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The Collaboration in Progress stage enables data custodians and data requestors to agree on terms and conditions for sharing data. This ensures the right controls and protections are in place for the data sharing agreement.
Once the data custodian completes an assessment of the data sharing request and determines the request may be viable, the status will change from Under Assessment to Collaboration in Progress. An email will be sent to the data requestor's contact officer and designated mailbox to notify them of this change.
Parties can access the request form and respond to additional questions based on the selected pathway during the Collaboration in Progress stage.
It is advisable for each party to assign an approving officer at the Collaboration in Progress stage to prepare to progress the data sharing agreement during the For Review and For Approval stages.
Access to data sharing requests and agreements depends on the user's role in Dataplace and their involvement in a specific request or agreement.
|
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Can view own data sharing requests/ agreements |
Can edit own data sharing requests at different stages |
Can view data sharing requests/ agreements others are working on |
Can edit data sharing requests others are working on |
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General user |
Yes |
Yes |
No* |
No*
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Data coordinator |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes
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Organisation administrator
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Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
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Approving officer |
Yes |
Yes |
No** |
No**
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* if user is not added as a contributor
** if user is not added as a contributor or approving officer
Dataplace supports three pathways for developing and entering into data sharing agreements:
The data custodian is responsible for confirming the pathway for the data sharing request under the Project tab. Questions presented in the request form will depend on the selected pathway. All pathways apply the the data sharing principles (the Five Safes) to effectively manage data sharing.
The pathway can be changed at any time during the Collaboration in Progress stage depending on what is decided between the parties.
Questions are dynamic and as such responses to pathway specific questions will be lost if a different pathway is selected.
The project summary option is useful for when data sharing does not require a formal agreement, for example using a Public Interest Certificate, Memorandum of Understanding or Letter of Exchange.
Selecting DATA Scheme data sharing agreement will open questions that are specific to the DATA Scheme, enabling parties to use Dataplace to develop an agreement that meet the requirements of the Data Availability and Transparency Act 2022 (DAT Act).
If parties choose one of the agreement pathways, they then need to decide what process will be used to finalise the data sharing agreement. The options include:
If one of the upload options are chosen, only the lead custodian needs to add an approving officer. This will enable the lead custodian to unilaterally finalise the agreement.
All parties may choose to add an approving officer for uploaded agreements if they would like to individually approve the agreement.
Dataplace will generate the data sharing agreement and allow all parties to electronically sign the agreement. A draft of the data sharing agreement can be downloaded by selecting the ‘Actions’ icon (⋮) and selecting Download. Once approved by all parties, the Download will produce an e-signed version of the data sharing agreement.
All parties must add an approving officer to the request at the Collaboration in Progress stage. This will allow each party to individually provide an electronic signature.
For DATA Scheme agreements, there is a head agreement with static clauses that comply with the Data Availability and Transparency Act 2022 (DAT Act) and a schedule which dynamically changes based on answers provided in the request form.
Parties can download a draft Dataplace generated agreement by selecting the ‘Actions’ menu (⋮) and selecting Download.
Users can respond to the questions in Dataplace to populate the draft agreement prior to downloading. This can then be adapted as necessary, signed by all parties and then uploaded to Dataplace.
The lead custodian must upload the signed data sharing agreement under the Documents tab prior to advancing the data sharing request to the For Review stage.
Only the lead custodian needs to add an approving officer. This will enable the lead custodian to unilaterally finalise the agreement.
If parties are using the DATA Scheme pathway, they have the option of downloading a short form agreement template which is not populated with responses to questions. This will need to be adapted and completed offline and signed by all parties prior to being uploaded to Dataplace.
Parties may develop or adapt an agreement and have the agreement signed by all parties outside of Dataplace. The lead custodian must upload the signed data sharing agreement under the Documents tab prior to proceeding to the For Review stage.
Only the lead custodian needs to add an approving officer. This will enable the lead custodian to unilaterally finalise the agreement.
For agreements using the Data Availability and Transparency Act 2022 data custodians and data requestors are provided with a checklist to ensure they have included information to meet the DAT Act requirements. This is available by selecting the Checklists from the right-hand menu.
In some cases, it may be useful for a third party such as an ethics committee or oversight body, without access to Dataplace to review the contents of the data sharing request. Parties can download the Form Review in a Microsoft Word format by selecting it from the right-hand side menu. All available questions will be displayed, but only responses that have been supplied will be shown.
To upload a signed agreement in Dataplace, navigate to the Documents tab and either click to select or drag and drop the file. After a few minutes, parties can view and download the document.
The For Review stage allows all parties to assess the data sharing agreement before approval, focusing on legal implications, security settings, and feasibility. The request form is locked and cannot be edited during this stage.
After uploading a signed agreement in the Collaboration in Progress stage or ensuring that sufficient controls have been specified for a Dataplace generated agreement, the lead custodian can advance the request by selecting the ‘Actions’ menu (⋮) and selecting For Review.
All parties will be notified of the status change in the data sharing request.
Parties can select Proceed if they are ready to approve the agreement. Otherwise, the lead custodian may choose to progress to the For Approval stage if they are confident that all parties are ready by selecting For Approval from the 'Actions' menu (⋮).
All parties will receive a notification when the data sharing status has changed to For Approval.
Each party’s designated approving officers (where required) should select the Approve button in the right-hand panel.
A confirmation box will appear, acknowledging that an approving officer will provide their electronic signature and is authorised to enter into the data sharing agreement.
For DATA Scheme agreements, the approving officer must also be an authorised individual under the Data Availability and Transparency Act 2022 (DAT Act).
After the data sharing agreement is approved, the status will change to either Agreed – In Effect for general data sharing agreements or Pending Registration for DATA Scheme agreements.
Uploading an agreement
While all parties can follow the same process as described above for Dataplace generated agreements, the lead custodian can choose to approve on behalf of all parties. Since a signed agreement has been uploaded, approval by the lead custodian is merely a process to push the agreement to a finalised state.
For DATA Scheme agreements, Pending registration indicates that the data sharing agreement has been formally submitted to the National Data Commissioner. No further action is required from the parties at this stage. The Office of the National Data Commissioner will complete the registration and notify all parties when data sharing is permitted (including where foreign individuals are involved under the Data Availability and Transparency (National Security Measures) Code 2022).
During the Collaboration in Progress, For Review and For Approval stages, the lead custodian may decide that it is not feasible to share data and refuse the data sharing request.
To refuse the data sharing request, the approving officer selects Refuse from the ‘Actions’ menu (⋮).
This will open Refuse data sharing request window which asks you to provide reasons as to why the data sharing request is refused.
The reasons for refusal will help the data requestor understand what the issues are and ensure the lead custodian fulfill requirements under the Data Availability and Transparency Act 2022, if applicable.
When you have completed the reasons for refusal, selecting Complete will change the status of the data sharing request to Refused.
If the data sharing request was made by an accredited user under the DATA Scheme, this will be a refusal under the Data Availability and Transparency Act 2022.