Lancaster University will develop a new generation of highly skilled research leaders in statistics and Operational Research, which is vital to support the UK’s future economy through the delivery of 70 PhDs as part of the UK’s biggest-ever investment in engineering and physical sciences doctoral training.

Announced by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, the Centre for Doctoral Training in Statistics and Operational Research in partnership with industry (STOR-i), is one of 65 Centres across the UK to receive funding from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).

The pioneering Lancaster-based STOR-i has secured investment of more than £17m from EPSRC, project partners and Lancaster University. The Centre will train 70 PhD students in statistics and operational research over five cohorts, with students benefitting from embedded engagement with industrial, charitable and international academic partners.

The Centre has a substantial network of leading industrial partners including BT, Roche, Tesco and Datasparq. These partnerships will provide inspiring opportunities for STOR-i PhD students to tackle real-world problems and challenges that influence major industrial and scientific applications and decisions.

The next generation of STOR-i also includes partnerships with organisations in the charitable sector, such as the British Red Cross and Fareshare. This broadened collaboration will give students new opportunities to apply their skills and training to tackle problems and deliver solutions bringing significant societal benefit.

The STOR-i Centre is a joint interdisciplinary initiative that brings together academic expertise from Lancaster University’s Department of Mathematics and Statistics and Department of Management Science. It is led by Professor Idris Eckley, Professor Rachel McCrea and Dr Anna-Lena Sachs, and builds on the highly successful track-record of the Centre which was established in 2010.

Professor McCrea said: “This funding will enable us to deliver fantastic opportunities for 70 PhD students, the UK’s next generation of research leaders. Lancaster’s world-leading research communities in statistics and Operational Research provide the ideal platform to host this Centre. Combining this academic strength with the invaluable real-world experiences working with our partners, will provide them with an amazing foundation for their future careers.

“In this new generation of the Centre, we are particularly excited by the launch of new partnerships with forward-thinking organisations from the third sector. These will enable our students to also apply their cutting-edge knowledge to deliver benefits to charities and the causes they support.”

Professor Pete Atkinson, Executive Dean of the Faculty of Science and Technology, said: “This success is great news for the Departments and University, and for the many PhD students that STOR-i has supported, and now will continue to support into the future.”

“STOR-i has been funded four times in succession, which is a unique success amongst EPSRC CDTs and is testament to the hard work of the people involved in it, and the fantastic proposition for students that STOR-i represents. The new STOR-i CDT is innovative in joining academia and industry together with the third sector, to provide students with experiences of real-world and pressing problems that are significant to society with great potential for real-world impact.”

Professor Louise Heathwaite, outgoing Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Research and Enterprise at Lancaster University, said: “The internationally recognised STOR-i CDT is a great example of how Lancaster University has developed an innovative model of working with major industrial players across a wide range of sectors, and now including the charitable sector, to provide the very best learning opportunities to highly talented PhD students.”

Professor Charlotte Deane, Executive Chair of the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, part of UK Research and Innovation, said: “The Centres for Doctoral Training announced today will help to prepare the next generation of researchers, specialists and industry experts across a wide range of sectors and industries.”

"The high calibre of both the new centres and applicants is a testament to the abundance of research excellence across the UK, and EPSRC’s role as part of UKRI is to invest in this excellence to advance knowledge and deliver a sustainable, resilient and prosperous nation.”