Business First talked to John D’Arcy, National Director of The Open University, about doing business in East Belfast and the company’s support as a sponsor of the Eastside Awards.
Tell us about The Open University John
The only university in Northern Ireland dedicated to distance learning, we are open to people, places, methods and ideas. We promote educational opportunity and social justice by providing high-quality, university education to all who wish to realise their ambitions and fulfil their potential.
We are here to help individuals, local business, the community and the economy of Northern Ireland. The Open University is a unique university created over 50 years ago to open up education to all.
We are the experts in online learning and lead the way in developing new and innovative teaching methods and materials, opening learning to people of all ages and academic backgrounds.
The OU is the largest academic institution in the UK and a world leader in flexible online learning. Since it began in 1969, the OU has taught more than two million students worldwide and has over 170,000 current students, including more than 7,000 students in 150 countries.
Over 4,200 students study with The Open University across Northern Ireland and cover every constituency in Northern Ireland and in East Belfast we have around 350 people studying with us.
We offer over 200 qualifications across 17 subject areas, many accredited by leading professional bodies.
Why do you do business in East Belfast?
The Open University is unique as we are open to all people across the whole of Northern Ireland as study is online and there is no building to attend to complete courses. This enables us to cover areas such as East Belfast. Our vision is to enable people to change their lives through learning across Northern Ireland. This is regardless of who you are, where you are, what education you have obtained in the past. We open up education to all.
How have you navigated your business through 2020?
The Open University has sought to navigate 2020 by using its strengths as an online learning provider to help those who need its skills during the current pandemic. We have sought to continue enabling people across Northern Ireland to change their lives through learning and continue the provision of learning with as little disruption as possible. We have sought to provide learning opportunities in partnership with the Department for the Economy for those whose employment has been impacted by Covid-19 with the provision of fully funded courses to help them gain skills they need during this time.
We have also sought to share our expertise in online learning by providing several microcredentials to help guide those other organisations who need help taking their learning online.
Why is The Open University sponsoring Eastside Awards?
The Open University’s ethos of being open to people, places, methods and ideas recognises our social justice ethos and with this the need to support local communities and empower people to realise their ambitions and change their lives. The Eastside Awards shares this view and so The Open University supports these awards whole heartedly and wants to recognise the stories and contributions of the people within East Belfast.
Finally John, what are you hoping ‘East Belfast – Our Story 2020’ will achieve?
That the people of East Belfast will be inspired by other stories to realise their ambition and be enabled to change their lives in some way.
This year’s Eastside Awards is taking on a new format. People are being asked to contribute to ‘East Belfast – Our Story 2020’, a film which will be broadcast in early 2021 celebrating those who have been an inspiration in the local East Belfast community this year. The organisers want to hear powerful stories from education, sport, the arts, business, health and social care, stories of how children were nurtured during lockdown, extraordinary stories about community spirit and innovative stories about business survival. If you would like to share the story of how your business responded to the pandemic or a story about someone you know who displayed about human kindness, if you know a teacher who has gone the extra mile, if you have an exceptional neighbour, if your community group risked their health to help others during lockdown or you know of a volunteer who should be recognised, send your story via video to [email protected] or visit www.eastsidewards.org for further information.
East Belfast – Our Story 2020 has been made possible by George Best Belfast City Airport, Belfast City Council, Belfast Harbour, East Belfast Enterprise, East Belfast Mission, EastSide Partnership, Fleet Financial, Kainos, Millar McCall Wylie, The Open University, Phoenix Natural Gas, Solv Group, The Urban Villages Initiative, We’reSure Insurance Services, Wolseley Plumb and Parts Center and media partner, Belfast Live.
Closing date for story submissions is 5.00pm on Friday 18 December.
#EastBelfastStory2020
