ADR UK: 2026 and beyond
Following the confirmation by UK Research & Innovation (UKRI) of a further five-year investment, we are now developing our longer-term plans to direct our next phase (2026-2031).
Four key goals will guide this work:
- More systematic and efficient linking of health to administrative data, allowing the development of fully rounded longitudinal data to explore the factors that affect a person’s life over time. This will also allow us to better understand the interplay between people’s health and other aspects of their lives, through the government services they interact with.
- Better access to economic linked administrative data, informed by the HM Revenue & Customs Research Future Strategy project funded in the current phase of ADR UK. This will identify data-led findings to support economic growth and productivity research across the UK.
- Further investment in ADR UK infrastructure, including building on advancements in AI technology to improve how our data infrastructures operate and the types of analysis that can be undertaken in them. This will be informed by a comprehensive public engagement programme to ensure our plans align with public views, and delivered in line with UK legislation.
- Continuing to smooth the researcher journey to accessing data, by further developing our training offer, streamlining project application processes, and creating synthetic data. This final goal will allow researchers to test and analyse data outside trusted research environments, to support faster and more detailed project proposal and code development.
New enhanced collaborations with UK Government departments
Our upcoming priorities will be delivered in collaboration with our existing core partners, as well as five UK Government departments which will become new ADR England core partners:
- the Ministry of Justice
- the Department for Education
- HM Revenue & Customs
- the Department for Work and Pensions
- the Department of Health and Social Care.
These strengthened partnerships formalise our already successful collaborations with these government departments, and set the stage for working even more closely together going forward.
Take a look at plans across our UK-wide partnership for the coming year and beyond:
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ADR England
For ADR England, the coming year is foundational for the next investment period, with ADR England formalising partnerships with five data owning government departments. ADR England will collaborate with these departments to define programmes of work, bringing in academic partners to bolster capacity and expertise.
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ADR Northern Ireland
ADR Northern Ireland has exciting plans for the new investment period. This has been informed by an extensive and engaging Administrative Data Research Centre Northern Ireland (ADRC NI) roadshow with the Northern Ireland research and academic community.
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ADR Scotland
ADR Scotland is set for an exciting year ahead. With the Scottish Government beginning to publish the first in a series of Areas of Research Interest (ARIs), the team looks forward to ensuring ADR Scotland research findings achieve maximum impact for public good.
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ADR Wales
Over the next year, ADR Wales will focus on building momentum and delivering impact through a strategic set of activities designed to strengthen data capabilities and align their work with emerging government priorities.
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Office for National Statistics
The ONS priorities for the coming year will continue to be centred on expanding the datasets available through the Secure Research Service (SRS). Work will also focus on improving researcher experience as well as enhancing and maintaining the platform, which is the UK’s largest trusted research environment.
