How to read an ONS statistical bulletin
An ONS statistical bulletin follows a fixed layout: a header with the release date and next release, a short list of main points, detailed sections with charts and tables, and closing sections on data, quality and revisions. Reading the header, the main points and the quality section first tells you what the headline number measures and how firm it is. This guide walks through the July 2026 monthly GDP bulletin as an example.
What a bulletin is
A statistical bulletin is the ONS's main written release for a set of statistics. It is published on a date announced in advance in the release calendar , and it sits alongside the datasets and time series it describes. Every bulletin uses the same building blocks, so once you know where things are you can read any of them quickly.
The example used throughout is GDP monthly estimate, UK: July 2026 , which we opened on 13 October 2026.
Sources: release calendar, GDP monthly estimate, UK: July 2026
1. The header: title, dates and previous releases
At the top you will find:
The title and period , here "GDP monthly estimate, UK: July 2026". The period in the title is the period the data cover, not the publication date.
Release date : 11 September 2026.
Next release : 15 October 2026. Any claim made between those two dates about "the latest GDP figures" should match this bulletin.
A line saying "This is the latest release" or a link to view previous releases. When you cite a bulletin, use the dated address (ending in /july2026 ), not one ending in /latest .
2. Main points: read every word
The main points are the ONS's own summary and are the safest wording to quote. Notice the exact comparison being made. In the July 2026 bulletin they are split into two blocks:
"In the three months to July 2026, compared with the three months to April 2026: Real gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 0.4%".
"In the month to July 2026: Monthly GDP grew by 0.4% in July 2026, following a growth of 0.3% in June 2026 and no growth in May 2026."
The two 0.4% figures answer different questions. One compares a three-month period with the previous three months, which smooths out monthly volatility; the other compares one month with the month before. A claim that "the economy grew 0.4% in the summer" needs checking against which of these it means. The word "real" signals a volume measure, adjusted for price changes; see chained volume measure and quarter on quarter .
3. The body: charts, tables and download links
The numbered sections expand on each main point. Each chart and table has:
a title that states the finding and a subtitle that states what is plotted, the geography and the period;
a "Source" line naming the dataset;
download links (CSV and XLS) so you can read the exact values behind the picture.
Near the top there is also a link to "View all data used in this Statistical bulletin". That list gives each dataset and time series, including four-character series IDs that you can paste into the ONS search box. For the quarterly measure of real GDP the ID is ABMI; for GDP at current prices it is YBHA.
4. Revisions notes
Bulletins say which earlier figures have changed. The July 2026 GDP bulletin states: "In this release, there are no periods open for revision. The full time series will be open for revision in our next release, which will be published on 15 October 2026." It adds that the next release will include revisions from Blue Book 2026, the annual national accounts.
That tells you the July figure, and the months before it, could change next time. It is normal and planned; our guide on understanding revisions shows how far GDP figures moved in 2026. The bulletin links the ONS revisions triangles for monthly GDP , which show every past estimate of each month.
Source: revisions triangles for monthly GDP
5. Data sources and quality
This section explains how firm the numbers are. In the July 2026 GDP bulletin it reports that the turnover response rate for the Monthly Business Survey element of production was 86.5% for July 2026, and compares that with average response rates of 97.7%, 97.8% and 97.9% for 2023, 2024 and 2025. In other words, the newest month is based on fewer returns than will eventually arrive, which is one reason early estimates move. See response rate and survey sample .
The quality section is also where you find the accreditation statement. The CPI bulletin for August 2026 , for example, says CPI and CPIH are accredited official statistics reviewed by the Office for Statistics Regulation in July 2017, and records that the Bank of England "was granted exceptional pre-release access" to an estimate at 10am on 14 September 2026 for its Monetary Policy Committee meeting. Notes like this tell you who saw the figures early and why; see pre-release access .
Source: CPI bulletin for August 2026
6. Glossary, related links and citation
Most bulletins end with a glossary of the terms used, links to related releases and methodology, and a "Cite this statistical bulletin" box giving the standard reference. Use the glossary definitions when you describe a measure: they are the definitions the numbers were built on.
7. Time series pages: where single numbers live
Behind most bulletins sit time series pages, one per series ID. Typing an ID such as D7BT into the ONS search box opens a page like CPI INDEX 00: ALL ITEMS 2015=100 . When we opened it on 13 October 2026 it showed:
the source dataset, here "Consumer price inflation time series (MM23)", which is the second part of the page address;
the release date and next release date, matching the bulletin;
Chart and Table views, with filters for annual, quarterly or monthly values;
"Download full time series as" options, including CSV, and a link to view all related time series.
The CSV starts with a few header rows (title, series ID, source dataset, release date) and then one row per period, such as "2026 AUG". Citing the series ID and period is the most precise way to point someone to a single official number.
Source: CPI INDEX 00: ALL ITEMS 2015=100
A reading order that saves time
Header: period covered, release date, next release.
Main points: the exact comparison (month on month, three months on three months, year on year).
Quality section: status, response rates, known issues.
Revisions note: which figures have changed, and when the next changes are due.
The specific chart or table you need, with its CSV download.
For a quick check of a single number, our step-by-step method for checking a statistic applies the same approach to any release.
Checklist
Noted the period covered and the release date
Checked the next release date
Used the dated bulletin address, not /latest
Identified which comparison the headline uses
Read the data sources and quality section
Checked the revisions note
Downloaded the CSV for any chart value quoted
Official sources used in this guide
Sources: ONS: GDP monthly estimate, UK: July 2026, ONS: Consumer price inflation, UK: August 2026, ONS: revisions triangles for monthly GDP, ONS release calendar, ONS: Why GDP figures are revised