not accept CVs alone for this role.

If you would like to apply for the role you will need to submit the following:

• Up to date CV
• Personal statement with a maximum of 1500 words. Please ensure you address how you demonstrate the essential criteria outlined above in the advert.

Applications submitted without a Personal Statement will not be considered.

Application closing date: 6 January 2025 at 23:59.

If you have a question about the role or would like to discuss it informally, please feel free to contact Martine Wauben at martine.wauben@london.gov.uk to arrange a call.