Apply for a 2026 ONS Research Excellence Award

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has launched its Research Excellence Awards for 2026. Categories include a new ADR UK Excellence in Methods Award, which celebrates outstanding administrative data research conducted using ADR UK trusted research environments and flagship datasets.

Since 2018, the ONS Research Excellence Awards have celebrated groundbreaking data analyses, best practice methodologies, and the real-world impact of data insights for the public good. This year brings an exciting new opportunity specifically for ADR UK Research Fellows and PhD researchers: the brand-new ADR UK Excellence in Methods Award, created to recognise outstanding contributions to administrative data research.

If you have conducted innovative research using administrative data, or know a fellow ADR UK researcher who deserves recognition, the ONS wants to hear from you. Submit your nomination today and showcase the impact of your work to a wider audience.

Who can apply?

Across most award categories, applicants must have contributed to a publicly visible outcome within the past 18 months, with research conducted using the ONS Secure Research Service (SRS). Awards are open to both teams and individual analysts. Further information on eligibility is available on the ONS website.

The ADR UK Excellence in Methods Award is exclusively open to ADR UK funded Fellows or PhD researchers. To be eligible, the research must be undertaken as part of an ongoing or completed ADR-funded Fellowship or PhD, using secure data owned or managed by the ONS within one of the ADR UK trusted research environments. Applicants must also provide supporting evidence, such as a peer-reviewed evaluation, review, or feedback.

Your work may also be eligible for other award categories, and there is no restriction on the number of categories you can apply for.

Award categories

• ADR UK Excellence in Methods Award: Celebrates impactful research by ADR UK Fellows or PhD researchers that demonstrates excellence in research methods using ADR UK flagship datasets.

• Impact of Analysis Award: Highlights research using ONS secure data that demonstrates excellence in methodology, collaboration, communication, and public benefit.

• Government-led Impact of Analysis Award: Showcases impactful government-led research using ONS secure data that demonstrates successful cross-sector collaboration.

• Data Creation Award: Recognises teams who have created, enhanced, or prepared secure datasets to make them more accessible and usable for research within the SRS.

• People's Choice Award: Top-scoring eligible entries will be entered into a public vote to win the People's Choice Award.

Insights from previous awards

Over the last eight years, the ONS Research Excellence Awards have recognised several themes that are reflected in much of ADR UK’s supported research. These include the power of data linkage, innovation in methodologies and data infrastructure, and a focus on demonstrable impact and serving the public good.

In 2024, the ADR UK Research Excellence Award was won by Dr Kitty Lymperopoulou, an ADR UK Research Fellow from the University of Plymouth, for her work on ethnic inequalities in the criminal justice system.

Read more about the 2025 winners.

ADR UK researchers are encouraged to consider applying across all categories to recognise the impact of their work.

How to apply

Applications for the ONS Research Excellence Awards are open until Sunday 6 September 2026. Applying is simple: nominate yourself, or a fellow ADR UK researcher, via the ONS website:

Submit your nomination

Nominations will be judged by an independent panel of experts from across the data research community. The awards will be presented at the ONS Secure Research Service Conference on Tuesday 24 November 2026. Members of the data research community are warmly encouraged to attend.

For more information, visit the ONS website. If you have any further questions, contact the ONS Research Excellence Awards team at SRS.Impact@ons.gov.uk.