Friday, 13 January 2023
The Economic Statistics Centre of Excellence (ESCoE) has announced its work programme after its funding was extended for a further five years by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
From January 2023 the ESCoE will begin the development of a new programme of work on economic statistics, hosted at King’s Business School at King’s College London with Professor Rebecca Riley as Director, and Professor Paul Mizen, of the University of Nottingham, as Deputy Director.
Established in 2017 with the support of the Office for National Statistics, ESCoE is the UK’s first-ever dedicated academic centre of expertise for economic measurement and one of just a handful around the world.
With the new funding, the ESCoE will:
- Deliver research and analysis that enables the ONS to meet its vision of delivering world-class economic statistics
- Deliver research and conceptual work which is influential in the international standard-setting agenda, allowing ONS to exert greater influence over the direction of travel of such standards
- Deliver an international annual conference to facilitate the sharing of best practice and world-class challenge to the work of the ESCoE
- Provide opportunities for joint working between the ONS and academic community
- Work in collaboration with the ONS Data Science Campus to develop new techniques
- Promote and develop a wider academic community with skills and research experience in economic statistics.
Professor Rebecca Riley, Director of the ESCoE, King’s College London, said: “Our programme of work looks at new challenges for economic statistics, from increased concerns about the climate and the environment, to the changing nature of work and shifts in the way we contribute to the economy over our lifetimes. I am proud that King’s will be at the forefront of research that we hope will have a significant impact on the development of national statistics, and in turn support better decision-making on issues we all care about.”
The ESCoE plans for the next five years, drawn up by the contributing universities and institutes, address important challenges for economic statistics and produce better data that will benefit all those who rely on the ONS. I am excited to be part of this, and to have the opportunity to work with over 60 researchers at King’s, Nottingham and beyond.
King’s College London and the University of Nottingham are collaborating with the University of Cambridge, the Institute for Fiscal Studies, Nesta, the University of New South Wales, the University of Strathclyde, and many other partners.
The programme draws on a network of more than 60 established experts in economic and environmental-economic statistics from across the UK and internationally. The ESCoE’s foundation followed the recommendations of the Independent Review of UK Economic Statistics by Professor Sir Charles Bean, published March 2016. This Review recommended that “in conjunction with suitable partners in academia and the user community, ONS should establish a new centre of excellence for the analysis of emerging and future issues in measuring the modern economy”.
There are six programmes of research currently planned for the next phase of ESCoE:
- Beyond GDP and Inclusive Wealth
- National Accounts
- Net-zero, Climate Change and Environment
- Subnational Statistics
- Productivity, Innovation and Business Dynamics
- Labour Markets and Households
Story credits
More information is available from Catherine Sirikanda at King’s Business School at Catherine.sirikanda@kcl.ac.uk / 07957 340 795 or Professor Paul Mizen in the School of Economics at the University of Nottingham at Paul.Mizen@nottingham.ac.uk
Notes to editors:
About the University of Nottingham
Ranked 32 in Europe and 16th in the UK by the QS World University Rankings: Europe 2024, the University of Nottingham is a founding member of the Russell Group of research-intensive universities. Studying at the University of Nottingham is a life-changing experience, and we pride ourselves on unlocking the potential of our students. We have a pioneering spirit, expressed in the vision of our founder Sir Jesse Boot, which has seen us lead the way in establishing campuses in China and Malaysia - part of a globally connected network of education, research and industrial engagement.
Nottingham was crowned Sports University of the Year by The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2024 – the third time it has been given the honour since 2018 – and by the Daily Mail University Guide 2024.
The university is among the best universities in the UK for the strength of our research, positioned seventh for research power in the UK according to REF 2021. The birthplace of discoveries such as MRI and ibuprofen, our innovations transform lives and tackle global problems such as sustainable food supplies, ending modern slavery, developing greener transport, and reducing reliance on fossil fuels.
The university is a major employer and industry partner - locally and globally - and our graduates are the second most targeted by the UK's top employers, according to The Graduate Market in 2022 report by High Fliers Research.
We lead the Universities for Nottingham initiative, in partnership with Nottingham Trent University, a pioneering collaboration between the city’s two world-class institutions to improve levels of prosperity, opportunity, sustainability, health and wellbeing for residents in the city and region we are proud to call home.
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