Research Councils UK (RCUK) welcomes the announcement today (7th September) from David Willetts, Minister of State for Universities and Science, of an additional investment of £10m to help universities in their transition to Open Access for research publications.
The funding will be allocated to 30 research-intensive universities that receive dual funding through the Research Councils and UK funding councils.
Professor Douglas Kell, RCUK Champion for Research and Information Management, said:
“We are delighted that BIS are providing additional funding to a number of universities to assist in their transition to full open access, helping them to set up and manage their funds for research publications. This underpins the work of RCUK and other research funders in providing full access to ground-breaking research that can contribute to both the economic growth and the social wellbeing of the UK and beyond.”
This funding is in addition to the contribution RCUK will provide to institutions, via a block allocation, to support payment of article processing charges associated with open access, in line with its new Open Access policy, published in July. Further details of the block allocations are due to be announced later in the autumn.
Working with other funders such as the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE), the Department for International Development (DFID) and the Wellcome Trust, RCUK’s Open Access policy signifies a move to a sustainable, affordable and transparent model of making outputs from the research that they fund more openly accessible.
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Further information
Contact:
Katie Clark
Press and Communications Manager
Tel: 01793 444592 or email: Katie Clark
Notes to editors
RCUK’s policy on Access to Research Outputs is available at: www.rcuk.ac.uk/research/Pages/outputs.aspx
The institutions that will receive the additional funding are:
Cardiff University
Durham University
Imperial College London
King's College London
Loughborough University
Newcastle University
Queen Mary, University of London
Queen's University of Belfast
The University of Manchester
University College London
University of Aberdeen
University of Birmingham
University of Bristol
University of Cambridge
University of Dundee
University of Edinburgh
University of Exeter
University of Glasgow
University of Leeds
University of Leicester
University of Liverpool
University of Nottingham
University of Oxford
University of Reading
University of Sheffield
University of Southampton
University of St Andrews
University of Strathclyde
University of Warwick
University of York
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Research Councils UK (RCUK) is the strategic partnership of the UK's seven Research Councils who annually invest around £3 billion in research. We support excellent research, as judged by peer review, that has an impact on the growth, prosperity and wellbeing of the UK. To maintain the UK’s global research position we offer a diverse range of funding opportunities, foster international collaborations and provide access to the best facilities and infrastructure around the world. We also support the training and career development of researchers and work with them to inspire young people and engage the wider public with research. To maximise the impact of research on economic growth and societal wellbeing we work in partnership with other research funders including the Technology Strategy Board, the UK Higher Education funding bodies, business, government, and charitable organisations. www.rcuk.ac.uk.
The seven UK Research Councils are:
- Arts & Humanities Research Council (AHRC);
- Biotechnology & Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC);
- Economic & Social Research Council (ESRC);
- Engineering & Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC);
- Medical Research Council (MRC);
- Natural Environment Research Council (NERC);
- Science & Technology Facilities Council (STFC).