Open Access at Manchester
The University's Publications Policy (PDF) applies to all research staff and students.
The policy is based on the Open Access (OA) requirements of various research funders, for example, the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE), the UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and the Wellcome Trust.
OA means that items of scholarly work are made available online, in a digital format, at no charge to the reader and with limited restrictions on reuse. Many of the University's research funders have OA policies, but requirements vary between funder.
What is included in the policy?
In line with the new HEFCE policy, the minimum requirement of the Publications Policy is that all peer-reviewed journal articles and conference papers accepted from 1 April 2016 are made OA.
Where required by funders, other research output types must also be made OA, for example, book chapters and monographs funded by the Wellcome Trust.
It is important to note that papers that do not meet the HEFCE OA policy requirements may not be eligible for submission to the next Research Excellence Framework (REF) exercise.
The REF is the system for assessing the quality of research in UK universities and allocating research funding to universities. The most recent REF took place in 2021, having been delayed in 2020 due to COVID-19.
More information
The Library website lists the requirements of the University's major funders, but other funder policies can be checked using the SHERPA/JULIET database.
Research Councils UK's OA policy requires researchers to publish any peer-reviewed journal articles or conference proceedings, which acknowledge Research Council funding, in outlets that comply with the policy.
You can find information regarding the OA routes and potential funding support on the University's dedicated Open Access website. The OA funds currently available at the University are:
- UKRI block grant
- Charity Open Access Fund (COAF)
- Institutional Open Access Fund.
Contact us
Scholarly Communication Service
The University of Manchester Library
Tel: +44 (0)161 306 1517 (internal: x61517)
Email: uml.openaccess@manchester.ac.uk