MAIS Standards Working Group - Meeting 3 - 8th October 2025

[andjnewman]

The agenda for the next meeting of the MAIS Working Group is below:

1. Welcome to the working group
2. Programme recap
3. Refining our MAIS Conceptual Model
4. Information Governance Standards
5. Update on standards in development
6. Next steps

[NevadaM]

Minutes of MAIS Standards Development Working Group

Session 2, Microsoft Teams, 3 September 2025, 3pm to 4.30pm

Agenda:

1. Welcome to the working group

2. Programme recap

3. Refining our MAIS Conceptual Model

4. Information Governance Standards

5. Update on standards in development

6. Next steps

Welcome and Programme recap: 

Andrew Newman (The ODI) provided an overview of the data standards for social care programme:

• Programme Structure and Funding: Andrew Newman explained that the programme is a three-year initiative jointly funded by the Department of Education and Department of Health and Social Care, aiming to improve data use for children, young people, and adults supported by the social care system. Delivery partners include Social Finance, the Open Data Institute, and Coram. 

• Open Standards Development: The programme is committed to an open approach, publishing all specifications on GitHub, enabling stakeholders to raise issues, track feedback, and participate in discussions. Minutes and records of decisions are also shared openly to ensure transparency. 

• Programme Goals: The main goals are to implement iteratively developed standards, establish sustainable governance, and create infrastructure for ongoing management and funding of standards beyond the project’s duration. 

Refining our MAIS Conceptual Model

Harry Angus (Social Finance) led a session on the development of a conceptual model for multi-agency information sharing, focusing on defining organisational layers, types of information (involvements, states, events), and the need for a scalable, consistent approach across different systems. 

• Model Structure and Rationale: Harry described the conceptual model as comprising two main sections: identifying where data is held (organisational, system, and sharing authority levels) and determining what information should be shared. The model aims to support scalable, decentralised information sharing across agencies. 

• Types of Information: The model categorises information into involvements (sustained interactions), states (on/off statuses), and events (time-bound incidents). This structure is intended to be system-agnostic and applicable across police, health, and social care systems. 

• Feedback and Refinement: Participants, including Nicholas and Richard, discussed the alignment with existing ontologies (such as DOLCE and healthcare concept models), the need for clear definitions, and the importance of including mandates and responsibilities. Mark Peterson and Ida Cohen raised considerations about information governance and the risks of oversharing. 

• Practical Implications: Alistair Herbert and others highlighted the importance of sharing minimal, actionable information to facilitate safeguarding without unnecessary intrusion, and the need for mechanisms that allow professionals to follow up directly when more detail is required. 

Information Governance Standards

Howard Askew (the ODI) led a session on information governance, presenting a framework for automated, attribute-based access control for data sharing, before the group split into three group discussions exploring implementation challenges, policy management, and the handling of consent and sensitive information across three scenarios (S47, S17 and enquiries conducted by non-LA practitioners in the safeguarding system). 

• Breakout Group Discussions and Feedback: Participants reported back from breakout groups on Section 47 inquiries, safeguarding below section 47 (section 17), and practitioner use cases, highlighting implementation feedback, consent challenges, and the need for user-focused data presentation. 

• Section 47 Inquiries: Howard summarised that the proposed pattern for automated data sharing was generally accepted, with discussions focusing on implementation options, rule management, and the need to expand beyond involvements to include other relevant information types. 

• Safeguarding Below Section 47: Harry reported that section 17 inquiries present additional challenges due to the need for explicit consent to engage with services and more complex decision-making about what information can be shared, with data controllers retaining discretion over sensitive information. 

• Practitioner Use Cases: Andrew shared that current data sharing mechanisms vary widely, including built-in system functions, national systems, and ad hoc local exchanges. The group emphasised the importance of tailoring data presentation to the needs of end users, such as police officers in the field. 

Update on standards in development

 Neil Majithia (The ODI) provided an update on the progress of various technical standards, including the person standard, data exchange, matching specification, information governance, controlled vocabularies, and the API catalogue, encouraging participants to provide feedback and raise issues via GitHub. 

• Standards Progress Update: Neil outlined the current status of several standards, noting that the person standard is ready for testing, the data exchange and IG standards are in development, the matching specifications are in early stages, and work is ongoing on controlled vocabularies and the API catalogue. 

• Feedback Mechanisms: Participants were encouraged to review the published standards, raise issues, and contribute feedback through GitHub repositories, with all meeting feedback and Miro board input to be translated into actionable issues. 

Key links:

• Miro Board: Standards Working Group - 08/10/25 - Miro

• Password: 08102025

• Newsletter signup link

• Github to raise issues/queries: Data Standards for Social Care

Actions:

• Standards development team to log issues raised in meeting on Github, circulating a summary of the issues discussed to the Working Group

• Standards development team to integrate this feedback into emerging standards, particularly around Information Governance and standards reliant on the Conceptual Model

The next Standards Development Working Group for MAIS will be taking place on the 13th November, 14.30 – 16.00.