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Two researchers who have helped shift thinking on contentious migration issues by providing the first UK source of independent, high quality evidence and analysis aimed at public audiences have won a prestigious national award.

The work of the University of Oxford's Migration Observatory in providing the first completely impartial source of information on migration for journalists, policymakers and civil society, has won Ms Madeleine Sumption and Associate Professor Carlos Vargas-Silva a £10,000 award for Outstanding Impact in Society in the 2017 Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Celebrating Impact Prize.

Set up in 2011, the Migration Observatory provides authoritative analysis of data on migration and migrants in the UK and generates high quality research on international migration and public policy issues. Prior to its launch, if people wanted detailed analysis they had to take it with a heavy spin from organisations pushing their own agenda, Ms Madeleine Sumption, Director of the Migration Observatory, points out.

"Migration debates can be very polarised and toxic," Ms Sumption explains. "We set out to slowly improve the way in which news organisations, policymakers and the general public understand this complex and highly nuanced subject."

Over the past five years the Migration Observatory has provided a flow of trusted, tailored, accessible information:

• Nearly 2 million people have visited its website. Key briefings such as its overview of migrants in the UK have received more than 300,000 views
• Experts from the Migration Observatory have featured in more than 1,000 major media stories, prompting more nuanced media coverage on polarised issues such as the widely held assumption that EU migrants to the UK are driven by 'welfare benefits tourism'
• Its evidence and analysis is frequently cited by policymakers and parliamentarians in parliamentary debates, reports and briefing notes
• Ms Sumption and Associate Professor Carlos Vargas-Silva organise frequent workshops, briefing and public presentations such as, prior to the 2016 the UK's referendum on EU membership, briefings for staff from all major political parties as well as local authority officials across the UK on migration issues
• Prior to the 2014 Scottish Independence Referendum, the Migration Observatory’s detailed programme of analysis related specifically to migration and Scotland received widespread coverage.

Under Ms Sumption’s leadership, the Migration Observatory has built a reputation as a source trusted by all types of media and on all sides of the political spectrum.

BBC Home Affairs Correspondent Dominic Casciani, said: "The Migration Observatory has had a really big impact on how the BBC presents and reports migration figures. Within the BBC, the Migration Observatory has moved from being simply a group of academics to being a trusted brand."

Despite operating in a contentious and polarised field, the Migration Observatory has cemented its reputation for impartial analysis, with the Daily Mail describing it as 'independent' and 'respected', Sunday Telegraph naming it the 'most respected body on UK migration’ and the Independent referencing its 'even-handed evidence gathering'.

Gaining this trust is a huge achievement, Ms Sumption insists: "In a debate like immigration which is so characterised by mistrust, it has been extraordinarily difficult to create a resource that everybody agrees is objective and balanced."

Now in its fifth year, the ESRC Celebrating Impact Prize recognises and rewards the successes of ESRC-funded researchers who have achieved, or are currently achieving, outstanding economic and societal impacts. In awarding the prize for Outstanding Impact in Society, the judging panel described the work of Ms Sumption and Associate Professor Carlos Vargas-Silva as a model for other researchers by demonstrating that "it is possible for high-quality social science research to achieve a much greater profile in the public debate".

Further information

• Ms Madeleine Sumption, The Migration Observatory, University of Oxford
  Email: madeleine.sumption@compas.ox.ac.uk
  Telephone: 01865 274701
• Dr Carlos Vargas-Silva, The Migration Observatory, University of Oxford
  Email: carlos.vargas-silva@compas.ox.ac.uk
  Telephone: 01865 274711

Notes for editors

1. Ms Madeleine Sumption and Dr Carlos Vargas-Silva were awarded the 2017 ESRC Celebrating Impact Prize for Outstanding Impact in Society and a prize award of £10,000. Ms Sumption (Director, currently on maternity leave) and Dr Vargas-Silva (Acting Director) are from the Migration Observatory, COMPAS (Centre on Migration Policy and Society), University of Oxford. The awards ceremony took place at Central Hall, Westminster on 21 June 2017
2. The ESRC Celebrating Impact Prize is an annual opportunity to recognise and reward the successes of ESRC-funded researchers who have achieved, or are currently achieving, outstanding economic and societal impacts. First run in 2013 and now in its fifth year, the prize celebrates collaborative working, partnerships, engagement and knowledge exchange activities that have led to significant impact of ESRC-funded research. In addition to the prize for Outstanding Impact in Society, prizes were presented in five other categories: Outstanding Impact in Business and Enterprise, Outstanding Impact in Public Policy, Outstanding International Impact, Outstanding Early Career Impact (in partnership with SAGE Publishing) and Impact Champion. 
3. The Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) is the UK’s largest funder of research on the social and economic questions facing us today. It supports the development and training of the UK’s future social scientists and also funds major studies that provide the infrastructure for research. ESRC-funded research informs policymakers and practitioners and helps make businesses, voluntary bodies and other organisations more effective. The ESRC also works collaboratively with six other UK research councils and Innovate UK to fund cross-disciplinary research and innovation addressing major societal challenges. The ESRC is an independent organisation, established by Royal Charter in 1965, and funded mainly by the Government.