generated: '2026-07-27'
method: searched
source: >-
  https://help.opendatasoft.com/apis/ods-explore-v2/ (Versioning, Deprecation
  warnings and Changelog sections), live header observation against
  https://spenergynetworks.opendatasoft.com/api/explore/v2.1 on 2026-07-27, and
  openapi/scottishpower-spen-open-data-explore-api-openapi.json.
description: >-
  Versioning, deprecation and availability posture for the SP Energy Networks
  Open Data Explore API. There is a genuine, documented versioning and
  deprecation policy — including a machine-readable deprecation header exposed
  to browsers — but it belongs to the Opendatasoft platform, not to
  ScottishPower. There is no status page and no published SLA for this API from
  either party.
versioning:
  scheme: uri-path
  current: v2.1
  base_path: /api/explore/v2.1
  docs: https://help.opendatasoft.com/apis/ods-explore-v2/
  guarantees:
    - ODSQL is backward compatible — new syntax never replaces existing syntax.
    - Response bodies are stable — new keys can be added, existing keys are never renamed or deleted.
    - URLs and endpoints are stable.
  breaking_change_policy: >-
    A breaking change (a violation of any guarantee above) is only ever shipped
    inside a new API version with its own stable URL; the current version keeps
    its behaviour. Release notes are communicated when a new version ships.
  predecessor:
    version: v2.0
    status: retired
    note: >-
      /api/explore/v2.0/.../aggregates and /query were removed in v2.1 and merged
      into the single records endpoint; several output schemas changed.
  parallel_surface:
    name: Search API v1.0
    base_path: /api/datasets/1.0
    status: live-but-superseded
    verified: '2026-07-27'
    note: Still returns HTTP 200 with nhits 150 on the same host; new integrations should use v2.1.
deprecation:
  policy_url: https://help.opendatasoft.com/apis/ods-explore-v2/
  documented: true
  sunset_header: false
  rfc8594: false
  header: ODS-Explore-API-Deprecation
  header_format: '<FEATURE_ID>: deprecation message (multiple messages separated by ";")'
  header_example: >-
    DATE_KEYS_AS_ISOFORMAT: Dates used in group keys are currently returned as
    timestamps and will be returned as standard formatted date strings in the
    next API version
  link_header: Link — carries the URL of the version changelog.
  browser_visible: true
  evidence: >-
    ODS-Explore-API-Deprecation and Link are both listed in
    access-control-expose-headers on every live response observed 2026-07-27, so
    a browser client can actually read the deprecation warning.
  provenance: >-
    Platform-level policy published by Opendatasoft and inherited by the SPEN
    portal. ScottishPower publishes no API deprecation policy of its own.
sla:
  url: null
  uptime_target: null
  note: >-
    No SLA is published for this API by SP Energy Networks or by Opendatasoft for
    the public open-data tier. Ofgem's Data Best Practice Guidance (RIIO-ED2
    Special Licence Condition 9.5) obliges the licensee to treat its data as
    presumed open but does not set an API availability target.
status_page: null
status_page_probes:
  - {url: 'https://status.opendatasoft.com/', http_status: 404, date: '2026-07-27'}
  - {url: 'https://www.spenergynetworks.co.uk/pages/energy_data_hub.aspx', http_status: 403, date: '2026-07-27', note: bot-blocked}
status_page_note: >-
  No status page exists for this API on either the platform or the provider
  side. Availability has to be inferred by calling the API.
deprecated_operations: []
deprecated_features:
  - feature: Grouping by geo fields
    replacement: geo_cluster() grouping function
    source: Explore API v2.1 changelog
  - feature: distance()
    replacement: within_distance()
    source: Explore API v2.1 changelog (old function names still available)
  - feature: 'geometry(geom1, geom2, INTERSECTS|DISJOINT|WITHIN)'
    replacement: intersects() / disjoint() / within()
    source: Explore API v2.1 changelog (old function names still available)
  - feature: XLS export format
    replacement: XLSX
    source: Explore API v2.1 changelog
event_surface:
  asyncapi: null
  webhooks: false
  streaming: false
  change_feeds:
    - /explore/dataset/{dataset_id}/rss/
    - /explore/dataset/{dataset_id}/atom/
  note: >-
    No AsyncAPI, no webhooks, no streaming endpoint — probed /asyncapi.yaml
    (404) and found no event catalogue. Per-dataset RSS/Atom feeds are the only
    change-notification surface and they are poll-based, so no AsyncAPI or
    Webhooks artifact is emitted rather than fabricating one.
data_lifecycle:
  dataset_count_at_harvest: 150
  publishers: [SP Energy Networks SC389555 (145 datasets), SP Distribution SC189125 (1 dataset)]
  licence: https://spenergynetworks.opendatasoft.com/p/sp-energy-networks-open-data-licence/
  licence_basis: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Public Licence
  regulatory_driver: >-
    Ofgem Data Best Practice Guidance, made a licence condition under RIIO-ED2
    (Special Licence Condition 9.5) — electricity network licensees must treat
    their data as "presumed open".