{"id":30880,"date":"2026-09-18T12:49:40","date_gmt":"2026-09-18T11:49:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/?p=30880"},"modified":"2026-09-18T16:06:12","modified_gmt":"2026-09-18T15:06:12","slug":"open-university-celebrates-win-at-armed-forces-awards-for-exceptional-achievement-in-the-community","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/around-ou\/university-news\/open-university-celebrates-win-at-armed-forces-awards-for-exceptional-achievement-in-the-community\/","title":{"rendered":"Open University celebrates win at Armed Forces awards for \u201cexceptional achievement\u201d in the community"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Open University is delighted to announce it was amongst the winners at the prestigious Armed Forces Community Awards on Thursday September 18th, picking up the Education, Training and Development Award.<\/p>\n

This auspicious award reflects the life-changing power of education to transform lives and the determination of the veterans that The Open University (OU) is privileged to support through initiatives such as its Disabled Veterans’ Scholarships Fund (DVSF).<\/p>\n

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The awards recognise those who have made a positive difference to society.<\/p><\/div>\n

The evening was made extra special with an award also given to David Dent MBE, a former DVSF scholar and now Ambassador for the fund who also won the Lifetime Achievement award.<\/p>\n

For almost a decade, the OU\u2019s DVSF sees veterans develop new skills, gain qualifications, build confidence and create new opportunities for themselves and their families. Their achievements inspire and reinforce the OU\u2019s commitment to widening access to higher education for those who have served in the Armed Forces.<\/p>\n

The Armed Forces Community Awards at Soldiering On is a national platform, with more details on this link<\/a>, that celebrates the exceptional achievements of the Armed Forces community, not just on one night, but throughout the year. Across 12 diverse categories, the awards honour individuals, teams, and organisations including serving personnel, veterans, families, and those who support them.<\/p>\n

Professor Ian Pickup, Pro Vice-Chancellor, Learning, Teaching & Student Experience said:<\/p>\n

\u201cThis award not only reflects the life-changing work of the Disabled Veterans Scholarship Fund, it also recognises the OU’s broader mission of opening access to education for all and demonstrates the transformational impact that flexible learning can have on the Armed Forces community.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cWe know this award would not have been possible without the huge support of all our donors and partners. Thank you to everyone who has helped to make this possible, and congratulations to all of the finalists whose work is making a real difference across the armed forces community.\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The awards were held at the Park Plaza Westminster Bridge, on London’s South Bank and recognise those who have made a positive difference to society, whether through business, charity, community engagement, innovation, health and wellbeing, or support for the wider military family.<\/p>\n

The DVSF, delivered through The Open University, provides fully funded, flexible study that enables veterans to\u00a0use the transferable skills gained in the military to pursue recognised qualifications\u00a0and new career opportunities.<\/p>\n

Since its launch in 2018, DVSF has awarded\u00a0430\u00a0scholarships, supporting veterans to rebuild confidence, gain skills and re-establish direction after service. Its flexible,\u00a0online learning\u00a0with tutor\u00a0support\u00a0model allows individuals to study alongside rehabilitation, health challenges, and family responsibilities, ensuring no one is excluded.<\/p>\n

As of this summer, 56 DVSF recipients have proudly completed a full degree at either undergraduate or postgraduate level, in addition to hundreds of milestone qualifications.<\/p>\n

More than education, the programme integrates tailored careers support, helping veterans translate their skills into sustainable civilian roles. Many participants go on to achieve degrees, further study, and meaningful employment, with stories of transformation reflecting renewed purpose and ambition.<\/p>\n

Main image:<\/strong> (l-r) Clare Davenport-Johnson, Head of Partnerships for the Development Office and Tracy Grunwell, Philanthropy Manager, Development Office at the awards.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Open University is delighted to announce it was amongst the winners at the prestigious Armed Forces Community Awards on Thursday September 18th, picking up the Education, Training and Development Award. This auspicious award reflects the life-changing power of education to transform lives and the determination of the veterans that The Open University (OU) is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":30884,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[158,2709,1525,1640],"class_list":["post-30880","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-university-news","tag-armed-forces","tag-disabled-veterans","tag-news-home","tag-ou-home"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30880","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30880"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30880\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":30888,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30880\/revisions\/30888"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/30884"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30880"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30880"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30880"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}