These data are described fully in the following publication: S. Barker, J. Chen, X. Gong, L. Jonkers, G. Knorr, D. Thornalley, Icebergs not the trigger for North Atlantic cold events. Nature 520, 333-336 (2015). The dataset comprises planktonic foraminiferal census counts and counts of Ice Rafted Debris (IRD) from sediment samples collected during Ocean Drilling Programme (OPD) leg 162 site 983 in the Northeast Atlantic (60.48°N, 23.68°W, 1,984m water depth). The data were collected between Jan 2011 and Dec 2014. The dataset includes values every 2cm from 2 to 51.5m (metres composite depth) along the ship-board splice. Before counts were performed bulk sediments were spun overnight in distilled water, before sieving over a 63µm sieve. All portions were dried, weighed and stored. Counts were performed on a split of the >150µm fraction. The dataset can be employed to assess changes in surface temperature and presence of rafted ice over the site over the past 440kyr or so. This information is of interest to paleoceanographers and paleoclimatologists. The dataset was created and interpreted by a team at Cardiff University, with additional input from other authors named in the publication. The dataset is complete except for one or two samples that were not received from the repository.