Data Exports Overview — The Raw Data Alongside the analysed reports, three data exports give you the activity's underlying records with no analysis applied. All three sit under Reports on the activity's menu and need Reports read access: Export Contains Survey Data Export The activity's survey responses. Interview Data Export The activity's interview and focus group responses. Observation Data Export The activity's observations.   GOOD TO KNOW  These are exports, not reports. There are no thresholds to set, no charts, and no flagging — you get the records as they stand. Survey Data Export  This one runs in the background, because compiling a full response set takes time. A banner keeps you informed as it progresses: Banner Meaning Preparing your export… — Compiling survey responses. Please wait. NSCAT is assembling the data. Almost there… — Fetching your file now — this won't take long. The file is being downloaded. Export complete — Your file has been downloaded. Done. Check your downloads folder. Export failed — Something went wrong. Please try again. It did not complete. Retry. The banner identifies which activity it belongs to — Activity {id} — and can be dismissed with Dismiss. PRO TIP  Because it runs in the background, you can carry on working while it compiles. Start the export, go and do something else, and come back to the completion banner.   HEADS UP  Do not start the same export repeatedly because nothing seems to be happening. The button is disabled while an export is in flight precisely to stop this, and large response sets genuinely take time. The Preparing your export… banner means it is working — wait for it to resolve.   GOOD TO KNOW  The banner names the activity by id, so you can tell exports apart if you have started more than one. That id also appears in the address bar when you open an activity. Interview and Observation Data Exports These two download directly rather than compiling in the background. Interview Data Export covers interview and focus group responses together. Observation Data Export covers the activity's observations. HEADS UP  The observation export includes active observations only. Deleted ones are excluded while deleted. If a finding is missing, it may have been deleted — you cannot check the deleted list yourself unless you are a Utility Admin, so ask an administrator before concluding it was never recorded. See Observations.   PRO TIP  The Observation Data Export is the most useful of the three for writing up an assessment. It gives you every finding with its classification, rating, and themes in one sheet — which is exactly what you need when grouping observations into recommendations. When to Use an Export Instead of a Report You want to… Use See results with outliers flagged Survey Report See analysis by trait and attribute Interview Report Read comments grouped by theme Themes Report Attach specific quotes to a recommendation Search for Evidence on the recommendation Pivot or chart the data your own way A data export Combine NSCAT data with another source A data export Circulate findings to people who do not use NSCAT A PDF export Keep a complete record before the activity is locked All three exports   PRO TIP  Take all three exports before an activity is locked, and store them with your report pack. Locking keeps the data readable in NSCAT, but having a standalone copy means the assessment's evidence survives independently of anyone's access rights. Handling Exported Data HEADS UP  Exported files leave NSCAT's access controls behind entirely. Survey responses are anonymous, but interview and observation records can contain identifying detail — a role, a location, a quoted remark. Once exported, nothing stops the file being forwarded. Store and share it accordingly.   PRO TIP  Where a file is going outside the assessment team, prefer a password-protected PDF export over an Excel workbook. The PDF exports offer a password and a Confidential watermark; the Excel exports offer neither.   PRO TIP  Name exports with the activity and date as you save them — spring-assessment-observations-2026-08.xlsx. Three files called export.xlsx in a downloads folder are indistinguishable within a week.   GOOD TO KNOW  An export is a snapshot at the moment you take it. Continuing to collect responses or record observations afterwards means the file no longer matches NSCAT — re-export when the activity is complete. Common Problems What you see What it means Reports group missing from the activity You have no Reports read access. Export failed It did not complete. Retry; if it recurs, report it. Preparing your export… for a long time Normal for a large response set. Wait rather than restarting. The export button is disabled An export is already running for this activity. Wait for the banner. No file in your downloads folder Wait for Export complete — the banner tells you when it has actually downloaded. An observation is missing from the export It may be deleted. Ask an administrator to check the deleted list. Export does not match what NSCAT shows It is a snapshot. Re-export. Unsure which activity an export belongs to The banner names it as Activity {id}. Interviews and focus groups mixed together Correct — one export covers both.