News

The University is currently proposing to issue Compulsory Redundancy notices to staff in Academic Services, despite substantially above-target student enrolment for the 2025-2026 academic year. 

This is due to follow the conclusion of the Academic Services, TACQ (Tuition, assessment, curriculum and quality) organisational design consultation on 26 January. If the University leadership is willing to use compulsory redundancy once, they‘ll  use it again. It is therefore essential that the staff body shows its opposition. 

The UCU "We are the University" Higher Education ballot is now open. Please remember to return your ballot papers before 26th November 2025 and tell us that you have voted using this form: 

We are the University ballot, October-November 2025

UCU demands are straightforward, reasonable and achievable. We are calling for:

Please refer to the national UCU website for UCU news. 

We will occasionally post branch news on our website. 

UCU has announced a nationwide ballot over pay: read the full news article on the UCU website. 

A number of ballots were conducted at UCU Congress 2025, Further Education (FE) and Higher Education (HE) sector conferences. The results of these ballots have now been published and can be found in this branch circular or on the Congress webpage: https://www.ucu.org.uk/congress25

Post-16 education is in crisis. It is UCU's duty to bring together UCU members, workers from across the trade union movement, students, supporters, and activists to fight back against cuts, attacks in the media, financial mismanagement, and the erosion of professional pride.

UCU has launched a UK-wide campaign calling for a stop to the cuts that are damaging the higher education (HE) sector. The current situation is unsustainable: increasing numbers of HE institutions announcing redundancy programmes; a broken funding model causing harm to staff and students; financial mismanagement at some universities which are lavishing money on expensive projects and overseas campuses while making widespread job cuts.

This new Stop the Cuts HE campaign has been launched in pursuit of a 'fit for purpose' funding model and for urgent government intervention. 

The Executive and AL reps committees held hybrid meetings in January at the Council House in Victoria Square in Birmingham. All members enjoyed meeting in person for the first time in several years. Photo of some of the Executive Committee members at Birmingham New Street Station, our Branch President, Pete Wood, conducted a walking tour of Birmingham city centre. 

The branch Executive Committee has sent the following letter to all members of the Open University (OU) Vice-Chancellor's Executive (VCE) and the Chair of the OU Council today (12 December 2024).