This is an important part of our ‘Learn and Live’ University Strategy focusing on equity of opportunity and building inclusivity for all. We are pleased to offer Sanctuary scholarships that will help recipients transform and rebuild their lives by removing some of the barriers to accessing education. We are working towards creating an institution that is truly open and welcomes people who are seeking asylum and from refugee backgrounds. Social justice is at the centre of this and we are committed to creating a welcoming, safe and inclusive environment for all. The Open University’s mission is to be open to people, places, methods and ideas. Our institution wants to seize the opportunity to rethink how we tackle inequality inside and outside the OU, to demonstrate the work we already do, and to develop new commitments that will help us better foster our dedication to a culture of awareness and inclusivity. Joining a growing network of Universities of Sanctuary in the UK will help bring together the OU’s existing, past, and future efforts and engagements with forced-migrant learners, and help the University better align its mission of being open to people, places, methods, and ideas. In the past few years, the OU has been involved in several activities seeking to ensure better access and increased participation in education for forced migrants. The Open University (OU) has a long-standing commitment to offering support and raising awareness of those seeking sanctuary through teaching, research, and knowledge exchange, as well as through community and civil society engagement. The UNHCR estimates that only about 5% of the world’s 25.9 million refugees have access to HE opportunities in the host states, a long way from the target of 15% set for 2030. Educated refugees also serve as role models within their community and often engage in activities that strengthen community-based protection. Not only this, but returnees with high education levels are key drivers of post-conflict peacebuilding and reconstruction in their countries of origin. HE can provide people from forced migration backgrounds with the opportunity to gain access to appropriate skills and employment opportunities, participate in new social and professional networks, and contribute to their new homes. Seeking to become a University of SanctuaryĪs more people are forced to flee oppression and conflict in their countries and seek refuge in the UK, there is a stronger need to make them feel safe, secure, and provide pathways to meaningful societal integration.
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