A national mission for lifelong learning

This year marks the 60^th anniversary of the ‘University of the Air’ White Paper which led to the creation of The Open University (OU). We are immensely proud of the University’s Scottish roots and indeed the legacy of Jennie Lee, from Lochgelly, who authored and tabled the Paper - the driving force behind the OU.  

Today, we honour those roots and remain true to the spirit of The Open University that Jennie Lee advocated for in the face of criticism from quarters such as the Times Educational Supplement and the Spectator who both doubted the wisdom of our creation. She also faced opposition to the idea from within her own party, the Treasury, and the Department of Education and Science.

Jennie was the Minister for Arts when Prime Minister Harold Wilson asked her to turn his idea for a “university of the air” - providing higher education at a distance - into reality. She called it The Open University due to its unique open access policy, with no qualifications needed for most undergraduate courses.

At its heart, the OU exists to widen access; to remove the barriers that prevent people from participating in higher education. That includes people without traditional qualifications, those already in work, and those with caring responsibilities. With over 238,000 people having studied with us in Scotland, we have proven the doubters wrong both in terms of being 'open' and in offering an alternative to traditional university education.

We are Scotland’s national university for widening access and lifelong learning, and that means meeting people where they are – in their workplaces and communities. Our model has been developed over decades to support people to succeed in higher education alongside work and other commitments, while directly addressing workforce needs.

That alignment is particularly visible in subject areas like nursing: the OU’s work-based degree programmes enable healthcare support workers to become registered nurses while remaining in employment, strengthening services while widening access to the profession.

We know that place, circumstance and life stage can all shape educational opportunity. The Open University has played a crucial role in ensuring that people can access higher education without having to relocate or give up work, which is particularly important in a country with such diverse and sometimes remote communities.

Our students are in communities in every part of the country where more than 70% are already in work and looking for new opportunities to reskill and upskill in a fast-changing world. We continue to be open to all with 20% of new undergraduates starting their studies with us without standard entrance qualifications.

Widening access has always been central to our mission, and 40% of new undergraduate students are based in Scotland’s most deprived areas.  We are also a university where 30% of our students share they have a disability support need.

We enter this new parliamentary session with a renewed strategy and a renewed purpose and commitment to our core mission. That means ensuring part-time learners are properly supported, financially and structurally, strengthening partnerships across the tertiary sector and with employers, communities and government, and ensuring our research and innovation deliver real benefit across Scotland.

As the nature of work and technological change accelerates, degrees and post-school education must evolve, supporting people not just into work but throughout their careers. Scotland is well placed to build on the strength of its universities and college system, and I firmly believe The Open University has an important role in that evolution.

We very much look forward to working with MSPs from across the chamber to meet the economic and social challenges facing the country.

This article is sponsored by The Open University in Scotland.

university.open.ac.uk/scotland/

Headshot image credit: Kathryn Tuckerman