Mairisa Spiers, Senior Analytical Impact lead, introduces the Office for National Statistics (ONS) Research Excellence Awards 2024, in partnership with the Integrated Data Service.
The ONS Research Excellence Awards are a way to recognise and reward innovative research and outstanding public impact.
These research outcomes inform a diverse range of important economic and societal issues. Everything from inequalities in education and the cost of living through to insights on new linked health datasets.
This year we have assembled another group of expert judges from across the data and research communities to collectively assess the insightful and innovative entries. Your research project, or a colleague’s project, could be among them!
What are the ONS Research Excellence Awards?
Since 2018, the ONS Research Excellence Awards have celebrated impactful research. The Awards look to champion innovative research that has delivered public good or informed policy decisions, using data controlled or managed by ONS.
This year, there are six award categories:
- Impact of Analysis Award
- Impact of Analysis – Collaboration with Government Award
UKDS SecureLab projects that have used ONS managed or owned data will be eligible for the Impact of Analysis Award categories. UKDS SecureLab projects may be eligible for the below award categories. Please find out more about eligibility on the ONS website.
- Secure Data Creation Award
- Organisational Excellence Award
- ADR UK Research Excellence Award
- People’s Choice.
So, what’s new?
This year we have introduced new Award categories. We want to recognise those working behind the scenes who enable new secure data resources or facilitate access to data.
The Secure Data Creation Award aims to celebrate creation, linkage of, or improvement to, the accessibility, availability or functionality of secure data already, or intended to be, available in a Trusted Research Environment managed by the ONS.
The Organisational Excellence Award aims to celebrate teams that have facilitated or enabled access to secure data owned or managed by the ONS.
Our other award categories continue to reflect the exciting impact and the increasing collaboration across government, whether through linking data assets, sharing resources and skill, or combining outcomes for shared policy outcomes in the public good.
All eligible entries will automatically be entered into the People’s Choice Award, which will be open to members of the public, colleagues, and other researchers to cast their votes.
Nominations are now open
This year we anticipate another round of excellent entries from users of ONS secure data assets, through the ONS Secure Research Service (SRS), the Integrated Data Service (IDS), the UK Data Service’s Secure Lab and other trusted research environments.
Projects will be formally assessed around a number of core criteria, developed from the Research Excellence Framework:
- Methodology
- Collaboration
- Communication and presentation of research
- Public benefit and impact
- Availability and accessibility of data
These criteria, and their weighting, differ for each award. Please find out more within the application form.
Nominations close at midnight on Friday 18 October. We encourage you to learn more about eligibility and Apply now!
Celebrating the winners
This year, winners will be celebrated by ONS and the research community at a special online event on Wednesday 4 December. Deputy National Statistician Peter Benton will be your host.
ONS will also work with winners to further showcase their award-winning research. We are currently in the process of exploring exciting new opportunities in this space.
Learn more about 2022’s winners
You can learn more about our 2022 winners below.
Research Excellence Award and People’s Choice Award winner
Professor Sinead Langan and colleagues, Department of Non-communicable Disease Epidemiology and Faculty of Epidemiology and Population Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM).
Read more about The COVID-19 Schools Infection Survey in England
Cross-government Analysis Award winner
Dr Becky Arnold and colleagues, University of Keele and UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA).
Read more about Controlling the spread of COVID-19 in vulnerable settings
Linked Administrative Data Award winner
Professor Andromachi Tseloni, Tom Jackson and colleagues, Nottingham Trent University and Ministry of Justice (MoJ).
Early Career Research Award winner
Dr Nicolas Libuy, University College London (UCL).
Read more about Gestational age at birth, chronic conditions, and school outcomes: a population-based data linkage study of children born in England
Find out more
To find out more, visit the ONS website or contact REA2024@ons.gov.uk. Follow ONSfocus on Twitter.
About the author
Mairisa Spiers is the Senior Analytical Impact lead for the Secure Research Service and the Integrated Data Service at the Office for National Statistics. Mairisa has a background in social research and has worked at ONS for over 3 years. Her team focuses on measuring and demonstrating outcome and impact from research use of ONS controlled data assets.