Standardising and safeguarding sensitive-data research: SATRE and SACRO

The 2026 July UK Human Data and Tech Club call looks at two DARE UK projects under the TREvolution programme. The call  will introduce SATRE and SACRO – the work to standardise how Trusted Research Environments (TREs) are built and to make the checking of research outputs safer and faster. This is timely for the group: ELIXIR recently ran a session on standards across Europe at its All Hands meeting, where many countries reported not yet using SATRE or SACRO.

Speakers

Professor Jim Smith
Director, Computer Science Research Centre, University of the West of England
Co-Director, TREvolution programme, DARE UK

Professor Christian Cole
Academic Co-Director, Health Informatics Centre, University of Dundee
Co-Director, TREvolution programme, DARE UK

What this call covers

TREs are secure environments for research on sensitive or personal data, giving researchers access while minimising the risk of data exposure.

  • SATRE (Standardised Architecture for Trusted Research Environments) is the UK’s first open, community-led specification for building, operating and evaluating TREs.
  • SACRO (Semi-Automated Checking of Research Outputs) tackles a different part of the same problem – the final, often manual, step of checking that what leaves a TRE carries no disclosure risk. 

The talk sets out what each does, where they sit within the Five Safes framework, and what adoption has looked like so far.

Who is this for

This community call is for anyone working with sensitive data and secure research infrastructure across ELIXIR and beyond. You’ll find it especially relevant if you:

  • Are a member of the UK Human Data and Tech Club, or curious about joining
  • Work with sensitive or personal data in the life sciences, health and human data environments
  • Build, operate or use Trusted Research Environments
  • Are interested in data governance, disclosure control or the Five Safes
  • Work across an ELIXIR and are weighing whether SATRE or SACRO fit your setup

How to join

This event will be held virtually. Register to join the ELIXIR-UK Human Data & Tech Club to receive the meeting link and further details. If you don’t wish to attend the community calls in the future, you can unsubscribe at any time.