Part-time learning works

The 2026 Scottish Parliament election is an opportunity to choose to take a different approach to supporting part-time students. For too long parliamentarians have primarily focused on the traditional four-year full-time campus-based degree to the detriment of part-time learners.

That is why our 2026 Scottish Parliament Election Manifesto (PDF, 671 KB) is calling for the next parliament to have a laser focus on part-time students, prioritising their funding and support to enable a paradigm shift to lifelong learning. 

This should take the form of: 

• The creation of an equitable student financial support system so that part-time students have access to the same allowances, benefits and loans as their full-time peers.
• An increase to the threshold for the Part-Time Fee Grant adjusted for inflation, addressing the fact that it hasn’t altered since its introduction in 2013.
• The creation of a new Fund to support employers and employees looking to upskill and re-skill.

Doing so we believe will help the next Scottish Government to: 

• Deliver the National Strategy for Economic Transformation.
• Care for an ageing population.
• Support Scotland’s SMEs to plug skills gaps.
• Support Scotland’s employers to meet the unfilled demand for apprenticeship places.
• Deliver the Net Zero transformation with high skills.

We work with businesses, employers, communities, and individuals to provide workplace skills. Read the case studies and hear from the workforce in their own words.

Examples of how we are 'Opening Doors to Opportunity' can be found in our 2024 Annual Review, including how we are driving start-up innovation and inclusion through key partnerships as well as developing skills for a stronger economy. 

Meet our students and alumni and read their inspiring stories from across Scotland.     

Discover some key facts and figures (PDF, 1.62 MB) about the OU in Scotland.

For further information, or to discuss the OU's Scottish Parliament Manifesto 2026, contact the OU in Scotland's Senior Public Affairs Manager, Keith Robson.