Data sharing strategies

The rise of open science, supported by digital technologies, has transformed how research outputs, including data, are shared and preserved. There is an increasing expectation from funders, publishers and institutions that research data should be made available for future reuse. Sharing data increases the transparency, reproducibility and reach of research.

Responsible data sharing requires balancing openness with ethical, legal and governance considerations.

Clarifying open science in relation to data access

Open science does not necessarily mean unrestricted access using an open reuse licence for data. Especially when working with data about people or sensitive information, data may require stricter access controls and restrictions or embargo periods.

Planning for sharing involves considering who can access the data, under what conditions, and with what protections in place.

Aligning with funder requirements

Data sharing strategies should align with the policies and expectations of research funders when applicable. Many funders specify how and when data should be shared and may require deposit in specific responsible repositories.

Checking these requirements early helps avoid compliance issues and supports smoother project delivery.

Choosing a data sharing route

There are several ways to share research data. Each approach differs in terms of sustainability, support, and long-term reliability.

The appropriate data sharing route depends on what is being shared. Substantive data collections intended for long-term preservation and reuse require different infrastructure from publication-linked extracts or supporting materials.

Data producers should consider the scale, sensitivity, long-term value and intended reuse of the data.

Responsible repositories

Responsible repositories are certified or domain-specific services with a clear organisational mandate for long-term data stewardship. They provide infrastructure and governance frameworks that support sustainable sharing and reuse.

For final research data collections intended for preservation and reuse, deposit in a responsible repository is usually the most robust option. These services typically provide:

• Persistent identifiers (such as DOIs) and citation creation.
• Descriptive and administrative metadata for cataloguing, structured according to recognised and/or community-endorsed metadata schemas.
• Review processes to assess whether data can be shared ethically and legally.
• Support for responsible reuse, including quality assurance and curation checks on metadata, data and documentation.
• Long-term preservation infrastructure.

For social science research, data service providers such as the UK Data Service support sharing of data ranging from large-scale population data to smaller and medium-sized collections and code.

Some disciplinary repositories also provide enhanced in-house curation services, although levels of support vary.

Registries such as re3data can help identify suitable repositories across disciplines.

Institutional repositories

Many universities provide institutional repositories for sharing research outputs. These may support visibility and access but may not offer specialist curation, preservation infrastructure, or granular access control options.

Institutional repositories may be appropriate for supporting materials linked to specific publications, such as illustrative sample data, summary tables, or clearly defined derived extracts.

Institutional and funder guidance should be consulted, particularly for sensitive, complex or high-value data. In most cases, substantive research data collections intended for long-term preservation and reuse should be deposited in a responsible repository.

Journal supplementary materials

Data may be shared alongside publications as supplementary materials. This can support immediate access and allow readers to explore selected outputs linked directly to articles.

However, journal supplements typically represent a snapshot or subset of a dataset, rather than the full research data collection. Journals also generally do not provide services such as long-term preservation, rich metadata creation or managed access controls.

Therefore, journal supplementary materials should not be relied upon as the sole location for preserving substantive research data collections.

Self-managed dissemination

Hosting data on project websites or sharing informally may appear convenient but often lacks sustainability, preservation guarantees and governance support. This approach also places ongoing maintenance and access management responsibilities on the research team.

Self-managed dissemination should not be used as the primary mechanism for preserving substantive research data collections intended for long-term access or reuse. It may be appropriate only as a supplementary access route alongside deposit in a responsible repository.