SDR UK at Evidence Week 2025

Smart Data Research UK will participate in Evidence Week 2025, the annual event organised by Sense about Science. The week brings together MPs, constituents, and researchers to discuss evidence-based policymaking.

On 3 November 2025, our Financial Data Service will lead a training session “Smart data, smart policy: Visualising emerging financial hardship”. The online event will run from 2:00pm to 2:45pm.

The webinar will demonstrate how smart data tools can provide near real-time insights into constituency-level economic wellbeing, helping policymakers to understand the potential of smart data to make faster, more informed decisions.

Participants will learn to use data visualisation tools and indicators from digitally sourced bank account data to identify emerging financial hardship across different communities. The interactive demonstration aims to equip attendees with practical skills to apply data insights directly to their work.

The session will be led by Rui Cardoso, Head of Public Sector Engagement at Smart Data Foundry, home to the Financial Data Service (FINDS).

FINDS is part of Smart Data Research UK’s family of smart data services. It was established in 2025 as a collaboration between the University of Edinburgh and Smart Data Foundry. The service works with financial institutions to make anonymised private sector financial data accessible for public good research, with a focus on reducing poverty and inequality.

Evidence Week 2025 runs from 3 November to 7 November 2025. It offers MPs and their staff opportunities to engage with researchers on policy-relevant evidence. Registration for the smart data session is now open via the Sense about Science website.