2. Overview
• Context: UK science and research
• Open access as a strategic priority
• Post-Finch challenges
• Scope and membership of UUK OA group
3. Context: UK science and research
• UK continues to show strong performance
• Steady growth in investment over first decade of 2000s
• Despite recent challenging fiscal environment, overall, the budget for science
and research has been protected in cash terms for the life of the current
spending review &15-16 (at £4.6 billion in cash for 2015-16) and the research
ring fence has been maintained- despite overall significant reductions for BIS
• Good outcome for the sector given the circumstances (research performance,
impact and efficiency have all been important in terms of achieving this outcome)
• Real terms decrease, however, creating increasing pressures on the research
and science budgets:
– Increasingly selective funding policies, leading to further concentration of
research funding
– Increased focus on efficiency (eg Wakeham)
• Challenges for maintaining a sustainable and diverse higher education research
eco-system
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4. More challenges ahead
• Economic recovery picking up but early days
• Structural deficit remains high
• Prospects for public funding remain extremely challenging
• IFS:
– consolidation due to last at least until 2017-18
– further squeeze on non-protected budgets (of which BIS is one)
– range of scenarios, but could see further cuts of between 15-30% (UUK ‘Funding challenges’)
• Sector needs to make a coordinated and strong case for the importance of
research over the next year. UUK priority areas:
– value and impact of research to the economy and society more widely
– role and importance of the dual support system, and QR funding
– attracting and retaining talent
• Implications of a further squeeze on research funding:
– greater impetus for collaboration?
– further selectivity- consequences of the health and dynamism of research base as a whole?
– more directed funding to meet identified needs?
– diversification of funding?
5. Open Access as a strategic priority
• To sustain and promote public investment we must be able to
demonstrate that it is open, accessible and having wide ranging
impact. Open access is therefore a strategic issue that must be seen
in this context.
• OA not without its challenges, but…
– Contributes to the profile and impact of UK research (both academic and wider
economic public)
– Places UK as key global player
– Places the UK well in an increasingly disrupted environment
– Benefits efficiency
6. Post-Finch challenges (1)
• RCUK, REF and other policies have been set out and implementation
is underway.
• Key issues set out in the Finch implementation report and BIS
response are:
– Better evidence on the transition both in terms of how universities are responding,
costs of APC and journal pricing (a single version of the truth)
– Total costs of publication
– Monitoring and engaging with international developments
– Ensuring good competition and value for money in the publishing market
– Coordinating and monitoring implementation of Finch
– Embargo periods and licensing
– Managing and sustaining the costs of open access in universities and development
of effective university policies and compliance
– Strengthening the repository infrastructure
7. Post-Finch challenges (2)
• Universities UK has been tasked with taking forward a new
coordinating role to sustain momentum:
A formal co-ordinating structure should be established, convened by Universities UK,
to secure dialogue and engagement across all the stakeholders in research
communications; to co-ordinate their work and avoid duplication or divergence in areas
including development of the infrastructure, evidence-gathering, monitoring, and
communications; and to deal with issues and problems as they arise.
8. Scope and membership of UUK OA group (1)
• Five main areas of focus:
– Developing and interpreting the data and evidence base on the implementation of
open access in priority areas (to be agreed by the group)
– Coordinating related research and activity being undertaken by stakeholders
– Commissioning research to fill gaps in the evidence
– Providing advice on policy and the direction of implementation of open access
– Providing advice on the coordination and development of open access
infrastructure
• International and EU dimensions
9. Scope and membership of UUK OA group (2)
• UUK governance
– 2 X UUK nominations
– 2 X publishers
– 1 X learned society publisher
– 1 X Open Access publisher
– 1 X Wellcome Trust
– 1 X Research Councils
– 1 X Funding Councils
– 1 X JISC
– 1 X SCONUL
– 1 X RLUK
– 1 X ARMA
– 1 X British Library
– 1X AMRC
– 2 X Learned Societies or Academies
• First meeting currently being set up
