In recent years, the principle of open access to the outputs of publicly funded research has become a key factor in the policy of governments worldwide. It affects all academic disciplines, whether in the arts and humanities or in STEM, and researchers at all stages of their careers. Within the UK, the move towards open access has accelerated rapidly since the publication of the Finch Report on 18 June 2012, and as of 1 April 2013 journal articles arising from projects funded by Research Councils UK should be made available on an open access basis.

The open access landscape in the UK is constantly evolving, and it is the aim of the Open access information website to help to navigate it. We will collect together the important reports, policy documents and consultations, link to discussions online and in the press, and provide a forum for debating the issues on our blog.

The Open access website is necessarily a work in progress, so do let us know in the blog comments if there are things that we should be including (or email us at IHR.Webmaster@sas.ac.uk).