The appointments have been made in recognition of Nelson and Downham’s contributions to the charity, which was founded with the aim of preserving historical material relating to market and social research.

Patrick Barwise, who was elected as chairman last month, succeeding Nelson, said: “Both Liz and John are recipients of the Market Research Society’s (MRS) Gold Medal for their exceptional service to the profession, and AMSR has been immensely privileged to have benefited from their vision, guidance, leadership and experience.”