UK Research and Innovation’s (UKRI) investment in Administrative Data Research UK (ADR UK) will continue its ground-breaking UK-wide data-linking and research projects.
Transformational impact
Since launching in 2018, its work has had transformational impact on a wide range of public health, justice, economic and social care issues.
Pay rises for UK workers
It helped secure real-terms pay rises for millions of workers across the UK by providing data-led insights used to support the passing of legislation increasing the National Living Wage.
This means that millions more people who put in the hours are now taking home the pay they deserve, with policy rooted in evidence rather than assumption.
Breaking cycles of crime
In the justice system, ADR UK has shone a light on patterns of reoffending.
ADR UK has enabled the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) to understand the extent and nature of repeat users of the criminal justice system.
This includes the type of offences repeat users are most likely to enter the criminal courts for.
This insight is helping to break the cycle of crime and reduce harm to communities, ensuring interventions are better targeted and more effective.
Tackling inequality in education
And in education, ADR UK has worked with the Department for Education to link a wide range of data with National Pupil Database.
This has been critical in tackling inequality in education and life chances, helping to boost social mobility and shatter glass ceilings for those too often held back.
Transforming lives for the better
Science and Technology Secretary, Peter Kyle said:
Data is absolutely vital when making key policy decisions to help transform lives for the better, and the Administrative Data Research UK partnership has shown that in practice, from helping to secure pay rises for millions, smashing the glass ceiling for underrepresented groups and cracking down on crime that blights our streets.
By investing £168m of Government funding to extend this programme, we are backing our world class researchers to build on this work, unlocking more of the data they need to improve lives and deliver the economic growth and opportunity as part of our Plan for Change.
Unlocking data responsibly
The public sector holds vast amounts of data and unlocking it in a responsible way can provide insights and drive policy improvements that make a real difference to our lives and livelihoods.
ADR UK does this by facilitating secure access for accredited researchers to that data, unlocking evidence that would otherwise remain hidden.
In the next investment phase, ADR UK will be supporting research to improve cancer detection using health and administrative data, through the Cancer Data Driven Detection programme in partnership with Cancer Research UK.
Expanding available linked datasets
The funding will also inform policies to help drive economic growth and improve living standards by enabling ADR UK to further expand the linked economic datasets available to researchers and policymakers.
These will support critical research to better understand the drivers of UK productivity by linking employment, business, benefits and income data, giving policymakers a more complete picture of how the UK economy works.
ADR UK is an Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) hosted programme.
Commitment to harnessing data
Stian Westlake, Executive Chair of ESRC said:
Our £168m investment in ADR UK is a sign of UKRI’s commitment to harnessing data to drive economic growth, better public services, and outstanding research.
Linking government social, economic and health data in a secure manner that preserves citizens’ privacy is a powerful driver of better research and better public policy, and a vital resource for the scientists and researchers in the UK and beyond.
Delivering real impact
Recent impacts from ADR UK research projects include:
- providing key evidence through linked administrative data analysis to support continuation of the minimum alcohol unit pricing policies in Scotland estimated to save 156 lives per year
- identifying critical recommendations to improve outcomes for care-experienced children through analysis of the ADR UK Growing Up in England dataset
- the ongoing societal and economic benefits of the ADR UK Data First programme, which provides rich data insights that directly inform policy related to the reduction of reoffending through linking MoJ data
- providing the evidence needed to plan a safe return to school for children and young people in Wales during the COVID-19 pandemic
National partnerships across the UK
Following the funding decision, the programme is now confirming its national partnerships of:
- ADR England
- ADR Scotland
- ADR Wales
- ADR Northern Ireland
It will also continue funding for the Office for National Statistics Secure Research Service.
This devolved partnership model ensures data linkages and research projects connect directly to local policy priorities and community needs.
Provision of trusted research environments in every nation, as well as the national network of ADR UK funded SafePods for secure data access, will also continue during the new funding period.
Supporting the brightest minds
This investment will expand ADR UK’s fellowship and PhD programmes, strengthening links between researchers and policymakers and enhancing collaboration across social research.
It will extend key projects, including a partnership with Cancer Research UK on a world-leading Cancer Data Driven Detection programme, which uses administrative data to improve early cancer prediction and prevention.
In education, ADR UK and the Department for Education are linking cross-sectoral data to the National Pupil Database to explore inequalities from childhood through to the labour market.
Utilising administrative data
The funding also supports ADR UK’s training and capacity-building programme, equipping researchers with skills to use linked administrative data for public good.
A synthetic data initiative will be scaled up, enabling researchers to test analyses before accessing secure data.
Additionally, a major new dataset will link economic records across government departments, offering insights to help drive economic growth and improve living standards.
Looking ahead: the National Data Library
ADR UK is currently sharing best practice guidance with teams within the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) to support an exciting new future for joined-up data management and access.
This will ensure the emerging plans are informed by the lessons learned and successes made through the ADR UK programme to shape a strategy that benefits researchers, policymakers and the public.
Generating unique insights for public good
Dr Emma Gordon, Director of ADR UK, said:
We are delighted that DSIT, UKRI and ESRC have confirmed their ongoing support for our vital data linking and research programme.
This commitment will ensure the expertise, infrastructure and momentum we have developed since we formed in 2018 will continue to expand for the benefit of all UK nations.
We look forward to continuing our support and funding for trusted research environments, delivering more important linked datasets for research, and growing our network of accredited researchers to generate unique insights that inform policy change for public good.
Further information
About ADR UK
ADR UK plays a central role in the UK’s position as a global leader in data infrastructure, access and policy-relevant research.
The programme facilitates secure access for accredited researchers to major public sector data sets from a range of organisations, including:
- government departments
- devolved governments
- health bodies
This data is then linked and deidentified, providing the opportunity to unlock data-driven evidence that would otherwise remain hidden.
The ADR UK public engagement programme also coordinates public conversation and co-development on the use of administrative data for research through public panels and events.
The panels and events ensure the views of the public are reflected in ADR UK’s work.
To find out more, visit ADR UK or follow ADR UK on LinkedIn for regular updates for researchers and policymakers.