John Lewis Partnership Foundation: Building Happier Futures

Overview

They believe that every child and young person should have a fair start in life. Building Happier Futures is how they fund UK projects for care-experienced people, and make a difference to vulnerable children and young people who don’t have the safety net of family support.

They want to use their position as an employer and retailer to improve lives and harness the talents of individuals who have grown up in care – whether this is through direct support and financial aid, or providing employment opportunities and training for young people when they leave care. By focusing on their education and skills, they can equip them for long-term success, so they feel empowered to fulfil their potential.

Building Happier Futures exists to harness the talent and improve the lives of people who have grown up in care. They do this by funding the work of three key specialist national charities, providing student bursaries and grants to organisations who share their ambitions.

Care Experienced Scholarship

(opens on Open University website)

The Open University Care Experienced Scholarship offers ten full undergraduate scholarships to care-experienced young people aged 30 and under.

It has been designed in collaboration with The John Lewis Partnership as part of the Building Happier Futures initiative to offer young people with experience of being in care an opportunity to study an undergraduate qualification for free.

 Launched for the first time in the 2023/2024 academic year, offering four undergraduate scholarships, for the 2025/26 academic year, they’re offering ten further undergraduate scholarships to care-experienced young people aged 30 and under.

A scholarship covers OU undergraduate credit-bearing qualifications, paying for the full tuition cost of your qualification, up to 120 credits each seasonal academic year and 360 credits in total.

To be eligible, you’ll need to meet all the following criteria:

• be 30 years of age or under on 1 September 2025
• be starting OU study for the first time in the 2025/26 academic year
• be ordinarily resident in the UK and eligible for a UK fee
• hold no existing higher education qualification(s)
• be able to demonstrate proof of your experience of being in care
• have a gross personal income of not more than £25,000 per year or receive a qualifying benefit
• be studying a module as part of an undergraduate qualification in the academic year 2025/26 (1 September 2025 to 31 August 2026)
• be studying a minimum of 30 credits a year.

What supporting evidence do I need?

You will need to provide evidence of your care experience. This could be a letter from your Local Authority confirming your care leaver status or a letter from a GP, social worker, care experienced support service or other professional person from the local authority in which you were looked after. You’ll also need to provide evidence of your personal income or qualifying benefit.