LSE Research Online Policies

Content Policy

LSE Research Online (LSERO) aims to provide access to LSE-affiliated research outputs, enhancing the visibility and accessibility of LSE scholarship. Where access to the output itself is not possible, we will create a bibliographic record to ensure the output is discoverable. This is in line with LSE’s Open Access policy, Research Data Management policy and the School’s commitment to open research.

People

Publications

Content within the policy timeframe from the following groups will be included in LSERO:

  • Research and Teaching staff, PhD candidates.
  • Undergraduates, Masters, Visiting Fellows, Emeritus staff, Alumni – professional content published with an LSE affiliation.
  • Professional services staff – professional content related to LSE employment.

Theses

All current and past students awarded a research degree from LSE can submit their thesis to LSERO. Current students are required to do so to comply with the School’s Regulations for Research Degrees (paragraph 53.3). Past students should contact lseresearchonline@lse.ac.uk to discuss depositing their thesis.

Datasets

Content from the following groups will be included in LSERO where a dataset includes an LSE-affiliated creator:

  • Research and Teaching staff, PhD candidates, Professional Services staff, Visiting Fellows, Emeritus staff – where the dataset relates to their research at LSE.

Content

Publications

LSERO will include the following content types:

  • Research publications, including but not limited to articles, edited journal issues, books, book chapters, working papers, conference items, online resources, blogs, audio visual resources.
  • LSE Press content and LSE working papers.
  • Blog posts by LSE authors.

LSERO does not include:

  • Research conducted prior to the author joining LSE where this is outside of the policy timeframe.
  • Blog posts published on LSE platforms by external authors, these are included in the UK Web Archive.

Theses

LSERO will include:

  • The final, examined versions of theses accepted for the award of Doctorate or Master of Philosophy at LSE.
  • Digitised versions of historic theses conferred by LSE.

LSERO does not include:

  • Undergraduate or Master’s dissertations, enquiries about accessing these should be directed to the relevant department.
  • Theses written outside LSE (please contact the awarding institution to include in their repository).

Datasets

All LSE researchers will receive 20GBs of archive storage as standard, please contact us if you require further storage capacity.

LSERO will include the following content types:

  • Research datasets, software and code.
  • Data documentation and methods.
  • Open research materials such as pre-registered reports, pre-analysis plan and study protocols .

LSERO does not include:

  • Randomised Control tests (RCTs).
  • Currently we cannot accept highly-sensitive datasets – please contact datalibrary@lse.ac.uk to discuss further.

Timeframe

Publications

Publications will be added where at least one author has an LSE affiliation, irrespective of publication date.

For outputs without an LSE affiliation, we will include those published within the current REF publication period.

Theses

All PhD or MPhil theses conferred by LSE can be added to LSERO regardless of the date of the award.

Datasets

Datasets will be added where they have been created during a creator’s time at LSE. LSERO will accept older datasets where data is digitised and no older than 45 years.

Service

Publications

For publications in scope of the REF open access policy, we aim to add to LSERO within three working days. For all other content types, deposits will be processed in the order they are received. We cannot guarantee specific completion times, as this will depend on current service demand.

Theses

For theses submissions, we aim to upload your thesis within two weeks. If you have requested a longer embargo or a permanent restriction, we will forward your request to the PhD Academy for review. This may extend the processing time.

Datasets

For dataset deposits, we will provide an initial response to requests within 3 workings days.

Takedown Policy

This takedown policy applies if you are the author, creator, rights holder, or are authorised to act on their behalf, and you believe you have a legitimate reason to request the removal of an item in LSE Research Online (LSERO).

Examples of takedown requests:

  • A copyright issue could involve an author or creator reusing your copyrighted material without permission.
  • A data protection issue could involve an author or creator including personal data in an output which you feel comprises your identity.
  • An ethical issue could involve an output including contributions from you which you feel you have not given permission to share publicly.

Please note this is not an exhaustive list of reasons for a takedown request but is intended as a general guide.

For takedown requests, please contact us with the following information:

  • Your contact details: this should include your full name, title if acting on behalf of an organisation, telephone number, email and postal address.
  • The full bibliographic details of the material.
  • The exact and full URL where you found the material.
  • For copyright concerns, proof that you are the rights holder and a statement that, under penalty of perjury, you are the rights holder or are an authorised representative.
  • For data protection or ethical concerns, describe the issue and explain its impact on you.

Upon receipt of a request in line with the LSERO Takedown Policy, you will receive confirmation that your request has been submitted and that it is under review within five working days. LSE will remove the alleged infringing or problematic content while an investigation is carried out. An initial assessment of the request will be made within ten working days of receipt. If the request is upheld the material will be permanently withdrawn from LSERO or altered as agreed between LSE and the complainant.

In the event a data breach is identified, this will be reported to the ICO within 72 hours of becoming aware of it, as outlined in the ICO guidelines.

Contact Details:

Open Research Services
LSE Library
10 Portugal St
London
WC2A 2HD
Lseresearchonline@lse.ac.uk

Deposit licence

By depositing your work in LSE Research Online (LSERO), you (the author(s), creator(s), copyright owner or assignee), grant a non-exclusive licence to LSE for the duration of applicable copyright that warrants:

  • You are the owner of the copyright in the whole Work(s)* (including content and layout) or are duly authorised by the owner(s), or the holder(s) of these rights, and have the authority to make this agreement, and give LSERO the right to publish the Work(s) in its repository
  • That the Work(s) is/are original and does not, to the best of your knowledge, infringe copyright or breach data protection legislation nor does it/do they contain libellous or defamatory material.
  • That if the Work(s) has/have been commissioned, sponsored or supported by any organisation you represent, you have fulfilled any obligations required by such contract or agreement.

The Repository's Rights and Responsibilities:

  • May make copies of the Work(s) (including the abstract(s)) available worldwide, in electronic format via any medium for the lifetime of the repository, or as negotiated with the repository administrator.
  • May electronically store, translate, copy, or re-arrange the Work(s) to ensure its/their future preservation and accessibility within the lifetime of the repository.
  • May incorporate metadata or documentation into public access catalogues for the Work(s). A citation/citations to the Work(s) will always remain visible in the repository during its lifetime.
  • Shall not be under any obligation to take legal action on behalf of the Depositor, other rights holders, or dataset participants in the event of breach of intellectual property rights, data protection rights or any other right in the material deposited.
  • Shall not be under any obligation to reproduce, transmit, broadcast, or display the Work(s) in the same format or software as that in which it was/they were originally created.
  • May share usage statistics giving details of numbers of downloads and other statistics.
  • While every care will be taken to preserve the Work, LSERO is not liable for loss or damage to the Work(s) or associated data while it is stored within the repository.

The Depositor’s Rights and Responsibilities:

  • Rights granted to LSERO through this agreement are non-exclusive. You are free to publish the Work(s) in its present or future version(s) elsewhere. The repository does not assume ownership when storing the Work(s).
  • You may request the Work(s) is removed at any point in the future (see our Takedown Policy). Equally, LSERO reserves the right to remove the Work(s) for any professional, administrative or legal reason.
  • For all datasets, theses and publications: It is theresponsibility of the creator of the Work(s) to ensure that the Work(s) have been anonymised sufficiently to prevent re-identification of participants, and to abide by any other third-party data contractual terms that apply and clear necessary secondary reproduction rights.

*Including research publications, theses and datasets. Please see Content Policy for a detailed breakdown.