Researchers funded by the seven UK Research Councils (AHRC, BBSRC, EPSRC, ESRC, MRC, NERC and STFC) are advised that the UKRI block grant is closed to new applications with immediate effect. An unprecedented level of applications for payment of article processing charges (APCs), due in part to the REF, and an overall reduction in the level of award for the 2020/21 grant year, mean that the fund is now exhausted. This is the first year that the Library has been required to take this step and it is with great disappointment that we make this announcement.

Authors whose applications have already been approved, but have not yet been invoiced, will receive revised instructions from the Scholarly Communications Team. Applications which have been submitted, but not yet approved will be reviewed and authors will be advised if there is an alternative funding option available.

The new grant year will commence on 1 April 2021. Applications will reopen after this date. However, it may be necessary to introduce additional eligibility criteria to ensure that there is funding available for the life of the grant. We are reviewing this and will issue guidance in due course. We will continue to support researchers to make their outputs available via a compliant ‘green’ route, and to identify alternative sources of funding where these are available. Longer embargo periods may apply if no funding is available to support ‘gold’ Open Access (see RCUK Policy on Open Access FAQs 2.2). Please contact openaccessfund@warwick.ac.uk if you would like to explore the options available.

The Wellcome Trust and the British Heart Foundation block grants are not affected and researchers supported by these funders are still encouraged to apply. Please note, however, recent changes to the Wellcome Open Access policy, which mean that article processing charges (APCs) for hybrid journals can no longer be supported unless there is a transformative agreement in place. Authors can use the Plan S Journal Checker tool to determine if their preferred journal enables them to comply with Wellcome policy and, if so, which route they should use.

The Library’s discretionary fund has also been fully committed and no further awards will be made until next financial year (after 31 July 2021). Academic staff who are eligible may wish to consider making an application to the IRSF.

Transformative agreements

As we have a number of transformative agreements in place, some authors may still be able to publish Open Access at no additional cost. These include the Royal Society of Chemistry, the Institute of Physics, Springer Nature (but not Nature Research Journals) and Sage. For more information on these agreements, please contact openaccessfund@warwick.ac.uk

The Wiley allocation for articles submitted prior to 31 December 2020 has now run out, but if you are UKRI, Wellcome Trust or BHF funded please contact openaccessfund@warwick.ac.uk as we may still be able to approve your request. Articles submitted from 1 January 2021 will be eligible for the 2021 allocation.

If you have questions about the changes or about Open Access funding in general please contact the Scholarly Communications Team at openaccessfund@warwick.ac.uk.