The toolkit will help you find sources of information for many of the indicators and measures.

You are likely to find some of the information you need has been published as part of regular reports either in your country or by organisations such as the UN, OECD or the World Bank.

However, it is likely you will need access to many, varied sources of data to find the level of detail needed to establish the facts about inequalities in your country.

Within each of the domains we provide information on likely data sources, and how they can be used.  With your help, we are hoping that to build this repository, to provide more detailed accounts about where information can be found for each measure in different countries and regions.

We have already begun with Spain, which you can explore here, and use as an example of the types of material you may need to investigate.

A good place to start is with your National Statistics centre or institute website. There you will be able to find information from national household surveys and administrative data.

There are many different household surveys with some focused on a single issue, such as labour markets, wages, or a particular sector like agriculture, and some more broader surveys combining these elements.

Because the type, frequency and coverage of national household surveys vary significantly between countries, the framework has only listed regional and global sources of data relevant to inequalities.

An important aspect to bear in mind is that official data sources are not always the most appropriate. When it comes to certain aspects such as deaths in police detention or prisons, and crime statistics, there is a risk that official data can be biased.

Where you suspect that this is the case, it is a good idea to try and verify official statistics from other sources such as bespoke surveys or documented allegations e.g. allegations of disappearances, or police violence, and other forms of quantitative and qualitative evidence gathered by specialist NGOs, the media and other sources.

You may also find little official data in other areas of the framework, for instance bullying and violence in schools, or exploitation in workplaces. Again research or small surveys by specialist NGOs might shed light on incidences of mistreatment and different people’s experiences.

These are all useful sources to consider in your assessments.

It is imperative we deepen our understanding of the different manifestations of inequality and show how it is experienced by different groups in different settings.  Qualitative research can do this, not only because it can add testimony and corroboration to your statistical measurements, but also because it offers human stories which powerfully illustrate the real impacts of inequalities on people.

Qualitative research includes literature reviews, observation, interviews, surveys, and the analysis of voice, speeches, and conversation (discourse analysis). A good place to start searching for existing qualitative and mixed-methods data sets is through your country’s national data archives or institute.

Oxfam has a strong track record of qualitative research, and has staff experienced in survey design, who can offer general help on sampling, structure and methods.  As more Oxfam programmes become involved with gathering data on inequalities we will add a survey question bank to our website.

Case studies can provide valuable qualitative information. For example, you can use a case study format to unpack the social mobility aspects of inequality: The contrasting life stories of individuals from different backgrounds can provide powerful narratives about the impact of inequalities from birth and how opportunity is related to a person’s starting point in life.

Another relatively new method is the use of Inequality Diaries where participants record their daily lived experiences.  Contributors may find writing or recording their own accounts easier than being interviewed. The process can allow users - particularly those who are marginalised – a ‘voice’ and agency in their situation. And the insights they reveal can be extremely powerful for advocacy and campaigning.

Download our supporting materials or browse our data page.

When implementing the framework it is likely you will come across areas where there is little or no data at all. Identifying data gaps is important: what is and is not measured influences what issues are highlighted and what issues are hidden and ignored.

Without the right data, appropriately targeted research is impossible and obtaining the ’Killer Facts ’ Oxfam uses to generate awareness about extreme inequalities becomes more difficult.

Oxfam has included data advocacy; in its Inequality Policy Team strategy. It hopes to influence the United Nations, World Bank and IMF (amongst other agencies) as part of a special, global initiative to improve the collection of inequality data. This global call would be bolstered by country level advocacy around the data needed to measure and capture properly the inequalities prevalent in societies.

A critical aspect of data advocacy is to make an assessment of data gaps, in particular through data disaggregation. Even outcome data for certain domains is available, it may not be to the level of disaggregation needed for your analysis.

A sufficient level of high quality information is needed to measure the progress of different groups, across different geographies. A key aspect of your data advocacy is likely to be directed at this issue, targeting improved categories of disaggregation and consistent application of these across all national surveys.

A useful way of applying the framework would be to include a deliberative consultation exercise on disaggregation characteristics conducted with key stakeholders, including your national statistics office. This exercise could include building an alliance of relevant agencies who would use the data. It would allow Oxfam and its allies to build consensus on the nationally relevant characteristics for disaggregation and serve as a foundation for data advocacy efforts.

Disaggregating data on the basis of income level will give you a snapshot of vertical inequalities. This term refers to differences based on ‘vertical concepts’ of income and wealth. Economic inequality is a direct measurement of this difference.

When different social and political outcomes (e.g. higher maternal mortality rates or lower political participation levels) are observed between the rich and the poor these can also be categorised as vertical inequalities.

Disaggregating data on the basis of other variables (gender, disability, ethnicity, location) will give you a snapshot of horizontal inequalities. This term refers to the differences that are experienced between particular groups.

Horizontal inequalities can be observed in a multitude of ways – from the indigenous women who face a higher risk of dying in childbirth to the members of an ethnic minority group who encounter wage discrimination in the workplace.

The effects of these inequalities are not restricted to the poorest, but it is often the poorest who face the most serious impacts to their wellbeing as a result. Horizontal inequalities are also important because of their impact on social cohesion, because they increase the likelihood of conflict in society.

Inequalities between different geographical locations are forms of horizontal inequalities, but are also sometimes described as spatial inequalities. These are often given a strong focus given the importance of this concept for directing public investment patterns.

Common spatial dimensions of inequality that are measured and referred to in developing countries is the inequality between urban and rural areas, and inequalities between different regions or districts of a country.

Differences between educational, health and nutritional outcomes (and other dimensions of wellbeing such as access to clean water, sanitation and electricity) between urban and rural areas or different regions can often be clearly measured and are an important part of an inequality analysis.

’Killer facts’ are those punchy, memorable, headline-grabbing statistics that make reports special. They cut through the technicalities to fire people up about changing the world. They are picked up and repeated endlessly by the media and politicians. They are known as ’killer’ facts because if they are really effective, they ’kill off’ the opposition's arguments. The right killer fact can have more impact than the whole of a well-researched report.

For more information on killer facts and how to develop them see Oxfam's research on 'Creating Killer Facts and Graphics'