Professor Ailsa Henderson has been awarded the University’s annual Tam Dalyell Prize for Excellence in Engaging the Public with Science.
The prize, awarded as part of the Edinburgh Science Festival, recognises and rewards the University’s outstanding science communicators.
Professor Henderson received the prize in recognition of her outstanding work in measuring, analysing, and communicating public attitudes in Scotland and across the Union.
Prize lecture
As part of the award Professor Henderson will present the Festival's Tam Dalyell Prize lecture on Thursday 16 Apr 2026 in the University’s Playfair Library.
The lecture will share insights on people’s views on the political scene and voting in Scotland and why those views matter.
Tickets for the lecture are available from the Edinburgh Science Festival website.
Professor Ailsa Henderson is a Professor of Political Science at the University’s School of Social and Political Science.
Political attitudes
She is the Principal Investigator for the ESRC-funded Scottish Election Study which recently received funding to continue tracking Scottish political attitudes through to 2031.
Professor Henderson also co-directs the State of the Union survey, an extensive review of attitudes towards the union across all four UK nations.
Her work, including the recent Ambivalent Union report and her co-authored book Englishness: The political force transforming Britain, has been vital in mapping how the public responds to major political shifts like Brexit, devolution, and the Scottish independence debate.
Through extensive public commentary, media engagement, and accessible data reporting, Professor Henderson has helped the public and policymakers understand the complexities of modern British political culture.
