Available online1963-1969
(page 3 of 3)| Clip: | John Scupham and the OU Advisory Committee |
|---|---|
| Duration: | 00:00:38 |
| Date: | 1983 |
| Clip: | Asa Briggs and the OU Planning Committee |
|---|---|
| Duration: | 00:00:54 |
| Date: | 1979 |
One of Jennie's first decisions was to put the idea before the Ministerial Committee on Broadcasting, which agreed to set up an Advisory Committee to 'explore functions and content' of a university of the air.
Jennie Lee took the role of chairperson of the Advisory Committee.
Watch the first video clip on this page to hear committee member John Scupham describe the Advisory Committee and its purpose.
The first meeting was held on the 8th June 1965. Five subsequent meetings were held in quick succession and it had completed its work by the 4th August. Its report was produced unchanged as paragraph 8 of the White Paper published in February 1966. The paragraph ends with a firm recommendation that a Planning Committee be established.
A commitment was given in Labour's election manifesto for the March 1966 election to establish the University of the Air - an 'open university'. On the 31st March a Labour government was returned and Lee was reappointed.
In September 1966 Secretary of State for Education Tony Crosland referred the report to the Ministerial Committee on Broadcasting, asking his colleagues to announce the intention of establishing The Open University in 1968 or as soon as possible thereafter.
In September 1967 the Cabinet made the decision to set up a Planning Committee for The Open University. The Committee was to be chaired by Sir Peter Venables, Vice Chancellor of Aston University and Vice-Chair of the Committee of Vice Chancellors and Principals.
The committee first met on the 23rd October 1967. Its remit was to work out a comprehensive plan for an Open University, as outlined in the February 1966 White Paper and to prepare a draft Charter and Statutes.
In the second clip on this page, Asa Briggs describes his work as a member of the OU Planning Committee.
One of the initial tasks of the Planning Committee was to appoint the first Vice Chancellor. Advertisements appeared in newspapers in January 1968 and Walter Perry was appointed as Vice Chancellor in May 1968.
The Report of the Planning Committee, published on the 27th January 1969, was to set the tone for the University. On the same day the Secretary of State for Education and Science, Ted Short, announced in the House of Commons that the government fully accepted the plan.
