Dear Heather,
We have the following wording in our highest-level research policy:
'Regardless of the ownership of any IP, the University requires continued access to data of long-term value which has been generated using University resources if the member of staff or student leaves the University. Retention of data is necessary for several reasons, including the need to comply with funders’ data access policy, and to assist in the investigation of research misconduct allegations. Note that this policy aligns with the current need to retain laboratory books 10 years after a project has ended.'
We have also added RDM considerations to our 'Leaver checklist for managers':
'Liaise with line manager and the University’s Records and Information Management Service (RIMS) to ensure that all essential information is retained and Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) are identified.
In addition, liaise with Line Manager to ensure that any research data of long term value which has been generated using University resources has been (i) stored securely before leaving the University and that arrangements have been made for the data to be (ii) retained for a period of at least ten years from the completion of the research project (or for longer if specified by the research funder or sponsor) and (iii) if necessary, destroyed in a confidential and timely manner, in accordance with an appropriate data retention schedule. The retained research data should also be accompanied by sufficient metadata (information about the data) to enable it to be put into context. Data of long term value includes, for example, data that underpin a publication or thesis, or that will form the basis of a future funding application. A description of the data and its storage location should be communicated to the Research Data Management Service who should also be contacted for any further advice and guidance.'
These additions to the policy and checklist are relatively recent, so I'm not sure of the extent to which they are followed. This is particularly true of the leaver checklist, as it requires the line manager to actually follow it.
Hope this helps,
best wishes,
Mary
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