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Effective central negotiation for online subscription resources

JISC Collections has an excellent track record of negotiating cost-effective licence deals for online resources on behalf of universities and further education colleges across the UK. It has negotiated licences on behalf of universities since 2000 - and 100% of universities now take advantage of the deals on offer.

JISC Collections took on responsibility for negotiating licences on behalf of further education colleges in 2001. At the start, very few colleges subscribed to any online resources but 85.9% now take advantage of JISC Collections deals and the tremendous savings on offer. In total, JISC Collections has negotiated agreements for 80 online databases and 20 deals for journals from 65 publishers and suppliers.

JISC Collections' central negotiating role, plus a streamlined licensing and purchasing process, also saves institutions a great deal of time. In 2004-05, the time saved by universities and further education colleges was estimated to be worth a staggering £156m.

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JISC Collections' role in this landmark new agreement

In view of the success of JISC Collections' centrally-negotiated licensing initiatives for universities and further education colleges, Becta recognised that coordinated purchasing by schools would not only result in very significant cost-savings, it would also enable them to offer their staff and learners 24x7 access to trusted online resources both within the school and from home.

As a result, Becta has funded JISC Collections to develop a new consortium licensing and pricing model for schools, work with the community to select a range of online subscription resources of high value to schools, negotiate special terms with publishers accordingly, and to work with key partners such as Regional Broadband Consortia to communicate the benefits of the new deal to schools in order to maximise uptake and secure the best prices.

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Affiliate membership of JISC Collections

Because JISC Collections is a mutual trading company, each individual school, local authority, Regional Broadband Consortium or devolved administration needs to become a member if they wish to take out a JISC Collections for Schools subscription. Membership is free to individual schools, local authorities, and Regional Broadband Consortia in England and Scotland as membership has been funded by Becta and Learning and Teaching Scotland from 1 April 2008 to 31 September 2009.

Download the membership registration form if you are an English or Scottish school, local authority or Regional Broadband Consortium not already a member of JISC Collections.

Contact Sarah Fahmy at jcs-info@jisc.ac.uk if you are an individual school, local authority or Regional Broadband Consortium in Northern Ireland or Wales not already a member of JISC Collections.

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Benefits of Membership

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