Policies

Metadata Policy

for information describing items in the repository

1. Anyone may access the metadata free of charge.
2. The metadata may be re-used in any medium without prior permission for not-for-profit purposes

Data Policy

for full-text and other full data items

1. Anyone may access full items free of charge.
2. Copies of full items generally can be:
   • reproduced in any format or medium
   • for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-profit purposes without prior permission or charge.
   provided:
   • the authors, title and full bibliographic details are given
   • a hyperlink and/or URL are given for the original metadata page
   • the content is not changed in any way
3. Full items must not be sold commercially in any format or medium without formal permission of the copyright holders.
4. Some full items are individually tagged with different rights permissions and conditions.
5. This repository is not the publisher; it is merely the online archive.
6. Mention of the repository is appreciated but not mandatory.

Content Policy

for types of document & data set held

1. This is an institutional or departmental repository.
2. The repository holds all types of materials.
3. Deposited items may include:
   • accepted versions (author's final peer-reviewed drafts)
   • published versions (publisher-created files)
4. Items are individually tagged with:
   • their version type and date.
   • their peer-review status.
   • their publication status.
5. Principal Languages: English

Submission Policy

concerning depositors, quality & copyright

1. Items may only be deposited by accredited members, academic staff, registered students, and employees of the institution
2. Eligible depositors must deposit full texts of all their publications, although they may delay making them publicly visible to comply with publishers' embargos.
3. The administrator only vets items for the eligibility of authors/depositors, and relevance to the scope of the repository
4. The validity and authenticity of the content of submissions is the sole responsibility of the depositor.
5. Items can be deposited at any time, but will not be made publicly visible until any publishers' or funders' embargo period has expired.
6. If the repository receives proof of copyright violation, the relevant item will be removed immediately.

Preservation Policy

1. Items will be retained indefinitely.
2. The repository will try to ensure continued readability and accessibility.
   • Items will be migrated to new file formats where necessary.
   • Where possible, software emulations will be provided to access un-migrated formats.
   • It may not be possible to guarantee the readability of some unusual file formats.
3. The repository regularly backs up its files according to current best practice.
4. Items may not normally be removed from the repository.
5. Acceptable reasons for withdrawal include:
   • Journal publishers' rules
   • Proven copyright violation or plagiarism
   • Legal requirements and proven violations
   • National Security
   • Falsified research
6. Withdrawn items are not deleted per se, but are removed from public view.
7. Withdrawn items' identifiers/URLs are retained transiently.
8. The metadata of withdrawn items will not be searchable.
9. If necessary, an updated version may be deposited.
   • The item's persistent URL will always link to the latest version.
10. In the event of the repository being closed down, the database will be transferred to another appropriate archive.