Emma Reed

Emma joined the GSS as a Fast Stream Assistant Statistician after completing a Masters in Statistics at University College London (her first degree was in Maths).

"My fist position was at the Home Office working on national statistics and quality assurance. My primary responsibility was the publication of drug seizure data, which involved working closely with police forces, Customs, and the Forensic Science Service. I also worked on prison populations and homicides.

My next post was in the Department for Work and Pensions, where I was embedded as an analyst in a policy team examining fraud and error in the benefit system. One of the main things I worked on was evaluating the efficacy of Voice Risk Analysis – a possible new technology that could potentially be used to detect suspect claims.

I'm now at the Department of Energy and Climate Change where I have two sets of responsibilities that are closely linked. Half of the work involves leading on the production of regular National Statistics for household energy bills and managing a placement student; the other is more policy orientated and involves working on fuel poverty (meaning households that would need to spend 10% of their income to sufficiently power their homes). This is a high profile area with energy prices and climate change being particularly important areas at the moment.

It's the flexibility of the Fast Stream programme that is one of its greatest strengths. I'm really interested in the role that analysis can play in policy making, and it's been great to be able to move between departments and see it happening in different ways."

It's not just the day job that's been keeping Emma busy though. "I've twice been part of the organising committee for our annual conference of junior statisticians (the second year I was the chair). I was also invited to give a speech on the future of statistics at an event to mark 40 years of the Government Statistical Service."