Update on UKRI’s plans for research outcomes collection

UKRI needs to know about the impact of the research and innovation it funds to communicate its value and impact to the public and to the Government. Currently, the main route for collecting this information for awards is the Researchfish system provided by Elsevier, to which we have subscribed for over ten years.  The current contract with Elsevier will expire in April 2025 and it is important for us to ensure that we are taking full advantage of any new developments in the area, and that we are making the best use of public money before our next procurement.

As part of this process we have published an Expression of Interest (EoI) to better understand who might be able to supply this service to UKRI going forwards.  We are hoping this will enable us to run an open tender exercise at the start of 2025 for a provider of research outcomes collection.

We recognise the impact that UKRI’s actions in this area have on research organisations and are very happy to answer any questions or concerns you may have on this process in the meantime.  We would also be interested to hear more about innovative ways of sharing data currently held by research organisations that would help UKRI and potential suppliers manage the outcomes collection process to run as smoothly as possible.  Please contact us at data@ukri.org.

Please note that this procurement process will determine how UKRI collects research outcome data from 2026 onwards.  The 2025 UKRI research outcomes submission period will run as usual, using the Researchfish system, from 3 February 2025 until 13 March 2025.

Kevin Dolby

UKRI Research Outcomes Management Board