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Yes you do, the expectation from 2011 has been that publicly-funded research data will be shared, and it is vital that published research findings are by default made open to scrutiny by the sharing of the underpinning data on which they rely (see also the Royal Society’s report ‘Science as an open enterprise’ and the government’s ‘Open Data’ white paper, both published in 2012). In terms and conditions of awards from Research Councils, it is stated that terms and conditions might change. If you accepted an award from Research Councils you have also agreed to the fact that conditions might change. If there are reasons why you are unable to share your research you will need to make these clear.

First, if you have not shared your research data yet, share it as soon as possible via a suitable data repository. We provide guidance about what to consider when looking for the most suitable data repository. If you would like to share your data via the institutional repository, you can simply upload your data via Symplectic Elements. Subsequently, ask your publisher if you can add a data availability statement to your publication, which they will typically allow. We will be able to add a link to your paper in the data record in the repository.

You might find this decision tree helpful to guide you through the process.

If you have a precise plan of future publications, you might indicate in your first publication that the underpinning research data will be made available for validation in the subsequent publication (to be published within xxxxx months).

The EPSRC began checking compliance with their expectations on research data management in 2015 by checking the availability of data under-pinning research papers published after 1st May 2015, examining the following aspects:

1. Does the published research paper include a statement describing how to access underlying data? (this has been an RCUK-wide requirement since 2013)
2. If there is no statement – where is the data?
3. Is there the right type of data available?

Where the checks give rise to cause for concern, individual researchers will be contacted. EPSRC will also investigate any complaints about research data not being managed in line with EPSRC expectations.

EPSRC aims to embed compliance checking as part of regular grant assessment by the Research Councils Audit and Assurance Services Group (AASG). AASG might perform thorough checks on randomly selected grants for their compliance with EPSRC expectations on data sharing.

The EPSRC expects you to make your research data publicly available, with as few restrictions as possible. However, there are some exemptions to this. The access to the following types of data can be restricted:

• Personal data should not be released, unless consent of the person is given; otherwise the data will need to be properly anonymised. Anonymisation can be more complex and time consuming than simply removing someone’s name, so plan ahead (guidance on personal and sensitive data is available).
• Sensitive data (that would compromise intellectual property, or security) should only be released under carefully controlled conditions and once any necessary permissions are obtained (guidance on personal and sensitive data is available).
• Reasonable delays/restrictions to data publishing are acceptable if necessary to protect intellectual property or commercially confidential data.
• If data preservation is not possible or cost-effective, it is acceptable not to publish the data, as long as the ability to validate published research findings is not compromised. For example, suitably documented research methodology and initial conditions allows others in principle to produce an equivalent dataset sufficient to validate the published work.

Even though the EPSRC does not evaluate data management plans as part of the grant application process, they are clear that all well managed publicly-funded research should include, from the outset, consideration of any potential issues with future data sharing. It is therefore good practice to prepare a data management plan. If applicable, your data management plan should also describe possible solutions to problems with data sharing. Deciding on a research data sharing strategy from the outset of your research may spare you difficulties towards the end of your project. We also encourage you to outline your data sharing intentions, and any constraints that may apply, in your grant application, as even though the EPSRC does not require your plan, this will potentially demonstrate additional value in your proposed research to those who peer review your application.

If your source code is necessary to validate your research findings, then you are expected to share it. Please read the guidelines on software sharing published by the Software Sustainability Institute (SSI), written by Neil Chue Hong (with input from Stephen Eglen from the University of Cambridge and Ben Ryan from EPSRC).

See section also on Why should I put a licence on my software?

GitHub’s terms of service mean that it does not meet EPSRC’s expectations as a suitable option for the long-term storage/preservation of code.

You might use GitHub as a useful service in real time for work in progress; however, it is recommended that you share your software via a repository that is more suitable for the long-term preservation, for example, Zenodo. Zenodo additionally offers a GitHub plugin, which allows researchers to easily share their GitHub software via Zenodo.

See also our section on Making software or code open source

Various funders have different policies on this and you should consult the policy of your funder directly. For example, the EPSRC says that research data “is expected to be accessible online no later than the date of first online publication of the article”, whereas if you are funded by the STFC, you can embargo your research data for the period commonly accepted within your community.

There is a list of the policies for the top 20 funders to the University. If your funder is not listed there, you can try searching for the policy of your funder on Sherpa/Juliet website. If your funder’s policy is unavailable on Sherpa/Juliet, you should get in touch with your funder directly.