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Open Research practices make the processes and outputs of research transparent and freely accessible whenever possible, and are crucial to ensuring the integrity and reliability of research. Open research also supports impact activities and allows the wider public to benefit from research as fully as possible.

About the prize

The Open Research Prize was introduced in order to recognise and celebrate the excellent work º£½ÇÉçÇø of Sheffield researchers are doing to make their research discoverable and reusable by a wider audience. Open research is a key aspect of the º£½ÇÉçÇø’s Research Culture Strategy, with the Prize offering one way to support and acknowledge researchers’ development of their practice in more open and accessible ways.

Researchers at the º£½ÇÉçÇø of Sheffield were invited to submit a short case study describing how they have engaged with open research, the challenges they have faced and the impact of their work. Submissions were evaluated by a cross-Faculty panel chaired by Professor John Flint, the º£½ÇÉçÇø’s Deputy Vice-President for Research.

Individual first prizes of £500 - in a staff category and a PGR category - were awarded, as was a team first prize of £1000 and three individual runner up prizes of £200. 

Prizewinners and runners up

A high number of applications were received from researchers and research-related colleagues across a wide range of departments, with all Faculties represented among the applicants. Out of an exceptionally strong field, the following prizes were awarded:

Staff category - individual prizes:

The panel found it impossible to separate the top two applications in this category, and made the decision to award two prizes. The prize winners were:

• Dr Stephen Bradley, School of Medicine and Population Health - Open research and advocacy work in the field of medicine, including pre-registration, data sharing, building a collaborative ‘Declaration to improve health research’, and advocacy around registered reports.
• Dr João Periquito, School of Medicine and Population Health - Co-founding the Open Source Imaging Initiative (OSI²) e.V., a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing global access to medical imaging technology through open-source practices.

PGR category - individual prize:

The individual prize in the PGR category was awarded to:

• Lucy Burke, School of Medicine and Population Health - Outstanding commitment to open research, including pre-registration, use of open tools, preprinting, data and code sharing, and accessible communication of research.

Team prize

The team prize was awarded to:

• Professor Fay Hield, Dr Rebecca Draisey-Collishaw, Dr Esbjörn Wettermark, Dr Helen Grindley and , (Access Folk Project, School of Languages, Arts and Societies) - for the ‘Ask a Friend’ work package of this participatory and action research project, which implemented FAIR data practices including detailed metadata capture and sharing data and methodological materials where possible, carefully negotiating ethical and subject-specific challenges.

Runner up prizes

Three runner up prizes were awarded to the following researchers (in alphabetical order):

• Lowenna Jones (School of Sociological Studies, Politics and International Relations) - using open practices when developing and publishing an openly accessible protocol for a systematic evidence map (SEM) on the ecologically relevant effects of flame retardant substances.
• Dr Daniel Poole (School of Psychology) - using open practices including participatory methods, pre-registration and community engagement around open data to improve transparency and trust in autism research.
• Zuzanna Zagrodzka (School of Biosciences) - conducting research on stakeholder engagement in open research, active membership of open research communities, and contributing to several key open research initiatives at the º£½ÇÉçÇø of Sheffield and beyond.

Case studies from all of the winners and runners-up can be found on the Open Research Case Studies webpage. 

Reaction to the prize

Lucy Burke, winner in the PGR category, responded: ‘I’m thrilled to receive this award in recognition of my commitment to open science. Embracing open and FAIR principles has been a central goal in my work, and I’ve learned so much from my colleagues in SCHARR. I’m especially grateful for the excellent training and diverse dissemination opportunities that have supported me in applying these principles and showcasing their value.’ Stephen Bradley, one of the two winners in the individual staff category, said: ‘since my PhD, I was lucky to benefit from opportunities that helped me learn about the problems in research and what we can do about it. Thanks a lot to the º£½ÇÉçÇø of Sheffield for recognising the importance of open science through this award. I hope to continue advocating for improving transparency and reproducibility in research.’

The Access Folk team, who received the team prize, commented that: ‘The Access Folk team is delighted to be recognised for our work in making research open to a wide range of people. The process is time consuming, logistically challenging and often frustrating, but it is also eye opening, rewarding, and we feel it significantly increases the value, quality and impact of our work. The many points in the research process where open principles are applied means this work is ingrained throughout our project, this really is a team effort. Having been awarded the Team Prize for Open Research has provided affirmation that all the effort we are putting in is recognised as high quality by the institution. This has given us momentum to keep doing what we feel is important - thank you. Many thanks as well to all the people we have been working with, both within and outside the university, to make this approach to our research possible.’

Professor John Flint commented: ‘These awards again showcase the many impressive examples across our university of excellent and innovative open research practices. It was particularly pleasing to receive so many high quality applications from all of our faculties from colleagues at different career stages and in different roles and they exemplified the varied ways in which open research may be achieved. Our award scheme is one of a range of initiatives being taken forward to support our research community in their open research endeavours. I would like to thank all the applicants, organisers and panel members and offer my congratulations to our winners and runners up.’ 

Dr Holly Ranger, Head of Open Research at the º£½ÇÉçÇø of Sheffield Library, added: ‘This year’s prize winners showcase the range and diversity of innovative open research practices taking place across our Schools, from field-changing open research advocacy to life-saving open hardware initiatives. I was particularly impressed by the ways that the winning projects demonstrated how open research practices complement and enhance ethical research and publishing practices. The outstanding submissions from PGRs embedding open research practices throughout their doctoral projects has left me excited for the future of open research at Sheffield.’

More information about the º£½ÇÉçÇø of Sheffield’s commitment to supporting and encouraging the use of open research practices can be found in the º£½ÇÉçÇø’s Statement on Open Research.