General
What is JISC Collections for Schools?
JISC Collections for Schools is a not-for-profit initiative which makes a range of trusted and curriculum-relevant online subscription resources available to schools at discounts of up to 80%.
Can all schools participate?
JISC Collections for Schools resources are available to all state-funded primary and secondary school in the UK.
All resources, except those published by Oxford University Press, are also available to independent schools through JISC Collections for Schools. Find out more about resources available to independent schools.
Which online resources are available?
Over 20 resources are now available through JISC Collections for Schools, providing high quality support for all stages of education from Key Stage 1 upwards. They include:
- copyright cleared image and video libraries
- curriculum-mapped games and simulations
- digital mapping from Ordnance Survey
- newspaper archives
- general reference information and English dictionaries - invaluable for all subject areas
- resources for a wide range of subject areas including Art, Citizenship, English, Geography, History, Literacy, Maths, Music, Modern Languages, RE, PE, and Science
How have the resources been selected?
The resources have been chosen by representatives from the schools' community on the basis of proven quality, fit with the National Curriculum, usefulness for teachers and learners, and value for money.
Do schools have a choice of resources?
Yes. Schools can subscribe to one or more of the resources on offer through JISC Collections for Schools.
Has the initiative been successful so far?
Yes! As at August 2010, over 1 million learners can access a range of JISC Collections for Schools resources as a result of agreements at a regional level, as well as subscriptions from individual schools. An increasing number of School Library Services are facilitating buying groups and hosting Publisher Days to enable their members to see first-hand the resources available to them.
Free trials
Are free trials available?
Yes. Schools, Academies and Local Authorities can choose to trial up to 5 resources at a time for 30 days to assess their value in teaching and learning.
How do I request a free trial?
To request trial access for your school, or on behalf of a group of schools, click here.
Subscriptions
Are resources available by annual subscription?
All JISC Collections for Schools resources are available by annual subscription. The Guardian and Observer Digital Archive can also be purchased outright — please contact us for further information and/or a quote.
Can individual schools subscribe?
Yes. Schools can subscribe on an individual basis but the highest discounts are achieved when schools within a region subscribe together in buying groups.
What constitutes a buying group?
A buying group can consist of any group of schools in a region with a total of at least 2,500 learners that places a combined order for an individual resource.
How does our school join a buying group?
School Library Services and other organisations are taking an active role in coordinating buying groups in many areas in order to achieve the highest possible discount. In addition, an increasing number of schools in informal local or regional networks are also working together to secure the best possible pricing. To find out what is happening in your area, or if you would like help setting up a buying group, please contact us.
Do schools have to subscribe to all the resources on offer?
No. Schools can choose to subscribe to whichever resources they want to. The more schools in a group that subscribe to a particular resource, the lower the price per learner is likely to be.
Can independent schools take advantage of agreements?
Independent schools can take advantage of agreements for all JISC Collection for Schools resources with the exception of those published by Oxford University Press. Find out more.
Can subscriptions start at any time?
Subscriptions can start on the 1st of any month and the annual fee will be prorated until the end of the relevant subscription year - either 31 August 2011 or 31 August 2012.
For example, if a subscription starts on 1 October 2010, the fee for the 2010/11 subscription year will be 11/12ths of the total for the year.
Schools can join existing buying groups, or take out subscriptions to additional resources within a buying group, during the course of a subscription year. The price per learner will be the same as that agreed for the buying group at the start of the subscription. It will be recalculated at the start of the next subscription year.
How do we place a subscription order?
When you have chosen the resources you would like to subscribe to, please complete and submit the Subscription Order Form. After receiving the form, the JISC Collections for Schools Helpdesk will send you a price quotation.
How long is the commitment period for subscriptions?
The commitment period is from the start of the subscription until the end of the Licence Agreement for each resource but schools can choose to opt out at the end of each subscription year by providing written notice to the publisher, with a copy to JISC Collections for Schools, by 1 June each year. The end dates of agreements are as follows:
- Credo Reference - 31 August 2012
- Digimap - 31 August 2011
- eChalk - 31 August 2012
- Grove Art Online - 31 August 2011
- Grove Music Online- 31 August 2011
- Guardian and Observer Digital Archive - 31 August 2012
- Heinemann Video Gallery (Primary) - 31 August 2012
- Heinemann Video Gallery (Secondary) - 31 August 2012
- History Reference Center - 31 August 2012
- History Study Centre - 31 August 2011
- Keesing's World News Archive - 31 August 2011
- Literary Reference Center - 31 August 2012
- Living Language and Literature Online - 31 August 2012
- Oxford Dictionary of National Biography - 31 August 2011
- Oxford Language Dictionaries Online - 31 August 2011
- Oxford Reference Online - 31 August 2011
- Science Reference Center - 31 August 2012
- Science Resource Center - 31 August 2011
- Scran - 31 August 2012
- The Young Citizen's Passport Online - 31 August 2012
Pricing
Where can I find pricing information?
Information about pricing for all resources is available here.
Are prices guaranteed to be the lowest available?
Yes. All suppliers have guaranteed that JISC Collections for Schools' prices are the lowest available.
Is pricing the same for all resources?
No. Pricing and discounts vary from resource to resource. Pricing for buying groups offers substantial savings on normal prices for all resources, and discounts are also available to individual schools on most resources.
How is pricing calculated?
Pricing for each resource is calculated according to the total number of learners at a school, or schools within in a region. The greater the number of learners, the lower the price per learner is likely to be.
Please contact us to find out more about buying groups in your area, or if you are interested in setting one up.
Can state-funded schools and independent schools participate in the same buying group?
Yes, for all resources except those published by Oxford University Press. Find out more.
Is pricing the same for independent schools and state-funded schools?
Yes.
Do prices published on the website include VAT?
No.
Do prices published on the website include the JISC Collections for Schools' service/membership fee?
Yes. All prices include the 15% service/membership fee.
What does the service/membership fee include?
The fee covers services such as:
- Setting up free trials
- Developing and coordinating buying groups to ensure schools benefit from the highest possible discounts
- Liaising with schools and buying groups, and providing quotations
- Providing first line support for all queries
- Raising invoices
- Liaising with publishers to set up access
- Organising events, training sessions and workshops
- Expanding the range of resources on offer to schools at discounts of up to 80%, including negotiation with publishers on pricing and licensing
The fee also includes membership of JISC Collections.
Support for teachers
Are teaching materials available to accompany resources?
Many of the resources offer teaching materials, including lesson plans. In addition, a range of support materials specially commissioned as part of the JISC Collections for Schools initiative, is available to subscribing schools. Find out more.
How can the resources be used in teaching and learning?
See the FAQs for Licensing terms for further information.
Licensing terms
How many teachers and learners can use an individual resource simultaneously?
There is no limit on the number of teachers and learners at a subscribing school that can use a resource at the same time. This means that they can be used in the classroom with confidence.
Can excerpts from the online resources be used by teachers in course packs?
Yes - providing the source is acknowledged and there is no commercial use.
Can learners use excerpts from the online resources in homework and coursework?
Yes - providing the source is acknowledged and there is no commercial use.
Can teachers link to individual definitions, chapters, images etc from learning platforms and reading lists?
Yes.
Can teachers use the resources on whiteboards?
Yes.
Can the resources be used within learning platforms?
Yes.
When a teacher at a subscribing school creates teaching materials using the online resources, can they be shared with the rest of their school eg via the learning platform?
Yes.
When a teacher at a subscribing school creates teaching materials using the online resources, can they be shared with other schools?
Only if the other schools also subscribe to the online resource used.
Invoicing
How does the invoicing procedure work?
JISC Collections for Schools will raise invoices for individual schools and buying groups on behalf of publishers. Invoices will be issued annually until the end of the agreement for the resource.
For example, if a school or buying group subscribes to Science Reference Center in October 2010, they will be invoiced twice:
- First invoice on October for the period 1 November 2010 to 31 August 2011 (10 months' pro rata)
- Second invoice in August 2011 for the period 1 September 2011 to 31 August 2012 (full annual subscription)
When is the end date for each Agreement and is there an opt out clause?
See below for the end dates of each Agreement. It is hoped that Agreements which end in 2011 will be extended for a further 2 years, and announcements will be made in early 2011.
Please note that schools can choose to opt out of the Agreement at the end of each subscription year provided that written notice is received by 1 June:
- Credo Reference - 31 August 2012
- Digimap for Schools - 31 August 2011
- eChalk - 31 August 2012
- Grove Art Online - 31 August 2011
- Grove Music Online- 31 August 2011
- Guardian and Observer Digital Archive - 31 August 2012
- Heinemann Video Gallery (Primary) - 31 August 2012
- Heinemann Video Gallery (Secondary) - 31 August 2012
- History Reference Center - 31 August 2012
- History Study Centre - 31 August 2011
- Keesing's World News Archive - 31 August 2011
- Literary Reference Center - 31 August 2012
- Living Language and Literature Online - 31 August 2012
- Oxford Dictionary of National Biography - 31 August 2011
- Oxford Language Dictionaries Online - 31 August 2011
- Oxford Reference Online - 31 August 2011
- Science Reference Center - 31 August 2012
- Science Resource Center - 31 August 2011
- Scran - 31 August 2012
- The Young Citizen's Passport Online - 31 August 2012
I am interested in coordinating a buying group. Is it possible for JISC Collections for Schools to invoice each school in the group individually?
JISC Collections for Schools would prefer to send a single combined invoice for the group, but can invoice schools individually if a group invoice isn't possible.
Access
What forms of access are available to subscribing schools?
A range of access options is on offer for most resources to enable teachers and learners to use JISC Collections for Schools resources both within the school and from home 24x7 - for example via IP address, Shibboleth, a link on the school's secure intranet, and/or username and password. See the catalogue pages for each resource for more details.
When is access set up?
Access will be set up once a signed copy of the Acceptance of Agreement Form has been received by JISC Collections for Schools.
Is remote access included as part of the subscription?
Yes. This is included in the subscription fee.
How many users can use each resource at the same time?
Access will be provided on an unlimited simultaneous user basis - so any number of staff and learners can access a resource at the same time.
Usage statistics
Usage statistics for all JISC Collections for Schools resources are available free of charge to subscribing schools and buying groups. For most resources, schools can run their own reports online via the supplier's website. Where this facility is not available, reports can be provided on request.
JISC Collections
What is JISC Collections?
JISC Collections was established by the UK Higher and Further Education funding councils in 2006 to negotiate at a national level with publishers and owners of digital content on behalf of the academic and research community.
JISC Collections' national negotiating role currently provides the academic community with savings in excess of £38 million per annum.
Click here for further information about JISC Collections.
What is JISC Collections' role in this initiative?
In view of the tremendous savings achieved in higher and further education, Becta funded JISC Collections in 2008 to license a range of high quality and curriculum-relevant resources on behalf of schools at a national level, and to manage the JISC Collections for Schools initiative.