SRUC honoured with third Queen Elizabeth Prize for Education
SRUC has been awarded the Queen Elizabeth Prize for Education for the third time, making it one of the few Scottish institutions to have received the honour more than twice.
Following previous wins in 2017 and 2023, the latest Queen Elizabeth Prize was presented to SRUC for the impact of the Scottish Farm Business Survey, which has been helping to shape Scottish agricultural policy and practice for almost a century.
Beginning in 1936 in response to the Great Slump economic crisis, the survey was designed to address concerns over food security.
Today, on behalf of the Scottish Government, SRUC carries out the in-depth annual analysis of data from farmers across the country, including dairy, arable and livestock.
SRUC’s analysis has proven particularly valuable over a number of agricultural reform periods, including informing post-Brexit policy, the Scottish Government’s Agricultural Reform Programme, and identifying the impacts on the sustainability and viability of farm households to changing support payment regimes.
Recently, participating farms have also undertaken a carbon audit through SRUC’s AgreCalc platform, which has led to SRUC developing new metrics to measure both economic and environmental progress.
Professor Wayne Powell, Principal and Chief Executive of SRUC, said: “The Queen Elizabeth Prize is the highest form of recognition for further and higher education institutions in the UK, so to be honoured for a third time really is an extraordinary achievement. It is a huge honour for everyone connected with SRUC and I would like to congratulate everyone involved.”
Sascha Grierson from SAC Consulting, part of SRUC, who manages the Scottish Farm Business Survey, said: “This prize is testament to the power and impact of our in-depth research and data interpretation, but we wouldn’t be able to carry it out without the hundreds of farmers throughout Scotland who take part voluntarily every year. I would like to thank all farmers and staff who are, and have been, involved in collecting and managing this strategic national data collection over many decades and, of course, the Scottish Government for funding the research.”
Professor Andrew Barnes, Head of SRUC’s School of Natural and Social Sciences, added: “It’s a great honour that the work of our agricultural economists, which represents several decades of employing economic analysis to the Scottish Farm Business Survey, has been recognised with such a prestigious award. Joining AgreCalc with the survey is a world-leading innovation and has allowed the team to answer ever more complex questions from our policy colleagues relating to agricultural reform, net zero and farm sustainability.”
The Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, said: “I want to offer my warmest congratulations to all those receiving the Queen Elizabeth Prizes for Higher and Further Education for 2024-26. This is a landmark year for the Prizes marking 30 years of recognising and celebrating the tremendous contribution our universities and colleges make to the life of our country.
“The UK has always been a place of learning, invention, and ambition. Our institutions of higher and further education are among the very best in the world. They educate the next generation, train our workforce, and lead the cutting-edge research that drives progress, not just here at home but across the world. This year’s Prize-winners show the strength and breadth of that contribution.”
Sir Damon Buffini, Chair of the Royal Anniversary Trust said: “The Queen Elizabeth Prizes for Higher and Further Education celebrate the power of education to change the world for the better. This much-loved national honour recognises, at the highest level of state, outstanding work in UK universities and colleges, and the remarkable benefit they bring to our economy, society and the wider world. This year we are delighted to honour 19 institutions whose work offers an inspiring snapshot of the excellent and innovative work going on in universities and colleges across the UK. Congratulations all!”
SRUC was awarded what was previously called the Queen’s Anniversary Prize in 2017 for its dairy genetics research relating to the famous Langhill Herd in Dumfries, and in 2023 for its contribution to animal welfare, veterinary science, education, research and the economy through its world-class Veterinary Services network.
To find out more about the Scottish Farm Business Survey, visit www.sruc.ac.uk/sfbs
Posted by SRUC on 26/11/2025
