It provides a government research function delivering a research programme anchored on the NI Programme for Government (PfG). The ARU team continuously engage with departmental policy leads to take forward timely and policy-relevant research using themed datasets or linked research data.
Published research
Upcoming research
| Project | Theme | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Mortality risk for ex-prisoners (Summer/Autumn 2026) | Crime and justice | This proof-of-concept research is being done in collaboration with NISRA Department of Justice (DoJ) colleagues. It builds on a bespoke, novel data linkage between DoJ ex-prisoner data and General Registrar Office deaths data to explore deaths of ex-prisoners released between April 2011 and March 2020 with a particular focus on the period immediately following release. |
| Socioeconomic, health and housing outcomes for people from a minority ethnic background (Summer 2026) | Inequality and social inclusion | With the minority ethnic population in Northern Ireland continuing to increase according to Census 2021, it is important to improve understanding of the social and economic circumstances of these groups. This research uses the Census 2021 Comprehensive Microdata to investigate outcomes for people from a minority ethnic background in key areas, including health, housing and the labour market. |