New Deal for FE consultation, May-June 2025

In the New Deal for FE consultative ballot that closed on Friday 20 June 2025, the response from England FE members to the question 'Are you prepared to take strike action to secure an above inflation pay rise, binding national bargaining structures and a national workload agreement?' was very clear, with 86.1% of members voting YES.

The further education committee (FEC) will consider the result in detail and decide on the next steps in UCU's campaign for a New Deal for FE, when the committee meets on Friday 4 July 2025. Branch level results will be available to branch officers, via their regional offices, after the FEC on Friday 4 July 2025.

What is happening?

UCU is running a consultation, in the form of an electronic ballot, of members in further education (FE) colleges in England to discern the level of support for an industrial action ballot in Autumn 2025, should the further education sector conference at UCU Congress 2025 vote for one. The industrial action ballot will be in support of delivering a New Deal for FE.

The electronic ballot will open on Thursday 22 May 2025 and close on Friday 20 June 2025.

Eligible UCU FE members will receive an email containing a unique weblink which can be used to cast their vote. Members should not forward or share their unique voting link.

Please vote YES in support of a national industrial action ballot. 

What is the timetable for the electronic ballot?

The following is the timetable for the New Deal for FE electronic ballot:

• Thursday 22 May 2025: electronic ballot opens
• Thursday 29 May 2025 (09:00): replacement electronic ballot form opens
• Friday 13 June 2025 (12 noon): replacement electronic ballot form closes
• Friday 13 June 2025 (12 noon): deadline for new members to join and be automatically included in the electronic ballot
• Friday 20 June 2025 (17:00): electronic ballot closes
• Results of the electronic ballot will be announced in week beginning Monday 23 June 2025.

Which UCU branches are participating in the New Deal for FE electronic ballot?

Click here for a list of UCU England further education branches that are participating in the New Deal for FE electronic ballot. In total there are 206 UCU branches involved.

Please note that some England further education branches are already pursuing disputes regarding pay and working conditions and those are not included in the consultation.

Why have I not received an electronic ballot email?

If members have not received an electronic ballot email, they can request a replacement electronic ballot via this form.

Please note that this form is only open between Thursday 29 May 2025 (09:00) and Friday 13 June 2025 (12 noon).

Before using the replacement electronic ballot request form, UCU members should make sure that they:

• are working in a further education (FE) college in England involved in this e-ballot
• have checked the spam/junk folder of their email account
• have checked their personal as well as work email accounts (the e-ballot has been sent to UCU members' declared 'preferred email address' where they would normally receive UCU's other communications such as the 'Friday Email')
• are a full UCU member (retired or student members, as well as members whose membership has lapsed, are not e-balloted)
• have checked their workplace/employer information (members can check their details by logging into MyUCU).

What is a New Deal for FE about?

The New Deal for FE campaign is built on three fundamental demands:

• pay parity with schoolteachers in England
• national workload agreements
• fully funded and sector-level national bargaining. 

For too long FE has been the neglected sector in Post-16 education. FE staff deserve the same pay as schoolteachers, professional respect, decent terms and conditions and manageable workloads. The New Deal for FE is about all this and more. UCU members now have a chance to join thousands of others and help decide what UCU does in Autumn 2025.

Why now?

The UK Labour government offers the potential for a generational opportunity to reset further education at the heart of the Post-16 education and skills agenda. To do that we need a joined up strategic investment and workforce strategy.

The New Deal for FE provides the roadmap to that reset. The pay gap with schools, which now averages around £10K, must close if staff are to be attracted and retained in FE. Unmanageable workloads need to be addressed with a national framework that applies to all colleges. Sector level pay bargaining needs to be meaningful so that offers made are funded and implemented across the sector.

What is the plan?

The result of the electronic ballot will be considered alongside decisions made at the further education sector conference (FESC) at UCU Congress 2025. The further education committee (FEC) then meets in early July 2025 to implement the decisions of FESC.

At the FESC, branches will decide on the timetable for a strike ballot and what type of ballot is organised such as an 'aggregate' or 'disaggregate' ballot. We want to secure the highest turnout possible in this electronic ballot at it will be an important factor in the democratic decision-making that follows.

Update, 27 May 2025: The FESC at UCU Congress 2025 has voted to ballot UCU members at further education colleges in England for strike action. This will involve a statutory, postal ballot. Meanwhile, the consultative, electronic ballot will continue and will close on Friday 20 June 2025 at 17:00.

Downloadable resources for the electronic ballot

Consultation A4 poster [319kb]	Consultation A5 leaflet [361kb]

VOTE YES in the New Deal for FE electronic ballot!