Dataset Governance Policy

Purpose

This policy establishes the governance framework for datasets engineered through Orca and surfaced in G-Trac. It defines accountabilities and processes that protect data quality, respect source-study obligations, and ensure compliant access for analytics teams.

Scope

The policy applies to:

• All datasets ingested, transformed, or published by Orca into G-Trac or downstream analytical environments.
• Any derivative data products, dashboards, or models that incorporate Orca-managed data.
• Internal and external collaborators who request, consume, or redistribute Orca datasets.

Governing Principles

• Stewardship first: Source-study requirements and steward directives guide downstream usage.
• Transparency: Dataset lineage, assumptions, and known limitations remain discoverable in Orca Docs.
• Least-privilege access: Consumers receive the minimum access necessary for approved use cases.
• Auditability: Key decisions, approvals, and dataset changes are logged and reviewable.

Roles and Responsibilities

• Orca Governance Lead
  Owns this policy, adjudicates escalations, and coordinates annual reviews.

• Dataset Stewards / Principal Investigators
  Validate source data alignment, define access controls, review major transformations, and approve external sharing.

• Orca Engineering Team
  Implements pipelines in Dagster, maintains dataset metadata, enforces quality checks, and documents transformations.

• Platform Consumers
  Follow approved use cases, cite datasets per the attribution policy, and report data quality or compliance issues promptly.

Dataset Lifecycle Management

Ingestion and Onboarding

• A steward sponsor must submit onboarding details (source system, refresh cadence, quality constraints, privacy considerations).
• Orca engineering captures lineage, transformation logic, and dependencies in Dagster and Orca Docs before first release.

Data Quality Assurance

• Automated validation checks run on each pipeline execution; failures block publication until resolved.
• Stewards review and sign off on initial data drops and material schema changes.

Documentation

• Each dataset must include a data dictionary, refresh schedule, steward contacts, and known limitations.
• Documentation updates accompany any schema or semantic change.

Access and Security

• Access requests route through the steward and governance lead, recorded in the Orca access log.
• Sensitive fields are masked or excluded per steward guidance and regulatory requirements.

Updates and Change Control

• Non-breaking updates (e.g., new derived columns) require steward notification and release notes in Orca Docs.
• Breaking changes (e.g., schema revisions, deprecations) require steward approval, consumer communication, and a scheduled deployment window.

Retention and Sunset

• Retention periods align with study agreements and institutional policy.
• Sunsetting a dataset requires written steward approval, archive location documentation, and consumer impact communication.

Issue Management and Escalation

• Consumers report data issues via email to the governance lead.
• High-severity incidents (privacy exposure, regulatory breach) trigger immediate escalation to the governance lead and institutional compliance office.

Compliance and Auditing

• Quarterly audits verify access rights, pipeline approvals, and the integrity of lineage metadata.
• Compliance findings and remediation actions are tracked through closure.

Key Contacts

Dataset Type	Study	Source Data Contact
Clinical	GI-DAMPs	Shaun Chuah, Peter Cartlidge
Clinical	MUSIC	Shaun Chuah, Peter Cartlidge
Clinical	Mini-MUSIC	David Wands

Report errors or omissions to the governance lead.

Review Cycle and Versioning

• This policy undergoes formal review at least once per year or following significant changes to Orca platform capabilities.
• Version history and change summaries are maintained in Orca Docs.

Questions

For governance questions, access requests, or policy clarifications, contact shaun.chuah@glasgow.ac.uk. For dataset-specific inquiries, reach out to the steward listed in the table above.