Important milestone for administrative data research as ADR England joins ADR UK family
Categories: Impact, ADR England
22 April 2021
Today (22 April 2021) saw an important milestone in the development of the ADR UK programme, with the launch of the new ADR England portfolio. The launch was announced at the online ADR UK three years in event, celebrating the progress of the partnership since its inception in 2018.
ADR England is a portfolio of administrative data linking and research projects, delivered by an array of academic and government partners to provide policy-relevant insights using data held by UK Government departments and public bodies. It joins the established ADR Wales, ADR Scotland and ADR Northern Ireland as part of ADR UK, making the partnership a truly four-nation endeavour.
While all four of these national partnerships can and do deliver research projects using data from across the UK, ADR England brings together the projects that focus on data relating to England.
The ADR England data and research portfolio covers a broad range of policy areas, from crime and justice to educational outcomes, the economy and health, currently totaling over £6 million of investment. Projects include, for example:
- Data First: Harnessing the potential of linked administrative data for the justice system;
- ECHILD: Linking children’s health and education data for England;
- Wage and Employment Dynamics;
- Local Data Spaces: Helping Local Authorities tackle the Covid-19 pandemic.
Alongside the launch of ADR England, a new funding opportunity is also being launched today to enable access to new, ‘research-ready’ linked datasets, complete with associated metadata and research tools. Projects will be commissioned in line with the ADR England Strategy, which prioritises research for public good that cuts across traditional policy boundaries. Data holders and researchers who would like to express an interest can find out more on our funding opportunities page.
Dr Emma Gordon, Director of ADR England and ADR UK, said: “The establishment of ADR England is an important step for ADR UK, formalising a model of working with UK Government departments that has been proven to work during the ADR UK pilot period, kick-starting a number of ground-breaking data linkage and research projects with enormous potential for public good.
“Throughout the next phase of the ADR UK programme, the projects initiated in the pilot phase will continue to deliver results, insights and impact, and be joined by many more as part of the ADR England portfolio.
“Alongside our existing partnerships in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, ADR England will be key to realising ADR UK’s vision for 2026: to be the default choice to host linked administrative data from across UK and devolved government, making it accessible to a deep pool of trained researchers to generate insights routinely used to inform policy and practice.”
Professor Alison Park, interim Executive Chair of the Economic and Social Research Council and Senior Responsible Officer for ADR UK, said: “ADR UK is one of ESRC’s key data infrastructure investments and a strategic priority for us, so it is hugely encouraging to see the progress the partnership has made over the past three years in enabling access to public sector administrative data for research for public benefit.
“Launching ADR England is a significant milestone which builds on the good work that has already been done in the other nations, and will help ensure policymakers – and ultimately, the public – across the whole of the UK can benefit from research insights generated by the programme. The projects already within the ADR England portfolio have enormous potential, and I look forward to seeing them deliver results and impact.”