News & articles

The government is proposing a change in the law on parental child abduction. The crime and policing bill, under consideration in parliament, would make it a crime for a parent to take their child on holiday and then not return them at the end of the agreed holiday period.

The Open University hosted its second lecture in its Global Development Annual Lecture series on 20 November 2025.

Professor Bart Rienties, a long-standing champion of transplant sport and a leading Open University researcher on physical activity among transplant recipients, has been honoured for saving a fellow athlete from drowning during the World Transplant Games triathlon this year.

This month’s research image of the month (November 2025) captures Professor Natalia Szablewska’s research, which explores how global laws and governance systems can hold businesses and other non-state actors responsible for respecting human rights, especially for vulnerable communities.

PolicyWISE, The Open University’s innovative cross-nation policy research initiative, has been Highly Commended in the ‘One to Watch’ category at the Smart Thinking Awards 2025.

The Open University has contributed to a new House of Lords report on the UK space economy, with several of the report’s recommendations reflecting evidence submitted by the University.

A project which supported the education of adolescent girls at greatest risk of exclusion in Zimbabwe, won International Collaboration of the Year category in the Times Higher Education Awards 2025.

The Open University has been recognised for its research excellence and societal impact at this year’s Green Gown Awards, receiving two Highly Commended honours across key categories.

The Open University-led Open Societal Challenge recognised for empowering older adults to build lasting healthy habits and fostering community wellbeing has won the Self-Care Forum’s 2025 Self-Care Award.

Dr Paul Piwek, Senior Lecturer in Computing, has been awarded £97,000 in funding from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council as part of a large multi-site project titled Wargaming AI – Through the Enemy’s Eyes.