The Open University

Toby Perkins MP visits the Open University campus to celebrate skills development and lifelong learning

2 May 2023

Toby Perkins MP, the Shadow Minister for Further Education and Skills, visited the Open University’s campus in Milton Keynes on Tuesday 25 April to celebrate the role the university plays in skills development and lifelong learning across the UK. The Labour MP for Chesterfield met with the Open University’s Vice-Chancellor, Professor Tim Blackman, and other […]

Open University programme offers Black students chance for free study

28 April 2023

The Open University is offering 50 UK-based Black students on lower incomes the chance to study a degree for free. The Black Students Support Fund is part of a life-changing package of scholarships and bursaries worth more than £3 million offered by the University to address inequity in access and success in education. Those who […]

Outstanding individuals receive honorary awards from the OU

27 April 2023

The Open University has issued accolades to a group of high-flying individuals who have made significant contributions in their field of expertise or the communities around them. It was at the OU’s London degree ceremony that four people climbed the Barbican Centre’s stage to receive their honorary awards. They included: Daniel Tammet, who is an […]

From rags and pads to the sanitary apron: a brief history of period products

26 April 2023

Professor Emerita of Classical Studies Helen King writes about the history of period products and how women used them through the ages. Period blood: it’s not something many people want to talk about. Taboos around menstruation and menstrual blood have been around for centuries. Even today, despite menstrual blood being featured in contemporary art, this […]

‘My degree has given me insight and knowledge to run my business’

26 April 2023

Busy mum and entrepreneur, Elly, 28, shares how studying for an Open University degree has helped her to launch and run a business selling body positive artwork. Inspired to do more Elly chose the OU so she could boost her skills and become an equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) specialist. Part way through an MA […]

Why the plastic wet wipe ban is a step towards cleaning up our water quality

24 April 2023

We spoke to Dr Kevin Collins, Senior Lecturer in Environment & Systems at The Open University, about the ongoing issue with water quality, and the Government’s recent move to ban ‘plastic’ wet wipes: We all know that plastic in our rivers and our oceans is a bad idea. The Government has recently announced its intention […]

Wild Isles: Behind the Scenes

21 April 2023

Wild Isles: Behind the Scenes was the first large scale hybrid OU/BBC co-pro event hosted by the OU. It took all the collective expertise of the Faculty of STEM, Development Office and Broadcast and Partnership to make it such a resounding success. The Ondaatje Lecture Theatre at the Royal Geographical Society was the stage for […]

The Open University and The John Lewis Partnership launch new programme offering young people who have experienced care the opportunity for free study

21 April 2023

The Open University has launched a new programme in collaboration with the John Lewis Partnership, to offer young people with experience of being in care the opportunity to study an undergraduate qualification for free. Young people who have spent time in care can face many significant barriers to entering and succeeding in higher education. This […]

Putin’s visit to Kherson, electronic call-up papers and the latest dissenter deterrent

20 April 2023

Dr Precious Chatterje-Doody is a politics and international relations academic at The Open University and specialises in communication, misinformation and security, particularly in Russia. Here she talks about what Putin’s latest visit to Kherson means, his new plan for drafting men into the Russian army and how he continues to manage dissent. President Putin’s recent […]

Super-student mother notches up three degrees in six years while working

18 April 2023

When a mother-of-two climbed the stage at London’s The Barbican in celebration of passing her Open University degree the audience was left agog when they discovered she was there for not one degree but three. In fact, Diana de Vega de Ceniga, 50, from Surrey, doesn’t have just three degrees, but a total of FIVE! […]

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