FOI Reference: FOI/2022/4238
You asked
For academic research purposes, we are requesting data tables based on the ONS 'Birth Characteristics' dataset (Birth characteristics - Office for National Statistics (ons.gov.uk). This is to conduct an ecological analysis of preterm birth trends at the local authority level.
Table 9 in this dataset is 'live births by gestational age at birth and area of usual residence' which provides data on live births by gestational age at birth at a regional level. We would like to request data on live births by gestational age at birth at a Local Authority level for England only please. Furthermore, if it is possible to restrict it to singleton births only (exclude multiple births), that would be ideal. We are examining trends in data and would therefore like to request data for 2010-2021.
Confounders for this analysis include marital status and maternal age. We are therefore also requesting data tables based on the ONS 'Births by parent's characteristics dataset (Births by parents' characteristics - Office for National Statistics (ons.gov.uk). This dataset contains 'live births by age of mother' (England and Wales). Ideally, we would like to request live births by age of mother by gestational age and Local Authority for England from 2010-2021. If this is not available, then we would like to request live births by age of mother by Local Authority for England from 2010-2021 please. Again, it would be ideal if this could be limited to singleton births please.
Also within this dataset is a table of 'live births by registration type (within marriage or civil partnership) for England and Wales'. Ideally, we would like to request live births by registration type by gestational age and Local Authority for England for 2010-2021. If this is not available, then we would like to request live births by age of mother by Local Authority for England for 2010-2021 period. As before, if it is possible to restrict data to singleton births only that would be ideal.
We said
Thank you for your enquiry.
We have the following user requested data sets available which do not meet your full criteria, but do provide some of what you have requested:
- Live births, stillbirths, neonatal deaths and infant deaths, by local authority, age of mother and index of multiple deprivation, England, 2015
- Live births by ward and local authority, England and Wales: 2019
- Births by local authority, England and Wales, 2006 to 2014
- Quarterly live births by gestational age from 1 April 2015 to 31 March 2017 in England and Wales
- Live births, stillbirths, and neonatal deaths by gestational age in England, 2010 to 2018 (neonatal deaths) and 2010 to 2019 (live births and stillbirths)
- Live births by gestational age, where mothers' usual residence was England, 2016 and 2017
We can provide the remainder of the requested information to you via our bespoke services route. Special extracts and custom tabulations of births data for England and Wales can be created by the Customer Service team. Pleas enote, these are subject to disclosure control, legal frameworks, resources and agreement to costs. As this information is reasonably accessible via another route, even if only accessible on payment, Section 21(1)(a) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA) applies.
Please contact the Health team Customer Services Team on Health.Data@ons.gov.uk to discuss your request further.
Alternatively, if you are an accredited researcher you may be able to access this data through our Secure Research Service.