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We are committed to maximizing the use of Whitehall II data to advance scientific knowledge.
We welcome proposals for collaborative and external projects for bona fide research. We make data as widely available as possible while strongly protecting confidentiality, and making sure that we maintain the reputation of the study, its funders and its participants. All proposals are reviewed by the data sharing committee.
For aggregate data, please contact the researcher you wish to collaborate with.
For individual-level data, we follow a controlled access model for sharing, which is described in our Whitehall II data sharing policy (PDF). This policy conforms to the MRC Policy on Research Data Sharing.
For general data sharing enquiries, please contact whitehall2@ucl.ac.uk
For projects involving genetics, please contact Dr Meena Kumari.
Please note that we charge a modest fee to cover the administrative costs associated with the management and generation of the bespoke datasets.
- Data Sharing Committee
The Data Sharing Committee (DSC) comprises the Whitehall II study Director and PI, co-Investigators and associated senior study researchers, statisticians and the core operational team.
The committee meet once a month to review the scientific merit and the suitability of the Whitehall II Study, for the data sharing requests as well as the ability of the applicants(s) to deliver on the project. The proposals can be approved fully, or approved pending further information or rejected, with an explanation to the applicant.
Data Sharing Committee Members Prof Mika Kivimaki, Director and PI, The Whitehall II study Professor Eric Brunner, (Co-PI) Professor Archana Singh Mantoux, (Co-PI) Professor Jenny Head, (Statistician) Professor Annie Britton, (Epidemiologist) Dr Andy Ryan, (Senior Data Manager) Dr Adam Tabak, (Clinician and Senior Research Associate) Dr Severine Sabia (Senior Research Associate) Dr Joni Lindbohm (Research Fellow) Dr Philipp Frank (Research Fellow) Mrs Stephanie Smith (Core Study Team) - Applying for data
For individual level data, please submit the following two documents:
- the WII Data Sharing Application Form in word format (also in PDF).
- the WII Excel data dictionary with the list of variables needed for the project. Please highlight only the variable names needed for your project
The WII research team meets monthly to evaluate all applications received. Upon approval of an application, applicants will be asked to sign the WII Data Sharing Agreement (last page of application form) and proceed with the payment.
Within two weeks of the receipt of this document and of the payment, the data manager will release an anonymised dataset, tailor-made for each project.
For aggregate data, please contact the researcher you wish to collaborate with.
- Data Documentation
You can obtain a detailed description of the WII variables in the following sources:
On request, we can supply documentation such as copies of other WII questionnaires (FFQ, MMSE, GKQ, cortisol diaries, etc), clinical protocols and syntax of derived variables.
- Payment
There will be a charge of £500 + VAT for each data sharing project. This will cover the administrative costs associated with the management and generation of the bespoke dataset.
This fee will need to be paid upon approval of the application.
To proceed with the payment, please click on the link below. You will need to have your data sharing reference number in hand.
Additional requests might incur further costs depending on the required data management time.
- Data Sharing in Numbers
Over the last 10 years, the Whitehall II study has released aggregate and individual-level data for many research projects, including a large number of international consortia.
Up to end of Mar 2021 we received 363 data sharing applications (Excel file) for individual level data. Many of these applications were for external projects, ie, not involving authorship of Whitehall II researchers.
Approval rate:
- 347 at first submission
- 14 re-submission requested (10 received)
- 2 refused
Year External Collaborations (inc. consortia) Genetics TOTAL 2006 (pre - DS) 0 4 3 7 2007 2 3 0 5 2008 5 10 11 26 2009 3 7 11 21 2010 7 6 5 18 2011 5 13 4 22 2012 5 6 5 16 2013 3 14 4 21 2014 4 9 2 15 2015 8 6 6 20 2016 13 6 4 23 2017 19 6 1 26 2018 33 2 1 36 2019 32 8 2 42 2020 14 1 1 16 To Mar 2021 9 0 0 9 Total 166 137 60 363 SEE BELOW THE GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION OF OUR INDIVIDUAL-LEVEL DATA TRANSFERS UP TO THE END OF MAR 2021:
- Any questions?
Please check our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).