MRS Celebrates 16 New Honorary Fellows for 80th Anniversary
07 July 2026

Honorary Fellowships are awarded to eminent public and business figures who have championed, or who demonstrate the power of research, insight or data from outside the sector.

Jane Frost CBE, CEO of MRS, commented: “MRS was founded 80 years ago to drive forward high quality and professional standards within research and champion evidence-led decision-making.  Against today’s backdrop of uncertainty, disruption and change, that mission has never been more important.

“We know that the UK research and evidence sector a vital source of intelligence for organisations navigating complexity and change.  These new Honorary Fellows have each demonstrated this in action.  They have used research, data and insight within their fields and shown its power to improve understanding, to support better decisions and to strengthen public trust.  As we mark MRS’ 80th anniversary, it is a privilege to recognise their contribution and celebrate the many ways in which evidence continues to shape business, society and public life.”

Below is the list of the 16 new Honorary Fellows recognised for their exceptional contribution to the sector.

Saj Arshad

Saj is an experienced commercial and marketing leader with over 30 years across global and UK markets. Now an Executive Partner at Gartner, he advises CMOs on AI-driven marketing and growth strategy. He has held senior roles at leading brands including Vodafone, American Express, Santander, Bupa, Interactive Investor, AIB, and Helping Hands, driving customer growth and digital transformation. Saj also serves as a Non-Executive Director at Westerleigh Group.

Saj is awarded an Honorary Fellowship for his leadership and service as President of the Market Research Society, and his longstanding commitment to championing the value of research, insight and evidence-based decision-making. During his presidency, he has been a strong advocate for professional standards, ethics, inclusion and the responsible use of data, helping to strengthen the voice and relevance of the research profession at a time of rapid technological and societal change.

 
Ros Atkins

Ros is awarded an Honorary Fellowship for his work in championing accurate, verified evidence and making complex narratives accessible to broad audiences. His commitment to countering disinformation and telling compelling, evidence-based stories aligns closely with MRS’s Evidence Matters and Campaign for Better Data initiatives.

 
Justin Basini

Justin is the Group Chief Executive Officer and the entrepreneur behind ClearScore. The ClearScore Group is now one of the leading consumer financial businesses globally helping over 26 million people on four continents. Justin established the business 2015 with a breakthrough proposition that put users in control of their credit report and score for free, forever. ClearScore is now the #1 in the UK, South Africa and Australia, with growing businesses in Canada and New Zealand. Outside of ClearScore, Justin is Chair of The Money Charity and a Non-Executive Director at the CMA

Justin is awarded an Honorary Fellowship for his strong advocacy for a customer-centric business approach and his clear belief in the power of insight and evidence to deliver meaningful outcomes. He is also acknowledged for being a vocal and honest ally on mental health, reflecting shared values around wellbeing within the research profession. Together, these contributions exemplify the curiosity, integrity, and commitment to insight that are vital to the success of market and social research.

 
Kelly Beaver MBE

Kelly is Chief Executive of Ipsos in the UK and Ireland, one of the largest and most innovative research organisations in the UK. With over 2,000 specialist research, operational, and advisory employees across 12 offices, Ipsos delivers reliable information and true understanding of Society, Markets and People. In addition to her role in Ipsos she also holds several honorary positions external to Ipsos in academia at Oxford University and Kings College as well as charities. Kelly is a regular commentator in the national press and broadcast media on public and business leader opinion, societal and consumer trends across a range of topics including trust, gender equality, employee engagement, leadership, and many others. She was awarded an MBE in June 2022 as part of the Queen's Birthday Honours List for services to academia, research and the COVID-19 response, and was named in Female FTSE Board Report - 100 Women to Watch 2022.

Kelly is awarded an Honorary Fellowship for her leadership in championing high-quality, evidence-based research and its application to public understanding and decision-making. Through her role as Chief Executive of Ipsos in the UK and Ireland and her wider contributions across academia and public life, she has consistently advanced the use of rigorous data, insight and analysis to inform debate on societal, economic and political issues, exemplifying the values of integrity, scientific rigour and commitment to truth that underpin the research profession.

Mete Coban MBE

Mete is the Deputy Mayor of London for Environment and Energy and leads the capital’s work on climate action, clean energy, air quality, nature recovery and climate resilience. Prior to this, Mete served as a Councillor and Cabinet Member for Climate Change, Environment and Transport in the London Borough of Hackney. Over three terms in office, he delivered a £61 million Green New Deal and pioneered Hackney’s Community Energy Fund, helping local organisations generate community-owned renewable energy.

He is best known for founding My Life My Say, the youth-led charity dedicated to increasing democratic participation among young people. Through the Give an X campaign, he helped register more than 488,000 voters ahead of the 2024 General Election, making it the largest youth voter registration campaign in British history. In 2020, Mete was awarded an MBE for services to young people and democracy. He currently serves as Chair of ReLondon and is a Trustee of the London Marathon Foundation, King's Trust International and C40 Cities.

Mete is awarded an Honorary Fellowship for his work in advancing evidence-based policymaking in local government and his leadership as founder and long-serving CEO of My Life My Say. His contribution exemplifies the practical application of insight and evidence to create social impact and meaningful change.

 
Caroline Criado-Perez

Caroline is a best-selling and award-winning writer, broadcaster, and feminist campaigner.

Caroline is awarded an Honorary Fellowship for her influential body of work championing better evidence to ensure women are included in decision-making. Through her writing and advocacy, she has highlighted the importance of robust data, particularly in an age of AI, and inspired wider understanding of the power of evidence-based insight.

 
Sophie Devonshire

Sophie has worked in and with multinational companies (including Procter & Gamble and Coca-Cola) as well as high-growth start-ups and agencies (Leo Burnett in the Middle East and Interbrand, London). She also has personal experience of being a successful entrepreneur, setting up her own award-winning e-commerce business which she sold, before running a luxury gifts business and then moving onto become CEO of The Caffeine Partnership, an award-winning business consultancy. In June 2020, she was appointed Chief Executive of The Marketing Society, the global network of marketing leaders. 

Sophie is awarded an Honorary Fellowship for her leadership as Chief Executive of The Marketing Society and her influential contribution to advancing standards of insight-led, purposeful marketing. Through her work building a global community of senior marketers and championing thoughtful, evidence-informed leadership, she has helped strengthen the role of marketing, insight and understanding in business and society, reflecting the values of curiosity, rigour and integrity shared by the research profession.

Alex Gourlay

After almost 50 years of experience in Retail and Pharmacy with Boots, Walgreens and most recently as Exec Chair of Holland & Barrett, Alex appreciates the critical importance of putting customer care and experience at the heart of Retail and Pharmacy led organisations.  Only by doing this can you build lasting customer trust with your Brand and the proposition it offers. In today’s fast changing marketplace, the insights from data and market research are fundamental and this approach is what has driven Alex’s long career.

Alex is awarded an Honorary Fellowship for the tangible impact he has delivered through a relentless focus on the customer. His leadership exemplifies the use of insight and evidence to drive meaningful change, reflecting the curiosity, rigour and commitment to truth that underpin excellence in market and social research.

Professor Jane Green

Jane is Professor of Political Science and British Politics at Nuffield College, University of Oxford, and President of the British Polling Council. Since 2015, she has been an Election Expert for ITV News and is a regular contributor to election analysis and explanation for ITV, the BBC and other outlets. She has been a Co-Director of the British Election Study since 2013, Britain’s longest running social science survey, and is Director of the Nuffield Politics Research Centre, which focuses on political science research and explanation for broader public benefit.

Jane is awarded an Honorary Fellowship for her significant contribution to evidence-based understanding through her work with the British Polling Council, a key partner of MRS. Her career demonstrates a strong commitment to scientific rigour, insight from evidence, and engaging audiences with the story of research.

Eliot Higgins

Eliot is the founder of Bellingcat, the investigative collective that helped pioneer modern open-source investigation. He first gained recognition for exposing weapons use in the Syrian conflict and launched Bellingcat in 2014 following the downing of MH17, where the team identified the Russian missile launcher responsible.

Under his leadership, Bellingcat has grown into a globally respected organisation advancing open-source methods in journalism, justice and accountability. In recent years, Higgins has also developed the Verification–Deliberation–Accountability (VDA) framework and related research on disordered discourse, examining how digital information systems are reshaping democratic knowledge and institutional trust. He is the author of the best-selling We Are Bellingcat and leads Bellingcat Productions BV, producing documentaries and media based on Bellingcat’s investigations.

Eliot is awarded an Honorary Fellowship for his pioneering work as Founder of Bellingcat and his leadership in advancing rigorous, evidence-based open-source investigation. Through making complex investigations transparent, accessible and verifiable, he has helped set new standards for accuracy, integrity and public trust in evidence, exemplifying the values of curiosity, scientific rigour and commitment to truth that are central to the research profession.

Ed Humpherson

Ed is head of the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR). The overall aim of OSR is to ensure that statistics and data serve the public good. OSR supports the public’s right to have access to high quality statistics that reflect the society we live in, driving quality improvements in data and statistics right across government in the UK.

He is also Vice Chair of The Motability Foundation, and trustee of Pro Bono Economics and Security Women. He is on the advisory board of the Science Media Centre, the delivery board of Admin Data Research UK, the National Statistician's Expert User Advisory Council and the advisory board of the Ada Lovelace Institute.

Ed is awarded an Honorary Fellowship for his leadership as Head of the Office for Statistics Regulation and his sustained commitment to ensuring that statistics and data serve the public good. Through championing trustworthiness, quality and value in official statistics, and intervening where evidence is misused in public debate, he has played a vital role in strengthening transparency, integrity and confidence in data-driven decisionm-making, reflecting values that lie at the heart of the research profession.

Dex Hunter-Torricke

Dex is one of the world's leading communicators on AI and society. Over the last two decades, he has shaped the stories of some of the most influential leaders and organisations of our time, including advising Elon Musk at SpaceX, Mark Zuckerberg at Facebook and Eric Schmidt at Google, and leading global communications and marketing for Google DeepMind. In 2026 he founded the Centre for Tomorrow, an independent effort to challenge the tech industry's grip on our future and identify how societies can thrive in the age of AI. A frequent keynote speaker and non-executive director on the board of HM Treasury, his work has been covered by TIME, the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times and Politico, among others. Dex is currently writing his debut book.

Dex is awarded an Honorary Fellowship for his influential work at the intersection of technology, society and public discourse. Through a distinguished career advising global leaders and organisations, he has demonstrated a strong commitment to clarity, integrity and evidence-led communication, helping complex and often controversial issues to be understood through rigorous analysis and compelling storytelling. His work exemplifies the values of accuracy, insight and responsibility that are central to the research profession.

 
Tony Langham

Tony founded Opinium in 2007 and is Non-Executive Chair and significant shareholder in the business, having begun his career at Bob Worcester’s MORI (now part of IPSOS) in 1982. His executive career has focused on reputation management and public relations, and he co-founded Lansons (now Lansons Team Farner) in 1989, where he continues in an active consultancy role.

Tony wrote Reputation Management: The Future of Corporate Communications and Public Relations (Emerald Publishing 2018) and is an Honorary Professor in the University of Birmingham’s Business School. His non-executive career has included roles in horse racing, financial technology and AI investment.

Tony is awarded an Honorary Fellowship for a distinguished career placing customer insight at the heart of political and economic campaigning, and for founding Opinium. His work demonstrates a sustained commitment to quality, excellence and the value of talent and insight within the research profession.

 
Professor Denise Lievesley CBE

Denise has had a wide variety of employment over her career culminating in the principalship of Green Templeton college, a graduate college of the University of Oxford. Earlier she was the director of statistics at UNESCO establishing the UNESCO institute for statistics. Denise’s interests include the organisation of official statistics (perhaps the rationale for her appointment in 2023 to conduct a review of the UK Statistical system) and the importance of preserving and making available data for research purposes. In this respect she is currently the President of the UK Archive of Market and Social Research Data.

She is president of the Royal Statistical Society, the International Statistical Institute, and the International Association for Official Statistics, and has been elected as the international representative on the board of the American Statistical Association. She is a founding fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences and a Council member of Durham University.

Denise is awarded an Honorary Fellowship for her distinguished career as a social statistician and her significant contribution to wider social science and public policy. She is also acknowledged for her leadership as President of the Archive of Social and Market Research, reflecting her longstanding commitment to evidence, scientific rigour and the enduring value of research in informing public understanding and decision-making.

Dr Elaine Rodrigo

Elaine is Chief Insights & Analytics Officer at Reckitt and a global leader in consumer insights, analytics, and AI-powered business transformation.

For nearly 30 years, Elaine has worked at the intersection of consumer understanding, marketing, data, and technology, helping organizations make better decisions through a deeper understanding of people. Her work has spanned Reckitt, Danone, and Mondelez, where she has led the transformation of insights into a strategic business capability and pioneered AI-enabled innovation at scale. Elaine is Executive-in-Residence at Oxford University’s Saïd Business School, a Board Director at Stravito and Women in Research (WIRe), and a Senior Fellow at Monash University.

Elaine is awarded an Honorary Fellowship for her outstanding leadership in market research, insights and analytics, and her longstanding contribution to advancing evidence-based decision-making within global organisations. Through a distinguished career spanning academia and senior industry roles, she has championed the rigorous use of data, insight and emerging technologies, including AI, to drive responsible growth and deepen consumer understanding, exemplifying the values of scientific rigour, curiosity and commitment to truth central to the research profession.

Jim Whaley

Jim (researcher, technologist, author), is CEO of global insights and technology consultancy, OvationMR, delivering decision-intelligence for commercial and organizational challenges. He currently serves as the board president for the Market Research Institute International and Trustee for the Archive or Market and Social Research. Recently recognized by the Market Research Council as 2026 HOF Research Ambassador, the Insights Association as an Insights Laureate, and an Insight250 Global innovator, he is passionate about the practice, impact, and efficacy of the insights sector. He also serves actively on boards including the Insights Career Network, Significant Insights, and the Market Research Education Foundation. 

Jim is awarded an Honorary Fellowship for his longstanding and consistent support for the market and social research sector. He is particularly acknowledged for his strong advocacy for MRS and his vital personal support for the Archive of Social and Market Research, as well as for providing inspiring vision that has helped underpin foundational initiatives such as data quality projects. His commitment reflects the values of integrity, quality, scientific rigour and evidence-based insight that are central to the profession.