Dataset details: CRDA/36/DS/1

The dataset was received by NDAD from the Department for Education and Employment (DfEE) in two transfers. A CD containing 27 comma-separated variables (csv) files was received on 20 March 2000. Two files (corresponding to the Conference and School tables) were re-transferred in tab-separated format (conference.txt and school.txt) on a floppy disk which was received on 27 March 2000.

This dataset is a snapshot of the Grant Maintained Schools Database at March 2000. It is also, effectively, the final form of the database: by the time of its transfer to NDAD, GM schools had been abolished and the database was rarely used. No data is believed to have been added to the system after 1999. For further information on the contents of the dataset and the history of the GM Schools Database, see the Series Catalogue.

The csv files received on 20 March 2000 required translation of the end-of-line characters from the DOS to the Unix standards. Fields containing commas as part of the data were enclosed in double quotes. The records which required this were:

As previously noted (see Source of acquisition), the Conference and School tables were transferred twice in csv and tab-separated formats. While it was not necessary to use the tab-separated copy of Conference, both copies of the School table were required to obtain all of the expected records for the table. The csv file could not be used as it stood as the fields relating to addresses contained commas. The tab separated file could not be used as it stood as it did not contain the expected number of records, presumably due to problems exporting the data from the original system. To obtain all the necessary data, NDAD used the tab separated file, enclosing fields with commas in double quotes and then replacing all the tabs with commas. The transferred csv file was then used to identify and then cut and paste the missing records, ensuring again that fields with commas were enclosed in double quotes.

This dataset is open except for the following tables and fields, which are closed for 30 years until 2030:

The dataset consists of 25 tables, of which 14 (tables 12-25: see list below) are lookup tables. Two additional tables (Ofsted_visit and Speaker_activity) were transferred to NDAD but contained no data. It was established that data had not been entered into these tables by the DfEE.1 Consequently they have not been made available as part of the dataset, although two lookup tables related to them (Valid_activity_code and Valid_report_finding) are available for consultation.

The field names and original field descriptions included in the Table Catalogues were taken from an "entity description" (in effect, a data dictionary) supplied by the DfEE: see the Dataset Documentation Catalogue, reference CRDA/36/DD/1/2/1. A data model diagram showing the entities in the GM Schools Database and the relationships between them was also received (Dataset Documentation Catalogue, reference CRDA/36/DD/1/1/1). It indicated which tables were linked in 1:many and many:1 relationships, though it did not show which fields acted to link the tables: this was inferred from the data and the data dictionary. A number of discrepancies were noted between these two documents and the dataset: for details, see Content validation.

The dataset comprises the following table(s):

A number of checks were carried out on the content of the dataset. These included checks for missing and non-valid data. Many fields contained little data, though in most cases this was due to the sparseness of the data rather than missing data. The tables listed below are those with fields which have records with missing values, with the numbers of records affected given in parentheses:

Attendance: GM Status (5263).

Ballot: Ballot Investigation (1966), Ballot Investig Decision Date (1967), Number Of Eligible Voters (7), Number Of Actual Voters (7), Number Of Yes Voters (7), Number Of No Voters (7), Percentage Vote (8), Percentage Yes Voters (8), Percentage No Voters (8), Ballot Result (2), Current Lea Politics (1904), Current Constituency (63) and Current MP (52).

Conference: Conference Venue (6).

Form7: Number On Roll Nursery Full Time (4455), Number On Roll Nursery Part Time (4455), Number On Roll Sixth Form (4216), No Of SEN Pupils With Statements (785), No Of SEN Pupils Without Statements (1204).

Gm_attempt: GM Initiation Code (14), Proposals Published Date (508), Decision On Proposals Date (513) and Proposed GM Start Date (530).

History: School Name (1203).

Lea: Lea End (170).

School: Mp Constituency (4086), School Address Line 1 (1727), School Address Line 2 (1523), School Address Line 3 (1994), School Address Line 4 (4492), School Postcode (1050), School Phone (4063), Head Teacher Name (979), Chair Of Governors Name (4092), Chair Address Line 1 (5194), Chair Address Line 2 (5204), Chair Address Line 3 (5276), Chair Address Line 4 (5555), Chair Postcode (5571), Chair Phone (5793), GM Speaker Name (5829), Phase (4037), School Type Code (4268), Former School Type (5829), Origin Code (4038), Denomination Code (4200), Selection Code (4259), Approved Admissions Number (4631), Lower Age Limit (4253), Upper Age Limit (4253), Sixth Form (4268), Boarding Facility (4219), Nursery Provision (4152), Closure Reorganisation Type (4268), Date Of Close Or Reorg Proposals (5822), School Closure Code (4268), School Closure Date (5753), Comments (5636), Statutory Age Pupil Gender (4627) and new category (4650).

School_character: Comment On Character Change (136), Character Change Result (1), Character Change Date (2), Selection Code (1), Selection Comments (205), Lower Age Limit (45), Upper Age Limit (45) and Approved Admissions Number (205).

Valid_status: Extra Field (5).

Some tables had fields where the discrepancy "field value ' ' is not a valid choice" occurred. Any fields where the records contained these blank spaces have been defined as missing by NDAD. These fields are listed below with the numbers of records affected given in parentheses:

Ballot: Ballot Result (7), Current Lea Politics (10), and MP Political Party (63).

Form7: Statutory Age Pupil Gender (1) and Other Age Pupil Gender (1808).

Gm_attempt: GM Initiation Code (23).

School: Phase (16), School Type Code (1449), Origin Code (2), Denomination Code (1099), Selection Code (448), Sixth Form (1479), Boarding Facility (613), Nursery Provision (718), Closure Reorganisation Type (1275), School Closure Code (1558) and Statutory Age Pupil Gender (7).

School_character: Character Change Result (1) and Selection Code had (202) .

Other cases where non-valid choices occurred are:

In the School table the fields School phone and Chair phone, which contain phone numbers, have 6 and 3 records respectively where the information in the field is non-numeric.

A number of differences were noted between the structure of the dataset and the logical structure described in the data model diagram and the data dictionary (Dataset Documentation Catalogue, references CRDA/36/DD/1/1/1 and CRDA/36/DD/1/2/1). These discrepancies are summarised below:

• The Exam_results and Valid_exam_results tables are described in the data dictionary but were not included in the dataset. It was established from the DfEE that these tables had not been created.2
• A timestamp column appeared, in most tables, at the end of each record, but was not mentioned in the data dictionary. This field has been called Timestamp by NDAD, and it is thought that it was generated by the system in which the data was held.
• The Statutory Age Pupil Gender field in the School table actually occurs after the Timestamp field, and not between the fields Approved Admissions Number and Lower Age Limit as suggested by the data dictionary. The data file for this table also contained an extra field (new category) at the end of each record that was not described in the data dictionary. The name, description and the codes used in this field were supplied by the DfEE. The DfEE confirmed that these changes to the data structure occurred after the data dictionary was created.3
• The datafile relating to the table Valid_status also contained an extra field, after the Timestamp field, which was not defined in the data dictionary. It is thought that this field's function was to control the way in which statistics relating to attempts to become GM were output in "Progress" reports (see 'User Interface' in the Series Catalogue).4
• The datafile relating to the table Valid_gm_initiation had a field less than was described in the data dictionary. It was confirmed by the DfEE that the Initiation by ballot field, described in the data dictionary, was not included in the physical system.5
• The data model diagram does not record the following relationships, which were inferred from the data: a many:1 relationship between the Ballot table and the Valid_political_party table (via the Current Lea Politics and MP Political Party fields in Ballot and the Politics Code field in Valid_political_party); a many:1 relationship between the the School table and the Valid_selection_type table (via the Selection Code field in School and the Selection Code field in Valid_selection_type).

All files had their line-ending codes (record separators) transformed from the MS-DOS to the Unix standard: this has no effect on the data contained therein. A check was made on the School table to ensure that it contained the correct number of records.

There are no related datasets in this series.

1. Email of 22 March 2000 from NDAD to the DfEE; compliments slip from DfEE accompanying floppy disk received by NDAD on 27 March 2000.

2. Email of 22 March 2000 from NDAD to the DfEE; compliments slip from DfEE accompanying floppy disk received by NDAD on 27 March 2000.

3. Email of 14 September 2000 from NDAD to the DfEE; email of 19 September 2000 from the DfEE to NDAD.

4. Telephone conversation between NDAD and the DfEE on 20 November 2000.

5. Email of 22 March 2000 from NDAD to the DfEE; compliments slip from DfEE accompanying floppy disk received by NDAD on 27 March 2000.