The Open University

Back to the future: looking back at predictions on regional development

6 August 2018

In 2009, in celebration of the Open University’s 40th Anniversary, we asked academics from around the University to predict what the future would look like in their areas of study. Now, as we approach the OU’s 50 Anniversary, we asked the same academics to revisit their predictions, reflect on their accuracy, and reset them for […]

The Prosecutors: new series throws light on Crown Prosecution Service

25 July 2018

The second series of The Prosecutors, co-produced by The Open University and Gold Star Productions for the BBC, begins on Thursday 2 August at 9pm on BBC Two, with the second episode following a week later. This series uncovers more about our Criminal Justice System’s workings, following the prosecutors tackling an organised criminal gang who […]

Three days is still too long to hold pregnant women in immigration detention

25 July 2018

It’s been two years since a coalition of lobbying groups in the UK successfully challenged Home Office policy on the immigration detention of pregnant women. Under the new policy, enforced in mid-July 2016, pregnant women can now only be detained for a maximum of 72 hours (three days), or up to one week with the […]

New OU report reveals financial cost of the skills shortage

16 July 2018

Organisations across the UK are having to spend £6.3 billion to plug the gap in skills on recruitment fees, temporary staffing, salaries and additional training to remain productive, according to our new report released on Monday 16 July. The Open University Business Barometer, which monitors the skills landscape of the UK, also reveals that most […]

Photo of volunteer serving food in homeless shelter

Research reveals smaller charities play a vital role in our society

13 July 2018

Research involving the Centre for Voluntary Sector Leadership (CVSL) in The Open University Business School has discovered that local small and medium-sized charities (SMCs) in England and Wales are making a huge contribution to our society. The report, The Value of Small, revealed that when tackling social issues like homelessness, domestic abuse or mental ill […]

The OU Business School marks highest achieving students and alumni of 2018

29 June 2018

The Open University Business School (OUBS) celebrated its highest achieving students and the alumni who have made an outstanding contribution to an organisation or to society at its annual awards ceremony in Milton Keynes. The OUBS Student and Alumni Awards celebrate the exceptional achievements of the School’s high-calibre students and alumni. The Awards commend the […]

Doubt, depression, anxiety – just some of the problems plaguing the veterinary profession

21 May 2018

Mental health issues, alcohol and drug abuse, a high incidence of stress and suicide, excessive staff turnover rates, and a failure to adapt to the increasing demographic dominance of women. These are all serious challenges facing the veterinary profession in the UK. And they require urgent attention. Yet veterinary medicine often obscures the messy, complex, […]

Charities left out of pocket by probation scheme for ex-offenders

16 May 2018

Governments generally like charities and voluntary organisations. Time and again ministers say they want to harness the voluntary sector to improve public services. In 2014, the British government said the sector would be “at the forefront of a new fight against reoffending”. But the reality is sharply different, according to our new research. We’ve found […]

Why the unlawful use of personal data matters

4 April 2018

Data, and its misuse, has become commonplace in the media headlines recently. Anne Wesemann, Lecturer in Law at The Open University Business School takes a look at one recent data privacy storm, and explains the implications on democracy of the unlawful use of personal data. A complex data storm “The Cambridge Analytica whistleblowing storm is […]

Why accountants of the future will need to speak blockchain and cryptocurrency if they want your money

20 March 2018

If you haven’t already heard of Bitcoin, you either haven’t been paying attention or you’re a time traveller who just touched down in 2018. Because by now, most of us will have heard of Bitcoin and some of us have even jumped on the bandwagon, investing in cryptocurrencies. But despite its popularity, many people still […]

OU News

Category: Business and law