In the spotlight - renewed funding for ESDS

ESDS has been awarded funding for a further five years. ESRC Council decided at its February meeting to endorse the earlier recommendation of the ESRC Research and Resources Board (RRB) to extend support for a further five years to October 2012.

The new funding will allow ESDS to continue in its present form and structure, as a distributed service, based on a collaboration between four key centres of expertise: UK Data Archive (UKDA), Institute for Social and Economic Research (ISER), both based at the University of Essex; Manchester Information and Associated Services (MIMAS) and Cathie Marsh Centre for Census and Survey Research (CCSR), both located at the University of Manchester.

The decision to renew funding for ESDS comes after a lengthy process of review and evaluation which started with the writing and submission by ESDS staff of a 150 page report in May 2005. This review document, which assessed and summarised the work of ESDS to date, was produced to inform the review panel set up by the ESRC/JISC and chaired by Dr Jeremy Harbison. The review panel deliberated over the summer of 2005 and conducted site visits of ESDS in September, delivering its recommendations to RRB in November 2005. During 2006 the lengthy process of budget preparation took place, with RRB eventually agreeing the budget and sending it to Council for final agreement in November 2006.

All those at ESDS are delighted with this news. The renewed funding will enable the continued delivery of a world-class data discovery, delivery and support service to the social science community for the foreseeable future. Well done to all those who have collectively contributed to making ESDS a success story!

Article dated: 12 March 2007