Research Data Management: Data Management Planning

Planning ahead for the collection, security, preservation and dissemination of your research data is key to successful data management.

University of Hull researchers requesting Faculty Ethics Committee approval for a new project are normally expected to submit a Data Management Plan, or complete an equivalent section on the application form.

Many research funders specify that a DMP must be submitted with any grant application.  They may provide a template, and/or set specific terms and conditions for the preservation and distribution of your data.  Check your target funder's data management policy before you start preparing a DMP.

 

University of Hull staff should contact the Pre-Award Support Team for expert advice and assistance with idea generation and all aspects of a grant application.

DMPOnline is the UK's data management planning portal for researchers, hosting institutional and funder templates to complete online, share and download, plus guides and sample plans. 

Preview the University of Hull Full Data Management Plan 2024 template here (login required).

Getting Started with DMPOnline

1. Sign In with your institutional credentials: select University of Hull, and create an account if prompted.
2. The DMPOnline Dashboard allows you to view completed plans which have been shared by other Hull researchers.
3. To Create a new plan, start by providing some brief details about your project. 
4. If you select a funding organisation, you will be directed to a template which is compatible with that funder's requirements. 
5. If no funder is associated with your research, you will be offered a selection of University of Hull templates.
6. Navigate through your chosen template using the tabs at the top of the form:
   1.  Complete the project Details (skip any irrelevant questions).
   2. Add yourself as a Contributor, plus any other project members.
   3. Read the Plan Overview.
   4. When you are ready to begin, Write the Plan.
   5. Refer to the contextual guidance to help you complete each section.
7. At any stage, you can share your plan with collaborators, or download to send it to reviewers. 

Watch: Introducing DMP Online for University of Hull Researchers (5 min)

Legacy DMP templates (2021):

When you are completing a Data Management Plan for an external funder, or applying for permission to use third party data, you may be asked to provide evidence that the platform(s) on which you will store and process data are protected from the risk of a cyber attack.

Statement from University of Hull IT Services Jan 2024:  Whilst the University follows cybersecurity best practices and various security frameworks, as defined in our Information Security Controls Policy, we do not currently hold any formal certifications.

Further information from IT Services about Staying Cyber Secure,  for University Staff and Students.

If the UK Government's Trusted Research criteria apply to your project, you may need to ensure a higher level of security for your data.  Research data generated or collected in the UK may be subject to export controls if it is not in the public domain and could potentially be used by hostile states for military, political or economic advantage. If you are planning an international collaboration which may involve sharing data with overseas partners, contact the University of Hull's Research Excellence, Governance and Impact team for advice.

What personal data is considered sensitive?  (from the European Commission).

What is personal information?  (from the UK Information Commissioner's Office)

If you intend to collect or utilize sensitive personal data, your Data Management Plan should outline your strategy for complying with the UK GDPR (General Data Protection Regulations, 2016), and other relevant legislation or standards.  If your data is anonymised effectively it can be made public as a research output from your project, with your participants' consent.

Your plan should demonstrate how you will comply with the relevant principles of the University of Hull Data Protection Policy (Nov 2021).

Personal data shall be:

• collected for specified, explicit and legitimate purposes and not further processed in a manner that is incompatible with those purposes;
• limited to what is necessary in relation to the purposes;
• kept in a form which permits identification of data subjects for no longer than is necessary;
• processed in a manner that ensures appropriate security... including protection against unauthorised or unlawful processing and against accidental loss, destruction or damage.

A privacy notice (also known as a fair processing notice or a data protection statement) must be actively communicated to individuals at the point at which their personal data is collected.

The University of Hull requires researchers to consider a Data Protection Impact Assessment for any new processes or technologies involving personal data.

• Further information about the DPIA process can be found on Sharepoint.
• The UK Information Commissioner's Office has published a useful introduction to DPIAs.

Further reading:

• Seven Steps to Sharing Data Safely, published on the EU-funded Open Research Europe blog (April 2024). 

• The UK Data Service Learning Hub provides detailed guidance around the ethical issues associated with the management of sensitive data, including gaining participants' consent for data sharing, and best practice for anonymisation of quantitative and qualitative data.
• How to Deal with Sensitive Data: a guide to anonymisation, encryption and storage, from the European Commission's OpenAIRE foundation.
• Using Data About People in Research (2024), from the UK Medical Research Council Regulatory Support Centre.
• The UK Information Commissioner's Office provides advice about data protection in plain English, plus online self-study materials.  Primarily written for individuals, businesses and organisations, but a useful source of reference for key principles.

The terms of use for any data shared by or with a commercial partner or sponsor should be explicit in the research contract.

If your University of Hull research project has generated data which may lead to commercial opportunities, contact the Commercialisation Team.

Certain funders encourage researchers to factor research data management into any application, as 'directly incurred' or 'directly allocated' costs.  Advice from the Medical Research Council (2020) is equally applicable to other disciplines:

You should include the costs related to your data sharing. This may include people, equipment, infrastructure and tools to manage, store, analyse and provide access to data.

Where the costs of managing legacy data and sharing are substantial, the proposal should differentiate the resources and funding for the following activities:

• Collecting and 'cleaning' new data
• Own research on newly-acquired and legacy data
• Ongoing data curation and preservation [consider whether you will need additional server capacity, offsite storage or backup. An external data repository may charge for membership.]
• Providing access and data sharing [even a free repository may charge for issuing a DOI or unique identifier to facilitate citation.  Submitting data files as supplements to a journal article may incur a publication charge.]

Refer to your chosen funder's Guidance for Applicants for further information.

UK Data Service: Costing Data Management

Advice and an activity-based costing tool,  designed for social scientists.

Don't overlook the environmental costs of collecting and preserving research data.  The UK-based Digital Humanities Climate Coalition has published a Toolkit for researchers who want to minimize the climate impact of their research, including a guide "to help researchers think through the climate-related implications of decisions about data management and project planning", plus an annotated example DMP. 

Planning for the preservation and dissemination of your data in line with research funder/publisher terms:

• rdm@hull.ac.uk  (Kirstyn Radford, Research Outputs Specialist, Brynmor Jones Library)

Data protection, research integrity and ethics (Sharepoint sites for University of Hull researchers):

• Information Compliance - Data Protection Officer
• Research Governance and Impact Team
• Your Faculty Ethics Committee can advise on any data protection issues identified during the process of gaining approval for a new project.

Data ownership, licensing and knowledge exchange:

• Knowledge Exchange Hub for University of Hull researchers
• Research and Knowledge Exchange Contracts Support Team
• Trusted Research checklist for University of Hull researchers working with partners overseas or in industry

Data handling, including secure file storage, software installation and use of the University's High Performance Computer (VIPER) for processing high volumes of research data with low levels of sensitivity:

• IT Services Support Portal

Hull Health Trials Unit provides specialist support for clinical research, including mediated access to NHS data, and services to facilitate storage and processing of sensitive data, such as the Data Safe Haven:

• HHTUenquiries@hull.ac.uk