UCU Commons newsletter #23, 29 July 2026
Dear subscriber
Welcome to the UCU Commons newsletter, a curated set of links and information about what's happening in UCU Commons, our union, and our sectors more generally. As always, we welcome any feedback you may have on this or any other matter.
In today's issue:
What UCU Commons has been doing
We are delighted to announce that our member Madeleine Moore (Loughborough University) is running for election to the casual vacancy on UCU’s NEC. The vacancy has opened up due to Mark Pendleton’s election to Vice President half-way through his two-year term, so if elected, Madeleine would sit on UCU’s NEC and HEC until the close of Congress 2027. Madeleine says, “Mark’s are big shoes to fill, but I am very pleased to be running in an attempt to do so! These elections come at a critical time for the sector and I will push for a rounded UCU approach to fighting the multiple attacks faced by our HE and FE institutions, including political and public campaigning. I will also make sure that UCU remains steadfast in its support for our marginalised members in a difficult socio-political climate, from trans people to migrant workers. Equality and dignity for all is a workplace issue and must be central to our fight”. The ballot, which is conducted postally by law, opens on 17 August and closes on 17 September. Please do check that your address (ideally, your home address) is up-to-date in MyUCU so that you receive the papers.
This week, we donated £100 to the Durham Miners’ Gala. LGBT+ NEC rep and member of the Marras (Friends of Durham Miners’ Gala) Tilly Fitzmaurice says “The Durham Miners’ Gala has been happening every year since 1871 and it represents a unique event and a source of enormous local pride. I was horrified when I heard that the Friends of Durham Miners’ Gala were facing serious financial difficulties, so I’m so happy that UCU Commons decided to make this donation and contribute to the Gala’s future sustainability. Solidarity is a verb”.
News from UCU
Joint union negotiations on the HE pay offer for 2026–27 have ended. The offer – a paltry below-inflation 2% uplift – has been sent out to members via email for consultation. Sophia Woodman, vice-chair of HEC and national pay negotiator, says, “I don't think this offer is in any way acceptable, after almost two decades of serious pay erosion in the sector. But, we know from last year that for the majority of members, preventing job losses is more important than pay right now, so more UK-wide strikes for pay are not the best strategy for this moment. I will be voting to reject the pay offer, to send a clear message to UCEA that this is unacceptable. But I will be voting against for a ballot for industrial action, as right now UCU needs to focus on campaigning to fix the crisis and on supporting and amplifying local redundancy disputes”. Whatever your view, please do take a few minutes to read the documentation and fill in the survey, which closes on 11 August. If you have not received the email, the link contains instructions for receiving a new one.
UCU's Women Members’ Standing Committee (WMSC) recently signed up to the Not In Our Name coalition of women’s groups that oppose the incoming EHRC Code of Practice. Gillian Jack, a member of the WMSC says, “The code, due to come into force on 5 August, will make life difficult to the point of impossible for trans people who simply want to exist in public places. Along with much of the current anti-trans rhetoric, the guidance is done in the name of ‘protecting women and girls’ so it is particularly important that the WMSC has taken this step to stand publicly in solidarity with our trans siblings”.
With the arrival of Andy Burnham at 10 Downing Street on Monday 20 July, UCU issued the results of a survey into members’ voting intentions, with the following key message, ‘As Andy Burnham moves into Number 10, the results send a clear message to the new government. They show that support for Labour among our members has fallen sharply since the 2024 General Election: while 45% of respondents voted Labour in 2024, only 29% say they would vote Labour if an election were held now. But there is optimism from a Labour perspective, as they also show that 42% of members are more likely to support Labour with Andy Burnham as Prime Minister’. Mark Pendleton, UCU’s Vice President, spoke to Times Radio about Labour’s opportunity to turn the tide on the crisis in tertiary education. You can listen to the full interview below.
In our sectors
A new Prime Minister has heralded a new Secretary of State (SoS) for Education in the form of Lucy Powell, MP for Manchester Central. Jacqui Smith remains in post as Minister of State for Skills, overseeing post-16 education. Jo Edge says, “I breathed a sigh of relief at the departure of Bridget Phillipson from the role of SoS and had cautious optimism for Powell's appointment. However, Monday's announcement of an overhaul of school education to include technical pathways is ill thought-out. As someone who can barely change a lightbulb, I very much welcome all young people being equipped with technical and practical skills. But, this policy runs the risk of creating a two-tier system divided along lines of class, disability and migration status. The focus on local industrial strengths is also a huge gamble. Another policy firmly aimed at 'other people's children'”.
Bridget Phillipson remains Minister for Women and Equality, much to our dismay given her enthusiasm for trans segregation, but now sits in the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and reports to Angela Rayner – a confirmed trans ally.
More and more professional bodies are documenting and speaking out about the damage staff cuts based on crude metrics are doing to higher education. The British Academy has produced two valuable datasets on staff in humanities, arts and social sciences, as part of ongoing research in this area. The most recent release looks at the steep decline in availability of opportunities for early career academics in these disciplines, particularly in emerging regional ‘cold spots’ in provision of teaching in these areas: ‘The two datasets… reveal a wider erosion of the people, places, and capabilities that sustain these strategically important disciplines across the UK’. Elsewhere, the normally staid Higher Education Policy Institute (HEPI) published a blog post warning that the dominance of metrics in senior HE managers’ approach to addressing tight budgets through staff cuts risks fatally damaging key contributions universities make to their communities and to individual lives. The authors conclude: ‘Universities need to count carefully. But they must also remember what cannot be counted’. Governments – Westminster, devolved administrations, mayoralties and local governments – need to take notice, before it is too late.
This week, WonkHE reported that the Office for Students (OfS) has set aside £660,000 to pay the costs of their failed attempt to fine the University of Sussex £585,000, which arose from the OfS’s absolutist approach to free speech on university campuses. Rob Clarke says, “Incredible scenes from the OfS, the country’s most irregular regulator. The squandering of this kind of money on vexatious legal cases is nothing short of scandalous, and this news suggests that the OfS themselves saw little merit in the proceedings. Makes you wonder who insisted on bringing the case and why, doesn’t it?”.
We hope you have enjoyed this round up. Want to get involved? Join UCU Commons and work with us towards a more effective union for post-16 education here.
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