NMTF data on UK markets available to all!

Markets 4 People project partner, the NMTF – the only national trade association for market traders in the UK - has made some of their extensive data on markets available for wider re-use via the Leeds-based Consumer Data Research Centre (CDRC).

The CDRC acts as a trusted repository for consumer data, enabling researchers and policy makers to access high quality data collected by commercial-sector organisations. It hosts open datasets which enable researchers, policy makers, media and the public to derive insights that drive growth and improve our society. Much of the data is geographical in nature and available to view and interrogate via a popular online mapping portal (https://maps.cdrc.ac.uk/).

The latest addition to CDRC’s 10,800 datasets is drawn from the NMTF’s comprehensive data on markets. These data are collected as part of frequent visits to markets across the UK carried out by in-house officers. Field Support Officers record non-sensitive information on market characteristics, trading days, opening hours, occupancy rates and the type of goods and services available.

The NMTF has been able to make these data freely available via the CDRC, who have drawn on the enthusiasm and expertise of University of Leeds MSc student Oliver Smith to prepare and quality-assure the data. Oliver spent time in the NMTF’s offices assessing the coverage and completeness of internal databases, preparing documentation to enable wider re-use of these data and adding geographic identifiers, enabling spatial and statistical analysis of these data.

This is a tremendous opportunity to raise the profile of the NMTF’s work and ensure that traditional retail markets are recognised within analysis and policy-making related to local retail environments

Chris Savage, the NMTF’s Project Manager, commented: “This is a tremendous opportunity to raise the profile of the NMTF’s work and ensure that traditional retail markets are recognised within analysis and policy-making related to local retail environments”.

The NMTF is working closely with the Markets 4 People project team to understand the community value of traditional markets amidst a changing retail environment. The availability of comprehensive and high quality data capturing market provision is one part of that process.

The data are available here: https://data.cdrc.ac.uk/dataset/national-market-traders-federation. The Markets 4 People project team are really keen to hear how others make use of these data to understand more about local level market provision and utilisation.

More information about the NMTF, including how the trade association supports market traders and safeguards markets across the country, can be found online at https://www.nmtf.co.uk.