How our work is used
How the work of the Shared Data Unit makes the headlines across the country.
The SDU delivers investigations that reach the BBC’s flagship network news programmes, generate widespread BBC regional coverage, and feed hundreds of follow‑on stories across partner organisations.
Data Projects: 2026
Safe spaces needed for drug-addicted children, say grieving mums
Published 13 January 2026
Data Projects: 2025
Police unit blocking FOI requests U-turns on promised reforms
Published 1 October 2025
£100m of premium bond prizes remain unclaimed
Published 5 August, 2025
Thousands of criminal cases collapsing due to missing or lost police evidence
Published 6 June, 2025
Organised crime gangs behind rise in QR code 'quishing' scams
Published 11 April 2025
Thousands of high-risk toxic sites unchecked due to lack of cash
Published 13 March 2025
'Worrying' number of teens lose disability benefits
Published 12 March 2025
Police FOI unit dubbed 'authoritarian censor'
Published 6 March 2025
Data Projects: 2024
Deadly new drugs found in fake medicines in the UK
Published 29 October 2024
Burning rubbish now UK’s dirtiest form of power
Published 15 October 2024
Children face 'lifetime cost' of council crisis
Published 14 October 2024
Public libraries in 'crisis' as councils cut services
Published 3 September 2024
Delays in food hygiene inspections a 'serious public health issue'
Published 30 July 2024
UK too slow to act on lethal drug threat - doctors
Published 20 March 2024
NHS crisis: Patient care hit by disrepair in buildings
Published 21 February 2024
Councils in crisis: Town Hall debt levels staggering, MPs warn
Published 16 January 2024
Data Projects: 2023
Black hole in town hall budgets rises to £5bn
Published 21 August 2023
Social care in crisis
Published 31 July 2023
Renting: Six out of 10 renters live in energy-inefficient homes
Published 06 April 2023
Hundreds of UK sex offenders went missing, figures show
Published 01 March 2023
Data Projects: 2022
More councils drop holiday food voucher schemes for Christmas
Published 22 December 2022
Stalking victims not protected by police, say campaigners
Published 21 November 2022
Child speech delays increase following lockdowns
Published 7 November 2022
Benefit cuts for disabled people in hospital called unfair
Published 02 November, 2022
Postcode lottery of menopause care revealed
Published 18 October 2022
Growth in NHS recruits from abroad prompts concern about over-reliance
Published 5 August 2022
Music festivals: Only 13% of UK headliners in 2022 are female
Published 24 May 2022
Gross misconduct probe police officers avoid sack
Published 11 February 2022
NHS dentistry "hanging by a thread" with two-year waits for check-ups
Published 20 January 2022
Data Projects: 2021
Hundred people die fighting for terminal illness benefits
Published 8 November 2021
Seven out of 10 win benefits challenges at tribunal
Published 24 September 2021
'NHS abandoned me after I tried to kill myself'
Published 18 August 2021
Pandemic leaves councils with £3bn black hole
Published 9 July 2021
Stalking Protection Orders
Published 15 June 2021
Deaths of people on benefits prompt inquiry call
Published 10 May 2021
Coronavirus: Prisoners' children 'forgotten' during pandemic
Published 30 March 2021
Tourism hotspots hit hard by Covid-19 jobs crisis
Published 2 March 2021
Blue badge permit 'shocking disparity' revealed
Published 7 January 2021
Data Projects: 2020
Covid: Cancer scan backlog raises late detection fears
Published 17 December 2020
Covid: Small charities face 'slow death'
Published 6 November 2020
UK police forces wrongly cancelled reports of serious crimes
Published 22 October 2020
Covid: UK live music scene on 'red alert' amid pandemic
Published 2 October 2020
Surgeries at face-to-face capacity, GP body warns
Published 16 September 2020
Benefit claimants face landlord discrimination despite ruling
Published 28 August 2020
UK flu jab rates prompt complacency warning
Published 27 August 2020
Coronavirus: Business rescue package has 'delayed the inevitable'
Published 29 July 2020
Online casino searches at 'all-time high' during lockdown
Published 21 May 2020
Coronavirus: Push for cycling despite safety fears
Published 19 May 2020
Live music circuit 'risks collapse within weeks'
Published 8 May 2020
Council bosses 'short-changed' by government fund
Published 1 May 2020
Coronavirus: Firms face 'inexcusable' delay over lockdown grants
Published 25 April 2020
Coronavirus: Pub landlords turn to punters to survive lockdown
Published 23 April 2020
Coronavirus: Airports 'at risk' of closure as flights drop 90%
Published 21 April 2020
Coronavirus: Thousands fined by police for flouting lockdown
Published 14 April 2020
Coronavirus: How GPs have stopped seeing most patients in person
Published 11 April 2020
Coronavirus lockdown sees air pollution plummet across UK
Published 8 April 2020
Coronavirus: Firms urged to honour living wage pledge
Published 2 April 2020
Coronavirus delays cleaner air plans in cities
Published 26 March 2020
Coronavirus: Volunteers flock to join community support groups
Published 22 March 2020
Two-thirds of UK homes 'fail on energy efficiency targets'
Published 2 March 2020
Fly-tipping: Organised crime behind large rise
Published 13 February 2020
UK councils' benefits pages push credit card adverts
Published 5 February 2020
Empty business rates relief 'costs £1bn'
Published 16 January 2020
Data Projects: 2019
UK dementia diagnoses rise 40% in five years
Published 19 December 2019
Half of disability benefits appeals won in tribunal court
Published 14 November, 2019
UK gardeners 'punished by quiet green tax' for kerbside collections
Published 25 September, 2019
Railway bicycle theft hotspots revealed
Published 5 August, 2019
Violent offences 'dealt with informally' by police forces
Published 17 June, 2019
Rise in deaths of offenders on probation since reforms
Published 15 April, 2019
Lack of electric car charging points 'putting off drivers'
Published 5 April, 2019
Right to Buy homes re-sold since 2000 made £6.4bn in profit
Published March 14, 2019
Bulky waste charges for fridges and furniture 'confusing'
Published January 10, 2019
Data projects: 2018
Legal aid advice network 'decimated' by funding cuts
Published December 10, 2018
London dominates UK jobs growth over past decade
Published November 27, 2018
More students seek mental health support, analysis shows
Published October 29, 2018
More takeaways on high street despite anti-obesity push
Published October 23, 2018
UK house-building 'below pre-crash levels'
Published August 14, 2018
Millions miss out on seven-day GP access
Published July 30, 2018
Premier League and EFL football matches 'over-policed'
Published July 24, 2018
Poverty link to early death 'scandalous'
Published July 19, 2018
UK prisons 'awash' with smuggled phones and SIM cards
Published May 17, 2018
Thousands of miles of UK roads in poor condition
Published March 20, 2018
Britain's bus coverage hits 28-year low
Published February 16, 2018
Neighbourhood police: One in seven officers axed were beat bobbies
Published February 1, 2018
Compensation bill for decades-old NHS blunders begins to rise
Published January 16, 2018
Data projects: 2017
Long-term vacant homes across the UK
Published November 24, 2017
Share of European Union staff leaving NHS rises following Brexit
Published October 16, 2017
Teacher vacancy rate double in poor areas
Published September 6, 2017
