Honour for top statistics advisor

The Government’s top advisor on official statistics has received an honorary degree from the University of Wolverhampton.

National Statistician and Chief Executive of the UK Statistics Authority, Jil Matheson, was awarded an Honorary Degree of Doctor of Social Science at a School of Technology graduation ceremony.

The honour was presented at the Grand Theatre on Friday 7 September 2012 in recognition of Jil’s significant contribution to the science of statistics and statistical analysis.

Jil said: "It is a great honour to receive this award. Statistics matter. They help all of us understand the world we live in, and inform all the most important aspects of public debate. I am proud that the importance of statistics should be recognised by the University of Wolverhampton through this award."

Jil Matheson was appointed National Statistician, Head of the Government Statistical Service and Chief Executive of the UK Statistics Authority in September 2009.

Her career in statistics began in 1975 at the then Office of Population Census and Surveys, after graduating in Sociology from the University of Sussex. Jil subsequently worked as a researcher, analyst and project manager for a number of social surveys.

In 1998, Jil became a Deputy Director in the Office for National Statistics (ONS), taking the lead in the introduction of the National Statistics Code of Practice, before going on to run the ONS Census Division. In 2004, Jil was appointed Executive Director of Census, Demographic and Regional Statistics, becoming Director General for Statistics Delivery at ONS in 2008.

Jil is the Chair of the OECD Committee on Statistics, a member of the UN-ECE Bureau for the Conference of European Statisticians, and Vice-Chair of the UN Statistics Commission.

ENDS

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