Supporting Open Access at Kent-New staff roles

Abstract

Open Access has been supported at the University of Kent from an early stage with the establishment of the Kent Academic Repository in 2007. Initially, this work was accommodated within the existing library staff structure, but the pace of change, funder requirements, and a new university plan meant that support for Open Access needed to become explicit. Therefore, a research support team was established using a matrix working system 1. This article details this new structure and reflects on the benefits and challenges it brings.