Dr Liz FitzGerald | April 2025
The Open University (OU) has played a pivotal role in the PRIME (Protecting Minority Ethnic Communities Online) project, a major three-year research initiative led by Heriot-Watt University, which is set to conclude at the end of March 2025. The project has uncovered how the rapid digitisation of essential services in the UK - particularly in healthcare, housing and energy - has exacerbated inequalities for minoritised ethnic communities, especially those already facing digital exclusion, language barriers, and systemic discrimination.
Dr Liz FitzGerald, Senior Lecturer in the Institute of Educational Technology at The Open University, highlighted the significance of the project’s findings: “PRIME has provided a crucial evidence base demonstrating how digital inequalities disproportionately affect minoritised ethnic communities. Through our contributions to the project, we have ensured that real-world solutions, including accessible awareness videos, are available to drive meaningful change in service design and policy.”
Read more in OU’s newsletter here: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/research-ou-breaking-down-barriers-refugee-women-wales-zw2je/ and here: https://research.open.ac.uk/news/ou-concludes-key-role-prime-project-digital-inequalities
