Guidance for making a Data Access Request Service (DARS) enquiry

What you will need to provide in your enquiry 

• information on the NHS England data sets you want to access
• a summary of why you want to request data access
• the names of the organisations who will be involved in the data access 
• an indication of your readiness to make a request access to data 

We encourage enquiries prior to when data access is needed. For example, when you are at the early stages of applying for funding for your project, or you anticipate your request for data may be complex or novel. This ensures that we can advise you if the data access you would like to request is feasible. 

The information you provide as part of your DARS enquiry enables us to learn more about your needs and how they can be met. This helps to inform the preliminary assessment which is the next stage of the enquiry.  

As part of your enquiry, you will need to provide the name(s) of the data sets you want to request. 

We recommend you check that the data you would like to request is available through DARS before you make your request. 

In your enquiry you will need to provide details of why you wish to request access to data. 

We publish data uses registers every month. These registers can be a useful source of information about what data has been accessed and for what purpose. 

Examples of data uses can include

• research
• clinical trials
• service evaluation
• audit
• commissioning
• commercial services 

In your enquiry you need to provide information on the organisations who will be involved in data access.  

This information helps to form the basis for conversations during the preliminary assessment where we will work with you to understand the different roles in data access the organisations will play.  

In your enquiry please advise if you are ready to make a request to access data, or if you’re seeking to test out an idea or concept.   

We encourage enquiries prior to when data access is needed. For example, when you are at the early stages of applying for funding for your project, or you anticipate your request for data may be complex or novel. This ensures that we can advise you if the data access you would like to request is feasible. 

The information you provide in your enquiry helps DARS to understand your requirements. 

We will review your enquiry to check that the data you are requesting is available and can be accessed through DARS. We may contact you to ask for more information about your request. If we are unable to meet your data needs, we will contact you to advise. 

If we can meet your data needs, your enquiry will move to the preliminary assessment stage.