1. Commissioned and funded
by the Scottish Government,
The OU in Scotland developed
a free online resource to
support the Health and
Social Care workforce and
communities to become more
informed about Self Directed
Support in response to the
2013 legislation.
As a result, a 60 hour non-accredited
resource was developed and tailored for
Scotland. The resource has been accessed
extensively by over 10,000 people. An
ever-increasing range of public and third
sector organisations have also used the
course to inform and build confidence in
the workforce. The course has been very
well received, and it demonstrates The OU’s
capacity to deliver high quality learning to a
large, dispersed Scottish audience.
Individuals and organisations have reported
that the course has helped to build
knowledge and capacity to implement SDS
and that it has been a very useful resource.
Using Open Education to support the workforce
Workplace
learning in
action
0300 303 5303 scotland@open.ac.uk www.open.ac.uk/scotland
www.facebook.com/theopenuniversity @ouscotland
For further information on how we can work with you, please contact :
Derek Goldman
Learning and Teaching Co-ordinator (Developed Workforce)
E: derek.goldman@open.ac.uk
T: 0131 549 7155
Jackie Baker
Corporate Development Manager
E: jackie.baker@open.ac.uk
T: 07879 680 667

2. The OU in Scotland’s long standing
partnership with Unite the Union
and Rolls Royce, provides a
flexible pathway into and through
higher education.
It enables engineering workers, who may
have completed an apprenticeship, to
progress towards a BEng or another degree.
John Malone completed his apprenticeship
30 years ago and is studying the BSc
Engineering degree with The Open
University. The prospect of progress within
the company was a reason for his studies:
“I’m doing an Engineering degree, mainly for
personal achievement because I didn’t have
the academic qualification. In turn, I hope
it will give me an opportunity to progress
within the company. It’s made me a more
confident person to take on any task that
the company may give me. I would probably
not have done this in the past, before I
started doing the degree.“
Dementia is a national priority
of the Scottish Government as
people live longer, with more
complex care needs.
At The Open University in Scotland we have
developed an innovative partnership with
ASDA, that has led to a work-based learning
initiative in which ASDA Community Life
Champions in Scotland have undertaken
workshop training to increase their
awareness of dementia and to enhance
their skills.
The training has raised awareness and
understanding of how to support customers
who experience dementia, whether they
are in store or members of the broader
community. Additionally, we have
developed dementia store resources as
prompts for store staff.
Staff have commented that the programme
has helped increase their confidence and
they are now more aware of strategies that
can be used to support customers in store
or the community.
This partnership won the “outstanding
contribution to the community” category
at the prestigious Herald Higher Education
Awards in 2015. We’re currently exploring
how we can develop this work with other
organisations in the service sector.
Havingacloserlookat
workplacelearninginaction
Rolls Royce and Unite the Union
WorkingwithASDAtocreateaDementiafriendlyretailenvironment
...It’s made me a more
confident person to take on
any task that the company
may give me...
Learningintheworkplace
atTheOpenUniversity
inScotland
Around 70% of our students in Scotland are in work
• We have students from across all 32 local authorities
in Scotland. Whether you’re in Elgin, Edinburgh or
Ecclefechan we can reach you
• Many of our students are sponsored to study with us
across the length and breadth of Scotland
• Hundreds of organisations have students studying
with The OU in Scotland
• We work in collaboration with a range of Trade
Unions in Scotland to support union learners in the
workplace
• The Open University has been rated top for student
satisfaction in Scotland in 2015 in the National
Student Survey (NSS). Incidentally, we’ve been top of
the survey 9 times in the past 10 years