Open Access Book Fund pilot

Frequently Asked Questions

If you have a question which is not addressed below, please get in touch: [email protected].

When should I apply?

You should only apply at the point at which you need to commit to a choice of Open Access with your publisher, i.e., the point at which your publisher needs to know whether you intend to proceed with an Open Access version of your book or not. For some publishers, this may be at the outset, and for others, this may be later in the publication process.

What conversations do I need to have with my REF Unit of Assessment (UOA) Lead before submitting my application?

You need to give your UOA Lead sufficient information to be able to assess whether they would support a full application prior to submitting your form. A full application takes some time to construct and to review, so it is in both your interests to ensure that you have their support before completing the application form. This means providing your UOA Lead with an overview of the book and enough information to assess whether they think the output is likely be submitted to the REF. Please ensure you listen to any feedback your UOA Lead provides before submitting your application.

What information is required on my application form?

The application will ask you to provide the following information, so please ensure that you have prepared this in advance:

• Name and affiliations of all authors
• Name of publisher
• (Proposed) title of book
• Estimated costs (inclusive of VAT)
• Plans for funding any additional costs above the £10,000 (inclusive of VAT) limit
• Whether a contract has been signed with the publisher
• What stage of production the book is at
• Expected publication date
• If there are any third-party copyright works within the publication (where rights clearance may be required)
• If the book is an output of externally funded research (and grant reference number)
• Confirmation that the book proposal has been discussed with the relevant Unit of Assessment Lead (they will be asked by the panel to provide a supporting statement)
• A brief overview of the book
• An explanation of how you believe the book meets the REF criteria of originality, significance and rigour. Please see the REF criteria guidance for detailed guidance about how these criteria are assessed, including panel-specific interpretations (you should refer to this guidance to create your statements).

What is the deadline for applications?

Applications are reviewed by the Book Fund Review Panel on a quarterly basis. The deadlines for an application to be reviewed at each meeting are updated and advertised and on the Open Access Book Fund webpage. Any applications received after each quarterly deadline will be reviewed at the subsequent meeting. The Open Access Book Fund is limited and is administered on a first-come, first served basis, so we reserve the right to cancel quarterly meetings when the annual funding limit has been reached. As this is a pilot scheme with funding confirmed for an initial 2-year period only, all invoices from publishers for approved outputs must be dated no later than 31^st July 2026 (though the output may be published after this date).

What is the definition of an Edited Collection?

Edited collections are not eligible for funding. We follow the UKRI’s definition of an edited collection to assess eligibility. They are defined as a written scholarly output in which individual chapters or contributions have been written by different authors, and whereby the contributions from each author are intellectually distinct. If you are writing a multi-authored book and aren’t sure if your output is eligible, please contact [email protected] to discuss further.

Are there any funds available for copyright clearance costs?

Costs for copyright clearance may be considered as part of your application, but only within the limits of the fund (i.e. up to a maximum of £10,000, inclusive of VAT, for both the open access fee and copyright clearance costs).

Can I apply for funds to retrospectively convert my book to open access?

Yes. Provided the book is eligible for submission to REF2029 (i.e., published after 1st January 2021) you can apply to fund retrospective conversion of an already published book to Open Access. Most publishers offer a discount on Open Access fees for retrospective conversion, depending on how long ago the book was first published. Not all publishers offer retrospective conversion however, so you must check with your publisher and get a quote before submitting an application. Where the volume of applications received to the Open Access Book Fund exceeds the funds available, the review panel may take into consideration the green open access policy of your chosen publisher (i.e. what they permit you to do in terms of self-archiving a copy of the book on ORO) and the length of time since first publication when deciding on the cost-effectiveness of paying the open access fee.

How many times can I apply?

There is no limit to the number of applications you can make for different books/monographs. If you make an application which is rejected, we recommend that you do not make further applications for the same output unless you have discussed this first with your UOA Lead who has agreed that they will support a new application.

My book is the result of externally funded research, am I eligible to apply?

Books that are the result of externally funded research where the funder already covers the costs of open access publishing (either as a permissible grant cost or through a separate fund, e.g. UKRI, Horizon Europe) are not eligible for funding from the OA Book Fund. You should instead claim the costs through your research funder. Books that are the result of externally funded research where open access costs are not a permissible funder cost are eligible for funding.

What if I signed a contract with the publisher before the launch of the OA Book Fund?

That’s not a problem, the only requirement is that the output is submissible to REF2029, meaning it must have been published after 1^st January 2021 (and the invoice from the publisher is dated no later than 31st July 2026).

My publisher charges more than the OA Book Fund maximum of £10,000 (incl. VAT), does this mean I cannot apply?

You can still apply to the fund, but you may be asked to find alternative sources of funding to cover any amount above the maximum £10,000 (including VAT). We recommend in the first instance talking to your publisher to make them aware of this limit and see if they are willing to negotiate a lower open access fee. In our experience, many publishers are willing to negotiate. If this proves unsuccessful, the panel will work with you to recommend other sources of available funding. Where all other avenues of funding have been exhausted, the panel may consider applications for fees above the maximum amount on a case-by-case basis, dependent on remaining funds.

I am a contributor to a multi-authored book, am I eligible to apply to the fund?

Yes. If you are the lead contributor to the book, or the research the book is based upon was predominantly undertaken at the Open University, then you are eligible to apply for the full open access charge (up to the £10,000 maximum, inclusive of VAT). If you are a contributor to a book where the lead author is from a different institution, or there are multiple authors from different institutions, you may be asked to source funding/contributions from these other institutions where possible before any agreement is made to cover the costs from the Open Access Book Fund.