UKRI long-form publications fund

If you are a UKRI funded researcher and will be publishing a monograph, book chapter or edited collection (long-form output) on or after 1 January 2024 it will need to be made open access. See our guidance on the UKRI Open Access Policy and the UKRI Open Access Policy for more details. UKRI has introduced a dedicated £3.5 million fund to support open access costs for long-form publications within the scope of this new policy, which opened for applications on 28th November 2023.

Funding can be used to support costs to make Version of Record immediately open access with a Creative Commons licence. Funding is not available for delayed open access of the Version of Record or self-archiving of the Author’s Accepted Manuscript, but you can still comply with the UKRI open access policy via these routes if the publication is made open access within 12 months of publication (see the UKRI's open access policy guidance). 

Eligible costs

Grant holder should be aware that UKRI have set maximum funding contributions, to support value for money. 

UKRI will contribute up to the following maximums:

• £10,000 for book processing charges
• £1,000 for chapter processing charges
• £6,000 for participation in an alternative open access model (not exceeding the total cost of participation). UKRI will fund up to another £3,000 where there are two or more eligible outputs

These amounts are inclusive of VAT, where applicable.

Up to £2,000, within the funding maximum for an output, can be applied for to support costs associated with clearing permissions for third-party content to be included in the open access version of the publication. However, these costs should be accounted for in grant applications, where possible.

It will be up to the researcher(s) to find funding for any costs incurred above these maximum contribution amounts. It is not permissable to fund any costs above these maximum funding contributions from the research grant. It may be worth speaking to your publisher to try to negotiate the fee if it falls above the maximum contribution and you have no alternative source of funding.

Restrictions

• You must ensure that you have checked that your preferred publisher offers a compliant open access publishing platform, and that the output will comply with the requirements of the UKRI Open Access Policy.
• If you are publishing a monograph, book chapter or edited collection before 1 January 2024, there is no requirement to publish it open access. 
• Funding is not available for delayed open access of the Version of Record or self-archiving of the Author’s Accepted Manuscript.
• In-scope outputs published seven or more years after the formal end of the UKRI-funded project will not be eligible for UKRI open access funding. UKRI will not expect such outputs to be made open access. This threshold recognises that long-form outputs can be published many years after the end of a UKRI-funded project and over time the link between them will likely become less substantial.
• If you have included open access costs in your grant application already, you must use this funding for open access publications instead of applying to the dedicated fund.

How do I apply?

If you wish to request access to the UKRI Long-form Outputs Fund you must first ensure you have read the UKRI Open Access Policy and all of the guidance above and on our UKRI Open Access Policy webpage about the requirements of the policy; what constitutes an in-scope long-form output; and the maximum contributions UKRI will make to these costs.

A publishing contract does not need to have been signed at this stage, but you should have an intended publisher and be able to provide an estimate of costs. When you contact your preferred publisher, you should inform them that your publication is in scope of the UKRI open access policy and check if they can offer a compliant open access publishing platform and meet UKRI's requirements.

The fund is centrally held by UKRI, and the Library Research Support Team will apply to the UKRI to access it on your behalf. UKRI will then review the application and confirm if the output(s) will be eligible for funding. If you believe that your output is eligible, you will need to complete the UKRI Long-form Publications Fund request form. This form represents stage 1 of the application process (to establish eligibility). There will be a further form for stage 2 to be filled in upon publication, to provide evidence the output has been successfully published Open Access (to receive funds).

Once the UKRI have confirmed eligibility, we will be in touch to notify you of the outcome, and if accepted, remind you of the requirements of accessing this fund. Only open access costs confirmed as eligible by the Library’s Research Support Team will be paid.