Care Experience Scholarships
Last year, the OU 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.
Less than a quarter (22%) of young people who are care experienced are in education, training or employment, compared to nearly two thirds (57%) of their peers. Employers are missing out on the potential of thousands of young people who leave the care system every year.
Young people who have spent time in care can face many significant barriers to entering and succeeding in higher education. This scholarship has been designed to provide care experienced young people a life changing opportunity to study for a higher education qualification with the UK’s largest distance learning provider.
In 2023, the Care Experienced Scholarship offered four full undergraduate scholarships to young people aged 25 and under, who have spent time in care and have faced significant barriers to entering and succeeding in higher education. In the next academic year a minimum of six will be offered thanks to the generosity of alumni and donors.
The scheme is closely linked to the John Lewis Partnership’s existing ‘Building Happier Futures’ programme, which looks to support, harness the talent, and improve the lives of young people who have grown up in care.
