# UK ONS MCP Server
[](https://badge.fury.io/js/uk_ons_mcp_server)
[](https://opensource.org/licenses/MIT)
[](https://github.com/dwain-barnes/uk_ons_mcp_server)
A **Model Context Protocol (MCP) server** for accessing the UK Office for National Statistics (ONS) Beta API.
Fetch official UK government statistics—demographics, economics, social data—straight from your MCP‑compatible assistant, no API key required.
---
## Features
- **Direct ONS access** – no authentication, no tokens
- **Browse & search** every published dataset
- **Flexible queries** – filter observations by geography, time, etc.
- **Popular dataset shortcuts** for CPIH, regional GDP, wellbeing & more
- **Time‑series & regional comparisons** built in
- **100 % MCP‑SDK TypeScript** with robust error handling
---
## Installation
```bash
# Global install
npm install -g uk_ons_mcp_server
# Or one‑off run
npx uk_ons_mcp_server
```
---
## Usage (Claude Desktop)
```json
{
"mcpServers": {
"uk-ons": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "uk_ons_mcp_server"]
}
}
}
```
---
## Available Tools
| Tool | Purpose |
|------|---------|
| `list_datasets` | Paginated list of all datasets |
| `get_dataset` | Metadata for a single dataset |
| `search_datasets` | Search by keyword |
| `get_observation` | Pull observations with dimension filters |
| `get_latest_data` | Convenience wrapper for the newest figures |
---
## Popular Dataset IDs
| ID | What it is |
|----|------------|
| `cpih01` | CPIH (UK inflation) |
| `regional-gdp-by-year` | Regional GDP |
| `wellbeing-local-authority` | Personal wellbeing |
| `trade` | UK trade stats |
| `weekly-deaths-region` | Weekly deaths |
---
## Development
```bash
git clone https://github.com/dwain-barnes/uk_ons_mcp_server.git
cd uk_ons_mcp_server
npm install
npm run build # compile TypeScript
npm start # production
npm run dev # watch & reload
```
Tests and linting:
```bash
npm test
npm run lint
```
---
## Contributing
1. Fork → branch → commit
2. `git push` and open a PR
3. Kindly follow the coding style in **src/**
---
## License
MIT – see `LICENSE`.
---
> **Disclaimer**
> This project is **unofficial** and not endorsed by the UK Office for National Statistics. Data usage remains subject to ONS terms.
