Study title

Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.

The UK Business Data Survey (UKBDS), commissioned by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, began in 2021. The survey is a telephone- and online-based quantitative and qualitative study of UK businesses. It gathers evidence on the importance and awareness of digital data use for UK businesses and seeks to understand the role of digital data in UK businesses, international transfers of data and activities undertaken for data protection compliance.

The 2021 UKBDS was the first time this survey had been carried out. The quantitative survey took place from November 2020 to January 2021 and the qualitative interviews were undertaken in February 2021. The research was delayed from spring 2020 to minimise the impact of the COVID-19 lockdown on the quality of responses and the robustness of the results.

The 2021 survey covers the following business practices relating to data:

• acquisition and sharing
• impact of COVID-19 on personal data collection
• data-related roles and skills
• data protection
• international transfer