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The Friday email: 30 January 2026

30 January 2026

University of Essex: job cuts and Southend campus closure

University of Essex management has announced plans to cut 400 jobs and to close the Southend campus. These decisions will have devastating consequences for staff, students, and the wider local community.

In UCU's short film (watch on YouTube, BlueSky or Facebook), staff and students explain what these plans mean, and why people are coming together to oppose these cuts and defend education in Essex.

Seven days of strike action will hit University of Essex in February. There will be rallies in Southend (Thursday 5 February) and Colchester (Thursday 12 February); please come and support Essex UCU.

New Deal for FE: next steps

Seventeen further education colleges in England took part in three days of strike action (14-January 2026) in the dispute over FE pay and conditions. You can click here to look back on some of the action.

The elected representatives on UCU's further education committee (FEC) determined that, after the strike action, UCU would send out a survey to eligible members in striking branches seeking their views on the next steps. The survey opened on Wednesday 21 January and will close on Monday 2 February at 12 noon. The responses to the survey will inform the decisions of the special FEC in February 2026.

If you are a UCU member in one of the striking UCU FE England branches, please look out for an email with the subject 'IMPORTANT: UCU New Deal for FE survey' sent by yoursay@ucu.org.uk. Please check your spam/junk folders if you cannot locate it. For the avoidance of doubt, this survey does not apply to UCU members in higher education.

Dispute at universities across the UK

This week UCU reps from Aberdeen, Dundee and Edinburgh universities joined Unite's Strathclyde rep to speak directly to MSPs on the impact of cuts on the workforce and the challenges trade unions face in working with university employers. Watch Dan Cutts, Melissa D'Ascenzio and Sophia Woodman and their hard-hitting evidence session on Scottish Parliament TV. Additionally, Dundee UCU members were on strike this week in their long-running dispute.

London Metropolitan University: London Met is slashing the jobs of 120 academic staff. The university is planning to make cuts in the schools of Art, Architecture & Design, Business & Law, Built Environment, Computing & Digital Media, Health Sciences, and Social Science & Professions. UCU has planned three rallies next month to protest against the plans and is encouraging staff, students and supporters to attend on: 

Northumbria University: Northumbria UCU members voted to take industrial action over plans to pressure them to leave the Teachers' Pension Scheme (TPS). On a turnout of 60%, 80% of participating staff backed strike action. The dispute comes amid growing national concern about universities such as Northumbria and Southampton Solent seeking to cut pension costs at the expense of their staff. A petition calling on Northumbria University to rethink its plans has reached over 1,000 signatures, and MPs have raised concerns and tabled a motion in Parliament. Public figures including the North East Mayor and local councillors wrote to the university recently offering support to staff.

University of Sheffield: Sheffield UCU members took 16 days of strike action in November and December in their fight against job cuts in professional services and further plans to cut jobs in academic areas. The university has informed staff that if they do not reschedule any teaching lost during the strike (for which staff were not paid) wages would be withheld between 19 January and 6 February. Please sign this petition and consider donating to Sheffield UCU's fundraiser. 

Please click here for developments at other institutions in dispute, and click here to see recent wins and resolutions.

UCU elections 2026

Postal ballots for UCU's officer and national executive committee (NEC) elections open on Friday 30 January, closing on Monday 2 March. You can find more information within UCU circular 2199. Candidates' election addresses are available on the UCU elections webpage.

USS pensions updates: conditional indexation, valuation changes and financial planning

Please click here for the USS conditional indexation (CI) January 2026 update, specifically USS has published a second report on CI and UCU's Superannuation Working Group (SWG) has organised two webinars (11 February and 25 February) to assist members in understanding and having input into this important issue. You can find more information here and contact the UCU pensions mailbox for queries.

In addition, following UCU proposals in March 2025, the USS trustee board recently confirmed that it was minded to adopt a number of UCU's proposals, subject to further engagement and consultation later this year. We believe that these changes will add further protection to members' pensions and were achieved through the solidarity action of UCU members. You can find more information on the changes here.

Finally, a USS pensions review webinar will take place on Wednesday 11 March (15:00). UCU, with our partners Quilter Financial Advisers (QFA), are offering a webinar for members in USS with information on basic financial planning and saving for retirement. To attend this event please click here to register. If this date is not convenient, please email QFA with your contact details and they can arrange a free initial appointment for you with a financial adviser.

UCU Cradle to Grave conference

The annual 'From Cradle to Grave' conference, which will take place on Saturday 21 March, brings together UCU members, academics, practitioners, sector representatives and politicians to discuss the major issues facing post-16 education. The theme of this year's conference is 'Fighting for an education for all' and will include plenary sessions on the implications of the post-16 education and skills white paper and on defending academic freedom and professional autonomy, as well as breakout sessions on artificial intelligence, green skills and international solidarity.

The conference will run as a hybrid event, with options to attend in person in Manchester or online via Zoom. We expect spaces to attend in-person to fill up quickly so register as soon as possible to secure your place. The deadline to register is Friday 6 March; the conference is free to attend. We appreciate rail costs can be expensive, and therefore for those traveling outside Manchester with tickets costing over £20 we can reimburse 25% of your ticket, up to a maximum of £50.

The need for a UK Accessibility Act

Disability Rights UK are seeking responses from disabled people and disabled people's organisations to their survey calling for a UK Accessibility Act, that would sit alongside the Equality Act 2010, establishing a range of accessibility standards. The survey will close on Tuesday 31 March at 17:00. You can find out more here.

TUC Year of Climate Action and UCU events

The Trades Union Congress (TUC) voted to back a Year of Climate Action, beginning in autumn 2025. As part of this, UCU is delivering two online workshops, bringing together members across education unions to exchange knowledge on sustainability and how workers can, through their roles and trade unions, advocate and organise for the integration of sustainability into all learning. You can register for the following:

On Saturday 14 March there will also be a Climate and Nature Education Festival held at Regents High School, London NW1 1RX. You can join hundreds of educators and activists from across the education sector, for a day of critical discussion on organising for a just transition.

UCU equality research conference

UCU's equality research conference will take place on Friday 15 May in a hybrid format (online or in-person). The conference is now open for papers; papers can be sent using this link. Deadline is Monday 23 February. Registration for the conference will open by mid-March.

Survey of members' experience of racism

UCU is committed to ensuring that all members work in an environment that is free from discrimination and racism. This survey is designed to understand your experiences with racism in the union and your workplace. Your feedback will help us address these issues and work toward a more inclusive and equitable environment for everyone. Participation is voluntary, and your responses will be kept confidential. The survey will be live for the next two weeks.

Last updated: 30 January 2026