The Fellowship of the RSA (FRSA) is an award granted to individuals that the RSA judges to have made outstanding achievements in the field of social progress and development. Past and current fellows include leading activists, artists, writers, journalists and former politicians who have made significant contributions to their fields.  Current fellows include: Tim Berners-Lee and Judi Dench, and previous Fellows have included the likes of Stephen Hawking, Charles Dickens, Karl Marx and Benjamin Franklin.

The Royal Society of the Arts is a 267 year old organisation, which was founded by William Shipley as the Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufacture and Commerce. It was granted a Royal Charter in 1847 and the right to use the term Royal in its name by King Edward VII in 1908.