All news and blog posts

hand holding phone

Centre for Protecting Women Online at The Open University responds to Government’s VAWG Strategy

The Centre welcomed the Government’s focus on online abuse in its VAWG Strategy but warned it treats digital abuse as secondary and relies too much on tech firms to self-regulate. It also flagged gaps in addressing adult women and racialised communities, calling for stronger accountability.

22nd December 2025
child and adult at an airport

Parental child abduction: why extending criminalisation is not the answer

Allison Wolfreys, Lecturer in Law at OULS, examines a proposed crime and policing bill that would make failing to return a child after a holiday a criminal offence, carrying a potential prison sentence of up to seven years.

15th December 2025

Triple Triumph: Mum and twin daughters graduate together from same university

There was no mistaking the joy on the faces of Sarah Chappell and her twin daughters Megan and Abbey Douglas-Chappell when all three donned cap and gowns and celebrated their graduation from The Open University recently.

6th November 2025

OU leads research on Scotland’s Fair Access landscape

A team of researchers from The Open University has been appointed to lead a new national project mapping Scotland’s Fair Access landscape.

30th October 2025

Discover the human side of space exploration in new OU / BBC programme

A new four-part OU/BBC series, Once Upon a Time in Space, begins on BBC Two and iPlayer at 9pm today (Monday 27 October).

27th October 2025
photo of OU campus

Centre for Protecting Women Online Concludes Inaugural Annual Conference at The Open University

The Centre for Protecting Women Online (CPWO) held its first annual conference which brought together global experts, academics, practitioners, advocates, and partners to share insights and strategies for tackling online violence against women and girls (OVAWG).

22nd September 2025
Jennie Lee Building, The Open University

Faculty part of successful £4.9M bid to lead research skills hub for social scientists

The OU Faculty of Business and Law, PolicyWISE, and the Institute of Educational Technology have secured £4.9M from the ESRC to lead a new Research Capability Hub. Over five years, the Hub will support social scientists across sectors and career stages, using OU’s innovative tech to deliver inclusive, future-focused research skills training.

10th September 2025
Two law grads

More graduates are tipping the scales of justice

Two of our Bachelor of Laws (LLB) alumni who live near England’s South Coast, both now undertaking AI-related postgraduate studies, show that the OU caters for both school leavers and those wanting a career change a bit later in life.

26th August 2025

Law grad Krishangi makes history once again

Our youngest ever OU Law graduate Krishangi Meshram is in the record books again – qualifying as the youngest solicitor in England and Wales in recent times.

14th August 2025
AI head and legal scales of power

Free online resources to promote a safer use of AI in legal settings

The Open Justice Centre has launched a new suite of free resources to help the legal sector navigate the opportunities and challenges of Generative AI. With AI tools rapidly evolving, legal professionals and self-representing individuals face risks from misinformation, yet lack access to trusted, free guidance.

11th August 2025
Subscribe to News