ECYS News

The winners of the 2024 WELS Student and Tutor Awards were recently announced in a virtual awards ceremony. In total, 24 awards were made across the two categories, which recognise the achievements of some of the OU’s outstanding students, and the tutors who support them to succeed.

This year marks 20 years of the Children’s Research Centre (CRC), a pioneering centre that positions children as leaders of research. To celebrate 20 years of this innovative work, researchers came together at a conference in October.

Dr Simon Penn is the winner of the Outstanding Post Graduate Researcher Award at The Open University Research Excellence Awards for work that is changing the way the OU communicates feedback to students.

Dr Jennifer Agbaire has been awarded joint winner of the Outstanding Early Careers Research award at the 2024 Open University Research Excellence Awards for her exceptional research both in the UK and internationally.

Three Open University students have been recognised for their significant contributions to student voice and wellbeing, successfully gaining the SEDA Student Partnership Impact Award.

A new OU/BBC documentary ‘Linford’ looks back on the extraordinary career of one of Britain’s most successful athletes, Linford Christie. The documentary delves into the life of the man who was one of the most celebrated athletes in Britain, until his career closed with a scandal that shocked the nation.

Dr Victoria Cooper has been promoted to Professor of Childhood Studies, in recognition of her research expertise focusing on children’s voice, and her extensive teaching experience throughout her career and within the School of Education, Childhood, Youth and Sport (ECYS).

The OU’s tutors provide essential support and guidance that enable students to succeed. Every year the Faculty of WELS celebrates those tutors that have gone above and beyond what is expected of them, via the WELS Tutor Awards, which give students the opportunity to recognise the dedication and skill of their tutors. This year fourteen tutors received awards in two categories, from nearly 400 nominations.

A new three-part series co-produced by the OU and BBC will follow writer and rapper Darren McGarvey as he takes an unflinching look at the UK’s public services. Darren McGarvey: The State We’re In follows Darren as he explores the state of the UK’s classrooms, the heroic efforts of an NHS workforce battling rising patient numbers, and the UK’s justice system through the eyes of the people who live and work in it.

Following success at the Grierson Awards, the BBC/Open University co-production Inside our Autistic Minds has been recognised at the 2024 Broadcast Awards, scooping the prize for Best Specialist Factual Programme.