A NOTE FROM THE DIRECTOR
Six months have gone by since our last newsletter, and in that time we have been very busy, with half a dozen publications or reports being released. These are described in this newsletter.
An exciting development in the near future will be the release of the first General Social Survey (GSS), which was conducted by the ABS between March and July 2002. The core content of the GSS brings together a wide range of information to enable it to be linked in ways not previously available. The focus is on the relationships between characteristics from different areas of social concern, rather than in depth information about a particular field. Topics include health, housing, education, work, income, financial stress, broad assets and liabilities, transport, family and community, and crime. It is expected that the new publication, General Social Survey, Australia (ABS cat. no. 4159.0) will provide an overview, through summary tables, for different population groups and selected themes. Surveys on Attendance at Selected Cultural Venues and Events, Sports Attendance, and Participation in Sports and Physical Activities, were conducted as supplements to the GSS. NCCRS has begun work on publications for each of these surveys. We expect to release these publications progressively, soon after the release of the GSS overview publication. If and when resources permit, the GSS will provide us with an opportunity to explore connections between attendance, participation and other aspects of people's lives.
We are pleased to announce that we have successfully negotiated continued funding to the NCCRS from our key clients, being the Standing Committee on Sport and Recreation (SCORS) and the Cultural Ministers Council (CMC). The contribution made by the key government agencies represented on these committees helps the ABS to sustain a national statistical focus on culture and recreation. We also appreciate the time and effort contributed by the staff of these agencies, and particularly those who participate on the statistical working group sub-committees.
We value the input provided from everyone who uses our statistics, and we are always happy to receive feedback. We look forward to ongoing lively debate regarding our statistical program and the use of culture and recreation data in future.
Lisa Conolly
Acting Director
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