The Open University launches new strategy to widen opportunity and help more students succeed

Posted on 3 September 2026 • University news

The Open University (OU) has today launched Opening Up, its new strategy for 2026–2031, setting out how it will widen opportunity, improve student success and increase its impact through education, research, innovation and partnership.

The strategy marks the next stage in the OU’s mission to make higher education open to people regardless of background, location or circumstance. It responds to major changes in how people live, learn and work, including the rapid development of artificial intelligence, changing skills needs and growing demand for flexible lifelong learning.

At its heart is a shift from access alone to ensuring students have the best possible opportunity to succeed by taking our education and research into places where people live and work. The OU will develop even more flexible and personalised learning and support so people will not need to accept a one size fits all offer but be partners in the design of their learning. Partnerships will support the creation of a scramble net of educational pathways into and through HE, and we will continue to lead in the responsible use of technology where it can demonstrably improve learning and student outcomes.

Vice-Chancellor of The Open University, Professor Dave Phoenix, said:

“Opportunity should never be limited by circumstance. Yet for too many people, it still is.

“Our purpose at The Open University does not change. What must change is how we fulfil it. We want more students to succeed in ways that matter to them, our education and research to make a stronger contribution to society, and the OU to reach people and communities in new ways.

“We were founded because the established model of higher education did not work for everyone. No one model ever does. At the OU, we must continue to challenge convention, make the best use of new technology and work with others to open doors to opportunity still wider.”

The strategy is built around three connected themes:

1. Creating Societal Impact
The OU will widen access through stronger educational pathways and focus its research more clearly on areas where it can deliver distinctive excellence and public value. It will work more closely with communities, policymakers, employers and other partners to address educational cold spots and turn education and research into practical social and economic impact.

2. Supporting Student Success
The University will design learning, assessment, support and services around the different lives, circumstances and ambitions of its students. It will make responsible use of AI and other technologies to support more personalised learning, while strengthening belonging, flexibility and support throughout the student journey. Students will be partners in their learning and in the creation of their course.

3. Reaching New Communities Through Innovation and Partnership
The OU will deepen partnerships with employers, governments, education providers, public services and communities across all four nations and internationally. It will develop new education models, expand work-based and flexible learning, and explore new physical and hybrid approaches where they can extend opportunity and strengthen local impact by taking our education and research into the places it is most needed.

It is underpinned by three enablers: People and Culture, Digital, and Finance and Estates, reflecting the changes needed within the University to deliver its ambitions sustainably.

As part of Opening Up, the University will strengthen its leadership in the responsible use of AI in education, develop clearer routes into higher education through further education and work-based learning, focus investment in research with demonstrable public impact, and build deeper partnerships with communities, employers and public services.

The full strategy, Opening Up: The Open University Strategy 2026–2031 is available at www.strategy.open.ac.uk