Karen Dunnell

Dame Karen Hope Dunnell, DCB, FAcSS (née Williamson; born 16 June 1946) is an American-born British medical sociologist and civil servant.

[1][2] She now has a range of non-executive roles including membership of Pricewaterhouse Coopers Public Interest Body, Trustee of National Heart Forum, member of the Court of Governors, University of Westminster.

Born Karen Hope Williamson in Los Angeles, California (USA), she moved to Britain when she was a young child and was educated at Maidstone Grammar School for Girls and Bedford College, London.

However, a growing interest in politics and society led her to study sociology at Bedford College, London, from where she graduated in 1967.

[3] She began her career as a health care researcher with the Institute of Community Studies, where much of her work involved healthcare surveys, and, in 1972, she wrote a book, Medicine Takers, Prescribers and Hoarders with Ann Cartwright.

[3] Dunnell then joined the Department of Community Medicine, St Thomas's Hospital Medical School, London, working on multi-disciplinary projects alongside doctors, social scientists, statisticians and economists, including a major project that measured the cost of caring for people with severe disabilities in the community compared with the cost of caring for them in institutions.

[3] A major reorganisation, which divided the activities of ONS into 'sources' and 'analysis', followed and Dunnell was given the job of setting up the new "Sources" Directorate, bringing together household and business surveys, the infrastructure that supported them, the statistical modernisation programme and planning for the 2011 Census.

Following the implementation of the Statistics and Registration Service Act 2007, the role of Registrar-General for England and Wales, an ancient additional title, held by the National Statistician since the inception of ONS, was transferred, with the General Register Office for England and Wales, which she also headed, to the Identification and Passport Service in the Home Office A government policy inherited by Karen Dunnell as National Statistician aroused controversy.

[citation needed] Dunnell was awarded an Honorary Doctorate degree by Middlesex University in July 2008,[12] was appointed an Honorary Fellow of Cardiff University in July 2009[13] and was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the Bath (DCB) in the Queen's Birthday Honours List in June 2009.