Skip to Main Content

Staff Copyright Guide

Do I own the copyright to my handouts, class material, examination papers, coursework etc?

As an employee of the University of Derby, any material that you create in the course of your employment belongs to the University of Derby. If you wish to use anything you have created in future employment at other institutions, you will have to seek permission.

What are the restrictions on my modifying work developed at UoD but using elsewhere?

Unless otherwise negotiated, anything you create specifically for your teaching role, in work time or otherwise, remains the copyright property of the University. In addition, anything you create in your own time using University resources may also be copyrighted by the University. If you wish to use material or resources created as a part of your academic role in a non-work context outside of the University, you may need to get permission.

Do the same rules apply to non-credit-bearing courses under the University of Derby Corporate umbrella?

The CLA licence is intended to cover the academic activities of staff and students at the University of Derby. Individuals enrolled on commercial courses under the University of Derby Corporate umbrella are still registered students with the University and included in our HESA returns, therefore any copying activities by or for these individuals would still be covered by the CLA licence.

However, it is always important to check whether the material you wish to copy is covered by the CLA licence, as some publishers have opted out of this scheme, including a number of business-related publishers.

My research is being funded by a commercial third-party organisation - am I still covered by the CLA licence?

As long as the research is contracted between the third-party organisation and the University, as opposed to you as an individual, then you are permitted to make copies of copyrighted material as detailed above for both your research team and the third-party organisation. Please note this does not apply in cases where the third-party is merely sponsoring a student, fellowship or placement. There must be some form of contract, collaborative research project or consultancy in place.

Any material supplied to a third-party organisation is subject to restrictions regarding further use, and must incorporate the Copyright Legend set out in Schedule 4 of the CLA licence agreement.