The concordat to support research integrity

We are party to a formal agreement or 'concordat' about standards and integrity in UK research. This sets out five commitments that assures Government, the wider public and the international community that the highest standards of rigour and integrity will continue to underpin research in the UK.

Universities UK developed the concordat with the funding and research councils, the Wellcome Trust and a number of government departments. It was launched on 11 July 2012.

Consultation on proposed implementation

We have consulted on implementing the concordat. The consultation invited comments on whether compliance should become a mandatory requirement for institutions, and how this might best be monitored.

The consultation closed at noon on Friday 8 March 2013. Further information will be available in due course.

Commitments

As signatories to, and supporters of, the concordat we are committed to:

maintaining the highest standards of rigour and integrity in all aspects of research
ensuring that research is conducted according to appropriate ethical, legal and professional frameworks, obligations and standards
supporting a research environment that is underpinned by a culture of integrity and based on good governance, best practice and support for the development of researchers
using transparent, robust and fair processes to deal with allegations of research misconduct should they arise
working together to strengthen the integrity of research and to reviewing progress regularly and openly.

Aims

The concordat will:

provide better coordination of existing approaches to research integrity
enable more effective communication of efforts to ensure that the highest standards of rigour and integrity continue to underpin all our research
encourage greater transparency and accountability at both institutional and sector levels
stimulate reflection on current practices to identify where improvements can be made.

We fully support these aims. We also expect the universities and colleges that we fund to endorse the concordat, and will consult later in the year on the best way to do this.

List of signatories

Department for Employment and Learning
Higher Education Funding Council for England
Higher Education Funding Council for Wales
National Institute for Health Research
Research Councils UK
Scottish Funding Council
Universities UK
Wellcome Trust

List of supporters

Academy of Medical Sciences
Association of Research Managers and Administrators
British Medical Journal
Council of University Classical Departments
CREST: Consortium for Research Excellence, Support and Training
Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
Government Office for Science
Medical Schools Council
Royal Musical Association
UK Research Integrity Office

Further information

Universities UK welcomes enquiries from new organisations that would like to recognise the concordat. For more information on how to join the supporters' network, e-mail riconcordat@universitiesuk.ac.uk