Case Studies

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Local government Data architecture

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03 / Combined Local Council: Data Mesh

The Greater Manchester Combined Authority adopted a data mesh architecture with Microsoft, to break down data silos and help departments work together on public health, transport and housing.

01 / The Situation

Good decisions need joined-up data.

Departments and organisations across Greater Manchester struggled to share and analyse information together.

Public health, transport and housing do not respect departmental boundaries. Evidence-based decisions for residents needed data that was easier to reach and easier to use.

The challenges

  1. 01

    Data silos

    Departments and organisations across Greater Manchester struggled to share and analyse information together.

  2. 02

    Weak collaboration

    Departments needed to work together more effectively on issues such as public health, transport and housing.

  3. 03

    Decision-making

    Better data accessibility and usability were needed to support evidence-based decisions for residents.

02 / The Work

A mesh, built with Microsoft.

  1. 01

    Data mesh architecture

    The GMCA adopted a data mesh architecture, organising data around the domains that own it.

  2. 02

    Implemented with Microsoft

    The architecture was implemented with Microsoft.

  3. 03

    Culture, technology and strategy

    The effort combined cultural change, technical implementation and strategic planning.

Fig. 1Questions that cross departments

Three resident questions, each needing data from two of public health, transport and housing. In a siloed model the answer is partial; in a mesh the domains are joined.

Illustrative questions by Saizen Acuity. They show the principle; they are not the GMCA's data catalogue.

03 / The Outcome

A more agile, data-driven authority.

No figures were published for this case. The study reports qualitative outcomes, so that is what is shown here. We do not estimate numbers the client did not publish.

  • A more agile organisation

    Qualitative

    The study describes a more agile, data-driven organisation.

  • Better placed for residents

    Qualitative

    Better positioned to address Greater Manchester's challenges.

How we grade evidence Result · Projection · Target · Qualitative · Scope

04 / What It Shows

What other leaders can take from it.

  1. 01

    Public problems cross departmental lines. The data has to as well.

  2. 02

    Data mesh is cultural before it is technical: ownership, standards and trust come first.

  3. 03

    Shared data matters when it changes a decision for residents.

· / Source Record

Where this comes from.

Every statement on this page is taken from the original case study. Where the study is silent, this page says so rather than filling the gap.

Last reviewed
20 October 2026
Figures
None published.
Figure 1
Illustrative unless its caption says otherwise.