Consultations and research

Securing our Future: Retaining Students in Computer Science Higher Education (UK)
December 2024

Computer Science is thriving in Higher Education in the UK, and is one of the fastest growing subjects in recent years, seeing a significant increase in applications, particularly among female students. Yet despite a diverse student population, concerns remain about student retention and employability, particularly around the high dropout rate, and lower continuation rates for disadvantaged students.

BCS report: Secondary school teachers and AI
December 2024

We are at a significant moment of change in education with the recent election of a new government making a different policy direction inevitable. The Curriculum and Assessment Review promises new breadth and relevance in what we teach; at the same time what is going on outside the school gate is already revolutionary. The development of Artificial Intelligence is likely to create as big a shift for the economy and society, learners and educators, as the introduction of the internet.

BCS’ Response to the Industrial Strategy Open Consultation
November 2024

In its response to the government’s open consultation on the Industrial Strategy, the BCS Policy team highlighted the need for increased STEM investment to address regional growth barriers, the digital skills shortage, and the gender gap. It also advocates for accountability in IT through professional registration.

BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT response to: Curriculum and Assessment Review - Call for Evidence
November 2024

The computing curriculum and its qualifications must provide pathways for the specialist (both academic and vocational) and those that plan to enter fields (both academic and vocational) that increasingly depend on a strong understanding of how computing is applied.

Young people must leave with the essential digital literacy needed to make confident, creative, and effective use of technologies and systems, and well-informed critical judgements about the implications and impact of how digital technology is used.

Transforming Adult Social Care Through Digitalisation
October 2024

The government must develop a long-term plan for the digital transformation of adult social care so the vast numbers of people who depend on these services receive the support they need, according to a new report from the BCS Faculty of Health and Care, led by the Social Care Community of Practice. Our experts from have taken a deep dive into the issues facing the sector in a new report: Transforming Adult Social Care Through Digitalisation.

BCS diversity report 2024: Age
October 2024
BCS analysis of the latest ONS figures on age representation in IT.

BCS diversity report 2024: Disability
October 2024
BCS analysis of the latest ONS figures on disability representation in IT.

BCS diversity report 2024: Ethnicity
October 2024
BCS analysis of the latest ONS figures on ethnicity representation in IT.

BCS diversity report 2024: Addressing the under-representation of women in technology
September 2024
BCS analysis of the latest ONS figures on gender representation in IT.

DSIT Code of Practice for Software Vendors call for views
August 2024

This is the BCS response to the call for views from the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology on a voluntary Code of Practice for Software Vendors which sets out the security and resilience measures which should be expected of organisations which develop or sell software.

DSIT Cyber Security of AI call for views
August 2024

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology on Cyber Security of AI - is a two part intervention, including a voluntary Code of Practice on AI security that will form a new global standard.

As part of the consultation, BCS contributed to a round-table organised by DSIT’s Issy Hall, the Cyber Security, AI and EmTech Standards Lead. The panel included a BCS Fellow, Adam Leon Smith, who is an AI standards expert, and experts from the BCS Information Security Specialist Group, (ISSG), and the Software Testing Group (SIGIST)

AI and digital in business life 2024
April 2024
For the first time in the history of this piece of BCS research there has been a big change in the concerns of IT leaders and IT professionals.

Information standards for health and adult social care in England
April 2024
The BCS’ Health and Care Executive responded to a Department of Health and Social Care consultation: Information standards for health and adult social care in England. It concluded that it is vital that all information standards documentation is easy to find and navigate and endorsed the approach taken for the NHS England standards directory.

Advanced British Standards proposals
April 2024
BCS responded to the government’s consultation on its plans to replace A-levels and T Levels with a new qualification, the Advanced British Standard. Whilst welcoming the proposals, BCS questioned the absence of digital skills and computing qualifications.

Cyber security code of practice
March 2024
The BCS’ Information Security Specialist Group (ISSG) welcomed the government’s draft Cyber Governance Code of Practice, which sets out what steps directors need to take to protect their organisations. But the panel felt a mandatory, rather than voluntary Code of Practice might be more effective.

Cyber resilience of the UK's critical national infrastructure
December 2023
BCS responded to a government consultation on the cyber resilience of the UK's critical national infrastructure (CNI). We asked the BCS Information Security Specialist Group (ISSG) for their input into the Science, Innovation and Technology Committee's call for a written response.

BCS diversity report 2023: Age
November 2023
BCS analysis of the latest ONS figures on age representation in IT.

BCS diversity report 2023: Disability
November 2023
BCS analysis of the latest ONS figures on disability representation in IT.

BCS diversity report 2023: Women in IT
November 2023
BCS analysis of the latest ONS figures on gender representation in IT.

BCS diversity report 2023: Ethnicity
November 2023
BCS analysis of the latest ONS figures on ethnicity representation in IT.

The Experience of Neurodiverse and Disabled People in IT 2023
November 2023
For 2023 we want to focus on the experience of disabled and neurodivergent people who work in IT. This has three strands: neurodiverse people, those with physical impairments, and those with sensory impairments.

Capabilities and Trends of Large Language Models: BCS’ response to the House of Lords Communications and Digital Committee’s call for evidence
September 2023
BCS's position on developing Large Language Models (LLMs) over the next three years is grounded in a cautious yet optimistic outlook. This response builds on BCS’ flagship paper entitled: ‘Helping AI Grow Up Without Pressing Pause’. We acknowledge the incremental evolution of LLMs, characterised by a trend towards smaller, more accessible models that offer personalisation and integration into various applications.

Department for Education call for evidence on generative AI 
September 2023
The recent advances in generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools such as ChatGPT prompted the government to launch a consultation to look at the opportunities and challenges for the education sector. BCS responded in August as our activities include education, training, and public benefit. In summary, we believe it is vital to avoid 'knee-jerk' policymaking, and we welcome the consultation as a first step towards developing a future-facing strategy that exploits the opportunities while managing the risks.

National Engineering Policy Centre on AI Regulation
July 2023
On behalf of the UK Government’s Office for AI, BCS, worked with the National Engineering Policy Centre to bring together experts in AI from across the UK engineering sector. This roundtable discussion focused on the principles of safety and risk and how the regulatory environment outlined in the UK Government’s White Paper could work in practice and where it might need to be amended.

Artificial Intelligence(AI) regulation – Transforming outcomes for all
June 2023
A roundtable was held in response to the government’s open consultation: AI regulation: a pro-innovation approach. BCS is a leading voice on AI regulation and standards, education and skills, advocating that the best approach isn’t to pause but to help AI grow responsibly.

BCS responds to the Bank of England/ HM Treasury consultation: The digital pound: A new form of money for households and businesses?
June 2023
The Bank of England approached BCS to hold a joint BCS members-only webinar on proposals for a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) – also known as the Digital Pound. Our members concluded that the CBDC should be technically possible and could deliver additional security, speed, and accuracy. However, members felt there was some way to go to make the case that a digital pound was needed - as there are already many ways to pay digitally for goods and services – and more detail was needed as to how those who are digital excluded would be able to access this service

BCS call for Evidence Submission: House of Lords Committee on Education for 11-16-year-olds
April 2023
Julia Adamson, MD of the BCS Education and Public Benefit, was invited to appear at the House of Lords Select Committee on Education for 11-16-year-olds. Julia highlighted the need for innovative solutions to teach computing, including bringing in industry and the need to broaden and balance the computing curriculum.

BCS works with Digital Poverty Alliance to respond to the House of Lords’ call for evidence on the digital divide
March 2023
As a member of the Digital Poverty Alliance, BCS – led by Freddie Quek in his capacity as Chair of the Digital Divide Specialist Group – collaborated with the group to respond to the Digital Communications Committee’s recent call for evidence.

Digital in business life 2023
January 2023
Over the years we have looked at future IT needs in various guises – our end of year research has been called ‘IT in your organisation’, ‘digital leaders’, ‘CIO versus CEO’ and so on. This year we surveyed members who are IT leaders and digital professionals - to help us get a feel for differences in perception between the two groups as we look ahead at 2023.

BCS responds to a call for evidence from the Parliamentary Science and Technology Select Committee on the governance of Artificial Intelligence
November 2022
This is the BCS submission to the Science and Technology Select Committee call for evidence on the governance of Artificial Intelligence1. The section headings are taken directly from the questions in the call for evidence.

BCS diversity report 2022: Age
October 2022
BCS analysis of the latest ONS figures on age representation in IT.

BCS diversity report 2022: Disability
October 2022
BCS analysis of the latest ONS figures on disability representation in IT.

BCS diversity report 2022: Women in IT
October 2022
BCS analysis of the latest ONS figures on gender representation in IT.

The experiences of black women in the information technology industry
October 2022
Coding Black Females and BCS have collaborated on this report in order to capture the real experiences of Black women in the tech industry.

Establishing a pro-innovation approach to regulating AI: BCS Response
September 2022
This paper discusses how government can establish clear, innovation-friendly, and flexible approaches to regulating AI and how the regulatory regime will be able to keep pace with and respond to new and distinct challenges and opportunities posed by AI.

Establishing a pro-innovation approach to regulating AI - BCS briefing
July 2022
This paper discusses how government can establish clear, innovation-friendly, and flexible approaches to regulating AI.

App security and privacy interventions
June 2022
BCS response to the DCMS consultation on App security and privacy interventions.

Digital transformation in the NHS
June 2022
There’s a serious gap between the health sector and other sectors regarding data sharing and interoperability: health and care is far behind as pointed out by the Goldacre review.

UK's digital strategy
June 2022
BCS briefing on the UK's digital strategy, covering digital foundations, ideas and intellectual property, digital skills and talent, financing digital growth, spreading prosperity and levelling up, and enhancing the UK’s place in the world.

Building a 'clinical satnav' for practitioners and patients
June 2022
Healthcare must catch up with other sectors: to save more lives we need fully computable knowledge.

BCS state of the nation report
May 2022
BCS on the Tech Labour Market Spring 2022.

Auditing algorithms: the existing landscape, role of regulators and future outlook
May 2022
BCS welcomes the recognition of the DRCF regulators that they have an influential role in shaping the algorithmic processing landscape to benefit individuals, consumers, businesses, and society more broadly. 

BCS landscape review: Computing qualifications in the UK
March 2022
The report offers a comprehensive picture of the varying levels of engagement in Computer Science and closely related qualifications and focuses on continuing challenges of participation by young women and securing enough teachers to deliver specialist teaching and learning effectively.

Embedding standards and pathways across the cyber profession by 2025
March 2022
BCS welcomes the government’s ambition to embed high standards of professional practice and progression pathways across cyber security.

Proposal for legislation to improve the UK’s cyber resilience
February 2022
The government has decided it needs to step in to address what it sees as the underspending on cyber security in supply chains and ensure that these systems are secure.

Cyber security in the UK in 2022
February 2022
The UK Government commissioned the 2022 cyber security incentives and regulation review as its previous approach to cyber security, set out in the 2016 Regulation and Incentives Review, was not delivering the necessary improvements to cyber resilience at sufficient pace and scale.

Levelling Up White Paper - Policy briefing
February 2022
BCS Senior Policy Manager Dan Aldridge has prepared a briefing on the Levelling Up White Paper identifying where it aligns with the current work of BCS and the opportunities within it for the IT and digital sectors and members to contribute.

Data - A new direction
November 2021
BCS response to a UK government consultation on proposed reforms to the UK’s data protection regime.

Cutting global electronic waste must be a top priority for COP26 - BCS survey
October 2021
Ending device waste came top of a BCS survey asking BCS members which tech-related actions government and the sector should look to combat to make IT more sustainable.

Digital regulation
September 2021
BCS welcomes the government focus on stimulating innovation, productivity and growth through digital technologies and the need to foster constructive competition.

Digital identity and attributes
September 2021
A 2021 Cabinet Office report found that more than 9% of UK adults don’t have a valid photo ID, and 2% don’t have any form of ID at all.

BCS response to the Department for Education National Skills Fund Consultation
September 2021
In this wide-ranging response to a government consultation on the National Skills Fund, the BCS Policy, Education and Learning and Development teams looked at what needs to be done to help adults from all backgrounds access the digital skills training they need.

Britain can set 'gold standard' in ethical artificial intelligence
August 2021
The UK can lead the world in creating artificial intelligence that cares about humanity - provided more people from non-tech and diverse backgrounds choose to study and work in the field, according to a new BCS report.

Use of artificial intelligence for image analysis in breast cancer screening
July 2021
BCS response to National Screening Committee’s ‘Use of artificial intelligence for image analysis in breast cancer screening’ consultation.

BCS diversity report 2021: Age
July 2021
BCS analysis of the latest ONS figures on age representation in IT.

BCS diversity report 2021: Disability
July 2021
BCS analysis of the latest ONS figures on disability representation in IT.

BCS diversity report 2021: Women in IT
July 2021
BCS analysis of the latest ONS figures on gender representation in IT.

BCS diversity report 2021: Ethnicity
July 2021
BCS analysis of the latest ONS figures on ethnicity representation in IT.

Social media must verify users’ ID to end online abuse
April 2021
Social media should require users to verify their identities, to combat anonymous racism, homophobia and other abuse targeted at minorities and vulnerable groups, according to a poll of the IT industry.

Algorithms, competition and consumer harm
March 2021
BCS welcomes the CMA invitation for potential collaboration on their algorithms programme. This document details BCS's main observations.

COVID status certification review
March 2021
In this paper BCS responds to the government’s call-for-evidence on COVID-19 vaccine certification, looking at the technical and ethical challenges of a digital solution.

Virtual festival of digital skills: 2021 the economic road ahead
January 2021
This report examines the digital skills needed to nurture future resilience across areas such as education, training, healthcare, social care, and that will create a thriving, prosperous economy that helps all of us in every part of the UK.

Anticipated acquisition by NVIDIA of Arm’s Intellectual Property Group business
January 2021
Joint response by BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT and Hermann Hauser, Co-founder, Venture Partner, Amadeus Capital Partners; Co-founder, Arm.

BCS response the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Diversity and Inclusion in Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM)
January 2021
This response specifically looks at the IT sector in terms of gender and ethnicity given the extent of under-representation in the industry.

Post-16 level 2 and below study and qualifications in England
January 2021
This response covers the consultation question 'Do you agree that we should remove funding approval from the level 2 ICT FSQ and level 2 ICT User qualifications?'

Digital strategy for Scotland
December 2020
Read our response to the Scottish Government’s Renewing Scotland's full potential in a digital world: a consultation on the Digital Strategy for Scotland.

National data strategy
November 2020
As explained by the Rt Hon. Oliver Dowden CBE MP the National Data Strategy
is intended to fulfil the “government’s wider ambition for a thriving, fast-growing digital sector in the UK, underpinned by public trust”. 

BCS response to the IfATE second funding consultation
October 2020
The digitalisation of public life during the COVID-19 pandemic presents an unprecedented opportunity to drive a more comprehensive digital agenda encompassing access, literacy, skills, and safety.

AI and your job
September 2020
This research shows that the opportunity, at least for the present, is for businesses to train their people to work with AI - collaboratively - rather than AI being a source of job loss.

The public don't trust computer algorithms to make decisions about them
September 2020
BCS survey identifies that over half (53%) of UK adults have no faith in any organisation to use algorithms when making judgements about them.

Digital skills consultation
September 2020
BCS welcomes the opportunity to submit evidence to the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Digital Skills call for evidence on the impact of COVID-19 and lessons learned for improving digital skills in the future.

How will BCS support the Government's job plan?
September 2020
BCS wants to use our roles as the professional body for IT, to assist the government in helping people regain employment and benefit from quality training.

The exam question: How do we make algorithms do the right thing?
September 2020
Algorithms that change people's lives - for example when estimating students' grades - should now meet strict standards of ethics and competence, according to a BCS report.

IT professionals cast doubt on Huawei’s warning that ban will 'move Britain into the digital slow lane’
August 2020
The majority of IT professionals (53%) do not believe Huawei’s claim that the UK’s decision to ban the tech giant from 5G will 'move Britain into the digital slow lane, push up bills and deepen the digital divide', according to a new survey.

How to level up the economic performance across the UK
June 2020
BCS response to a request by the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy for input to its roundtable.

BCS Insights research 2020
June 2020
Our BCS Insights 2020 report is informed by BCS research from the last six months. The additional reports feature BCS analysis on the latest ONS figures as well as exclusive member research on AI, diversity and the state of the IT industry in 2020.

BCS diversity report 2020
May 2020
BCS campaigns for a more diverse workforce in the digital industries. The BCS annual diversity report looks at employment trends.

Contact tracing apps
April 2020
BCS response to “How can contact tracing apps be managed to assist Government in answering key questions to address the current crisis and enjoy public support?”

IT leaders report
March 2020
Each year we survey IT leaders to discover what their views are about the rapidly evolving world of tech. This year we found that cyber security is the main issue that keeps senior manager awake at night.

CDEI and BCS study into Ethical Maturity of AI Practice
February 2020
Mandy Chessell CBE FREng FBCS, Distinguished Engineer and Master Inventor at IBM, discusses a new joint study between CDEI and BCS to develop practical guidance on embedding ethical practice in MSc courses on Machine Learning and Data Science.

Scaling up the Ethical Artificial Intelligence MSc Pipeline
May 2019
Final report to the Office for AI covering frameworks and models of Industry-funded Masters Courses in Machine Learning and related AI skills.

BCS Insights research 2019
June 2019
Our BCS Insights 2019 report is informed by BCS research from the last six months. The additional nine reports feature BCS analysis on the latest ONS figures as well as exclusive member research on AI, diversity and the state of the IT industry in 2019.

Consultation response to the DCMS National Data Strategy
July 2019
BCS is one of the professional engineering institutes providing a collective response to the call for evidence through the new National Engineering Policy Centre, under the auspices of the Royal Academy of Engineering.

Royal Society - After the reboot: computing education in UK schools 
November 2017
BCS contributed to a landmark Royal Society report in 2017 that led to the government setting up of the National Centre for Computing Education, thereby improving the quality of computer science teaching in schools.

Online Harms whitepaper
BCS welcomes and urges the need for effective and reasonable social media regulation, however it is important users and organisations are aware of their respective responsibilities in the use of social media platforms.

Brexit and IT
BCS comments on IT and exiting the European Union.