Loughborough UCU

Latest Loughborough UCU News

  • Expanding Palestine Solidarity Working Group to Demilitarisation Working Group 

    Written by LUCU Palestine Solidarity Working Group 

    Based on a branch motion passed in Oct 2024, LUCU has run a Palestine Solidarity Working Group that includes members from both campuses as well as committee members. We have made a strong effort to raise awareness about the ongoing genocide and occupation and crucially, to make it possible to speak about and organise in support of Palestine without fear of reprisals at Loughborough University.   

    Since then, the working group has done the following: 

    • Repeatedly pushed the University to re-assess its projects with potential links to breaches of international law, war crimes and genocide against the Palestinians, as it did with links to Russia following its invasion of Ukraine  
    • Sought clarity from the University that students would not be penalised for boycotting “mandatory” careers fairs with military presence 
    • Advocated for the rights of students to protest and to protect their identities, given concerns around political targeting of migrants 
    • Offered to mediate a meeting between University leaders and members of the REACH network and Loughborough Action for Palestine 
    • Held a Demilitarise Education hybrid workshop at the London campus on 13th November 2024 [I can ask for the dED slides if we can link here] 
    • Held two talks by Prof Ali Bilgic: ‘Contextualising the Conflict: A Brief History of the Middle East’ 8 July 2026 & ‘When The World Looked Away’ 3 March 2026 
    • Screened Maha Haj’s 2024 Upshot and Mohammed Bakri’s Jenin Jenin (2002) for Palestine Cinema Day 2025 at LUL – 4th November 2025, in collaboration with Filmlab Palestine / Palestine Cinema Days 2025 

    Working group members agree that they have fulfilled, to the extent possible, the aims of the initial motion in creating solidarity for Palestine among staff and students and supporting student rights to free speech and protest. We feel that the appropriate next step is to expand the remit of the working group to broader efforts against university militarisation. Key aims/actions would be to:  

    • Review Loughborough’s relationship to the UK and any foreign military entities, whether through research, funding, or teaching    
    • Request information on Loughborough’s plans to try and join the Defence Universities Alliance  
    • Work against further defence/military alliances and work to de-militarise the university’s existing relationships  
    • Create resources for education on the relationship between militarisation in education and capitalist interests within the UK that affect staff and students  
    • Explore, and make visible, contradictions between Loughborough’s ethical standards in academic research, and commitment to sustainability, with militarisation   
    • Ensure all forms of military aggression are reviewed on an equitable basis (e.g. breaking ties with Russia vs. with Israel)   
    • Invite Demilitarise Education (dED) for a workshop available to LUCU members and non-members  

    We remain committed to taking action in support of Palestine when our members identify relevant opportunities to do so. We will continue to work to transform the culture of silence around the occupation and genocide and keep Palestine on the agenda at Loughborough. 

    If you would like to get involved in this work, please contact the branch via ucu@lboro.ac.uk

  • Come to the LUCU AGM and Branch Social

    All LUCU members are invited to join us on Wednesday 1st July for the LUCU Annual General Meeting (AGM), along with a pre-AGM Branch Social. It’s a chance to catch up with colleagues, hear from a guest speaker, and take part in the business of the branch.

    The Branch Social will run from 12:00 to 1:00pm, followed by the AGM at 1:00pm. The meeting will take place in Brockington Building (map), Room B007, and will also be accessible online via Microsoft Teams. If you can, we’d encourage coming along in person.

    This year’s AGM will include a talk from Professor Lopa Leach, President of the University of Nottingham UCU branch. She will speak about members’ responses to mass redundancies at Nottingham, sharing insights into the wider challenges facing the sector and what branches can learn from recent experiences. There will be time for questions afterwards.

    The social beforehand is a relaxed way to start the afternoon. From 12:00pm, you can drop in to meet colleagues from across the university, have an informal catch-up, and enjoy some food and light refreshments provided by the branch.

    We will also use the AGM to announce the LUCU Committee for 2026/27, introducing the colleagues who will represent members over the coming year.

    AGM papers, calendar invites and the link for joining online have already been sent to members by email. If you haven’t received them, or need them sent again, please get in touch at ucu@lboro.ac.uk.

    We hope you can make it to the social and the AGM.

  • Have Your Say: Commuter Travel & Car Parking Survey Now Open

    Over the past few months, we have been building a collective response to the growing concerns around car parking and commuting at Loughborough University.

    We began by highlighting the likely impact of new student accommodation on parking capacity in Central and East Park. We then invited staff to share their experiences, concerns, and suggested solutions, and you responded in large numbers. Your feedback made clear just how significant these issues are for colleagues across the University.

    Now, we are taking the next step.

    Help Shape Our Demands

    We have developed a Commuter Travel & Car Parking Survey to better understand which solutions are most supported by staff.

    Your responses will directly inform:

    • The demands we take to the University
    • A forthcoming open letter, setting out these demands and inviting staff to show their support

    This is a crucial opportunity to ensure that our campaign reflects the views and priorities of staff as strongly and accurately as possible.

    The survey is open to all staff and should only take a few minutes to complete.

    Why Your Voice Matters

    Decisions about parking, commuting, and campus development affect us all, whether you drive, car share, cycle, use public transport, or combine multiple ways of getting to work.

    By completing the survey, you will be helping us to:

    • Identify the most widely supported solutions
    • Strengthen our position by providing additional details
    • Build a united, collective voice across staff

    The stronger the response, the harder it will be for the University to ignore.

    Please Take Part and Share

    We encourage to complete the survey today and to share the survey with your colleagues, in your teams and informal networks. The more staff who take part, the more representative, and impactful, our campaign will be.

    Click here to complete the survey, you can also copy this link to share the survey with colleagues.

    Together, we can ensure that staff voices are heard and that future decisions on commuting and parking are fair, sustainable, and workable for everyone.

    Thank you for your support.

  • Seeking Staff Feedback on Workload

    We know that workload is a major issue for staff, and we’re currently working with the University to see what improvements we can push for. 

    We need your input to help Loughborough UCU decide where to focus our efforts. 

    In particular, we’re looking to collect your thoughts on:  

    • What elements of your workload have the biggest impact on you and your stress levels, and how have those aspects of your workload changed over time?
    • What changes to ways of working would have the biggest positive impact for you? What are the barriers to these being implemented?  

    Please let us know your thoughts, by emailing ucu@lboro.ac.uk, on either/both of these questions when you get a chance. Please also share this article and request for feedback with your, we are seeking input from both UCU members and non-members alike.

    In addition to feeding back locally, we are also encouraging you to complete the UCU nationally run Workload Survey for all HE staff, including those who aren’t UCU members. If you have a chance to fill that out, that’d also be much appreciated – since the branch will later be looking at the findings from that as well.  

    Thanks so much for your time and input.

  • Introducing Our New Committee Member

    We are delighted to announce that Ruth Kinna has been co-opted onto the LUCU committee as an ordinary committee member, with immediate effect. Ruth will contribute to the committee’s ongoing work while gaining experience in the role.

    We warmly encourage anyone interested in becoming more involved in the branch to contact our Branch Organiser, Callum Salfield, to explore the opportunities available.

    Ruth introduces herself below:

    Ruth Kinna, Ordinary Committee Member

    “Hi everyone! I’m Ruth Kinna, a political theorist in the School of Social Sciences and Humanities. I joined UCU when I started working at Loughborough in 1992. I was Departmental Rep for a couple of years and enjoyed working with my fellow reps in the School. I have since participated in the UCU branch campaigns and workload committees. I’m keen to support the crucial work that the branch does to improve everyone’s work and conditions.”

    Committee members and reps are central to how our branch supports its members. Committee members contribute to a wide range of branch activities, while reps play a key role in resolving local issues, building community, and ensuring members’ voices are heard across the University.

    Whether representing a department or focusing on specific areas such as workload, reps and committee members strengthen our collective ability to make Loughborough a fairer and more supportive place to work. If you’re interested in getting more involved, or would like to find out more about what’s involved, please contact Callum Salfield for an informal chat.

  • Report from UCU Congress 2026 & LUCU’s Motion on Tax Reform

    Congress was attended this year by David Wilson, branch Chair, and Jonathan Causton, an ordinary member and relatively new recruit to the branch committee. This year we were in Harrogate, though one blacked-out conference hall looks much like another! As ever it was a very full three days of discussions and motions on a range of issues divided up according to which UCU committee they fell under – Education, Equality, Strategy and Finance, Recruitment Organising and Campaigning. Day two is split into separate meetings for Higher and Further Education sectors. Motions cover everything from the minutia of UCU rules to condemnation of international military actions.

    The motion that Loughborough UCU submitted, on growing inequality and the urgent need for tax reform, was heard on the last day and received overwhelming support. This makes it UCU policy to both lobby government and educate the membership on the importance of this issue, and to lobby sector employer bodies such as Universities UK to join us in pressing for this as a solution to the funding crisis, rather than simply demanding higher fees. Tax reform sounds like about as dry a subject as you could hope to find, but it is not over-stating things to say it is an existential issue not just for education, but all public services and indeed society as we know it. To explain why, in under a minute we recommend this video of Gary Stevenson.  For a longer discussion on the topic you might try recent appearances from leading wealth tax economist Gabriel Zucman on Bold Politics or Gary’s Economics.

    Special guest speakers at Congress were Zack Polanski, the leader of the Green Party of England and Wales, and Asad Rehman, Chief Executive of Friends of The Earth.  Both spoke eloquently about the links between workers’ rights, global inequality, and sustainability – all desperately urgent topics to address if we want future generations to inherit a world worth living in, and all reliant on a flourishing education system.

  • Upcoming Change to USS Commutation Factors

    The Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS) has confirmed that its commutation factors will be updated from 1 October 2026. These factors are reviewed regularly and are an important part of how retirement benefits are calculated.

    This change may affect members who are considering exchanging pension income for a lump sum, or vice versa, at retirement.

    What are commutation factors?

    Commutation factors are used by USS to determine the value when members choose to exchange:

    1. Part of their pension for a larger lump sum, or
    2. Part (or all) of their lump sum for a higher annual pension

    These factors vary depending on your age and reflect the relative value of the benefits being exchanged.

    You can read more about how these factors work on the USS website: https://www.uss.co.uk/for-members/calculate-your-benefits/factors-used-by-uss

    Exchanging pension for a larger lump sum

    If you choose to give up part of your Retirement Income Builder pension to receive a larger lump sum:

    1. USS multiplies the pension you give up by a commutation factor
    2. The factor depends on your age and the value of the pension being exchanged

    From 1 October 2026, updated commutation factors will apply. Under the new factors, members may receive slightly less lump sum for the same amount of pension exchanged compared to the current rates.

    Exchanging lump sum for additional pension

    If you instead choose to exchange some or all of your lump sum for a higher annual pension:

    1. USS applies a reverse commutation factor
    2. The lump sum is divided by this factor to calculate the additional pension
    3. The factor depends on your age and the value of the pension being provided

    Following the change on 1 October 2026, members may receive slightly more pension for a given lump sum than under the current arrangements.

    What this means for you

    These changes highlight the importance of considering the timing of your retirement decisions. Depending on your plans, the updated factors could affect the value of the benefits you receive when exchanging between pension and lump sum.

    Members are encouraged to review their options carefully and consider how these changes may impact their retirement choices.

    Further information and guidance

    For more detail on USS commutation factors, visit: https://www.uss.co.uk/for-members/calculate-your-benefits/factors-used-by-uss

    Please note that this article is provided for information only and does not constitute financial advice. If you are considering accessing your pension benefits, you should seek independent financial advice.

    UCU members who wish to do so can access the services of Quilter Financial Advisers through the UCU partnership: https://www.ucu.org.uk/quilterfinancialadvice

  • A Time for Collective Action and Solidarity

    This week university management will announce their proposals for cuts to Professional Services.  As discussed by the Vice Chancelor last week, the approach taken at some universities is to officially place hundreds of staff at risk of redundancy, creating anxiety and uncertainty for many.  Loughborough is taking a more targeted approach, having made specific decisions about areas where they feel cuts can be made.  As a result, in the next few days, the vast majority of us will be breathing a sigh of relief as we discover that our jobs are not in the firing line.

    It is crucial, and fundamental to the core values of trade unions, that we do not turn away from the situation and leave small number of our colleagues and friends feeling isolated and afraid.  We must remain united – they must be supported by the union.

    In an age where everything from your entertainment to your toilet roll can be a subscription service where a monthly fee is exchanged for a product dropped into your lap, we must remember that a union is not the same thing.  I, as branch Chair, am not the union.  The Loughborough UCU committee is not the union.  Jo Grady is not the union. You are the union.  We are the union.  Netflix didn’t bring us pensions, the weekend or safe workplaces.  Collective union action brought us those things.  A subscription service can’t support our colleagues.  We can.

    It is UCU policy to always oppose redundancies and to seek other options.  This week we will enter a period of at least 30 days’ consultation on the restructure proposals.  This means we have a month to work together to consider and propose alternatives, which management must take seriously.  You are the experts in your areas of work.  If there are ways you think money can be saved that could help protect jobs then share them.

    As well as the branch General Meeting on Wednesday we will be organising regular meetings both in departments and for all members to talk about what’s happening, provide support, and share alternative proposals that we can take to management. 

    We’re all overwhelmed by bad situations we can do little about.  With this situation we can all make a big difference. Let’s stay engaged and work together.

  • Challenging the Far Right: Rebuilding Solidarity Training

    Challenging the Far Right: Rebuilding Solidarity – 25, 26, June 2026, In Person, Quorn Loughborough, National residential course

    Rebuilding Solidarity is a new course for UCU Reps and activists which will help participants to address and challenge far right narratives with knowledge and confidence, both in the workplace and wider community settings. Rebuilding Solidarity is being delivered in partnership with the General Federation of Trade Unions (GFTU) and will include a wide range of contributors including academics and activists.

    Please note: Applications for this course will close at 12 noon on Monday, 15, June, 2026. This is to allow all logistic, accommodation, adjustments and requirements to take place in good time. Application post the cut off date risk not being considered.

    Course content:

    Participants will be able to:

    • understand who is being drawn to the far right, what their key concerns are, where opportunities for relationship-building lay and solidarity exist. The course will use analysis and modelling undertaken around and since the 13 September 2025 ‘Unite the Kingdom’ demonstration in London and more recently, including the upcoming local and devolved authority elections
    • be able to identify the importance of a multi-layered approach to tackling divisive ideas, including the role of dialogue, education and community organising
    • know and describe the real causes of insecure work and housing, following an interactive session with an economist from SOAS University of London on the economic foundations of insecurity in Britain and how false narratives distract from structural causes of inequality
    • be able to challenge a range of myths related to migration, including identifying the key role these falsehoods play in dividing our communities and how social media works to maximise this
    • build skills and confidence in reframing these issues to promote solidarity, through dialogue and conversations in work and in communities
    • identify the specific role and function trade unions can play in providing alternative explanations for social and economic failings and offering a more hopeful future build on unity

    Rebuilding Solidarity is being delivered in partnership with the General Federation of Trade Unions (GFTU) and will include a wide range of contributors including academics and activists.

    This course is not a lecture and will require some participation from all attendees.

    More info and to register: https://www.ucu.org.uk/article/13777/Challenging-the-Far-Right-Rebuilding-Solidarity—25-26-June-2026-In-Person-Quorn-Loughborough-National-residential-course

  • Committee Team Update – A Fond Farewell to our Personal Casework Co-ordinator

    We are wishing a fond farewell to our Personal Casework Co-ordinator, Eleanor Roberts, who has left the University to take up a role with the National Education Union. Eleanor has been a huge asset to the branch in her time here, initially working as our Membership Secretary and for the last year as our Personal Casework Co-ordinator. We thank Eleanor for her huge contribution and wish her all the best for her new job.

    With Eleanor leaving we are left with a vacancy for a Personal Casework Co-ordinator. As an interim measure, our Equality Rep, Angela Dy, will carry out these duties with support from Marie Hanlon. We also currently have vacancies for a Vice Chair, Membership Secretary, and Anti-Casualisation Officer.  If anyone is interested in joining the committee to fill one of our vacant positions, or as an ordinary committee member (with no portfolio – a great first step to being more involved in the branch), please get in touch with our Branch Organiser, Callum Salfield, to discuss which role may be a good fit for you.

  • Reps Team Update – New Workload Rep in SDCA

    We are very pleased to welcome Jennifer Dranttel as our new Workload Rep for the School of Design & Creative Arts. This role focusses specifically on monitoring and addressing workload issues within departments, supporting colleagues, gathering evidence, and contributing to branch-wide efforts to promote fair and sustainable working practices.

    Jennifer Dranttel, LUCU Workload Rep for SDCA introduces herself below:

    “My name is Jennifer Dranttel and I am a University Teacher in Textile Design at Loughborough University where my role is teaching-focussed, alongside a personal research practice. My work sits at the intersection of textile design, BioDesign, climate justice, and sustainability, with a particular interest in material innovation and culturally situated design methodologies.
    I have been a member of UCU since I joined Loughborough in 2023, and this role is an opportunity to more actively contribute to the collective voice of staff within the university. I have volunteered to focus on workload because of my own experience of feeling not always empowered in conversations around role expectations, capacity, and responsibilities. I am particularly interested in advocating for greater transparency, fairness, and consistency in how workload is allocated and recognised, especially within teaching-intensive roles and practice-based disciplines.
    I am keen to work with colleagues to ensure that workload processes are not only equitable on paper, but meaningful in practice, and that staff feel confident and supported in raising concerns. I look forward to contributing to a stronger, more collective approach to improving working conditions across the university.”

    We are encouraging members across all Schools and Professional Services areas to consider becoming a Workload Rep. If you are interested in taking on this role or would like to find out more, please see here or contact our Branch Organiser, Callum Salfield, for an informal discussion.

    Department Reps

    Department Reps are at the heart of how our branch supports members. They play a vital role in helping to resolve local issues, build community, and ensure that members’ voices are heard across the University. Whether representing a department or focusing on specific issues like workload, Reps strengthen our collective ability to make Loughborough a fairer and more supportive workplace.

    We currently have vacancies for Department Reps in Chemistry (School of Science) & Loughborough Sport. In addition, Student Services and Estates and Facilities Management are being covered by a temporary Rep while we seek volunteers from within those areas to take on the roles permanently.

    Members in any of these areas who are interested in becoming a Department Rep, or would like to find out more about what’s involved, are encouraged to contact Callum Salfield for an informal chat.

  • Introduction of Guidelines for Managers Dealing with Restructures

    The sensitive handling of restructures, and constructive and timely engagement with unions on these, has been a significant issue on which the campus unions have repeatedly pressed management for several years.  In partnership with the University we have agreed guidelines that should be followed which include specifics about how and when to engage with the unions, as well as setting a positive tone for this engagement.  We are hopeful that this will improve the experience and outcomes for members, as well as the reps involved.

    Link to the guidance: https://internal.lboro.ac.uk/info/managing-organisational-change/ (you will need the VPN if off campus, and will need to log in to the web page)

AGM All Staff Anti-Racism Ballot Casework Committee Covid-19 CPD EDI Environment equality Events Four Fights General Assembly General Meeting Industrial Action Joint Campus Unions Lboro Campus lgbtqi+ MAB Meeting members News Our Reps Palestine Pay PDR Pension Pickets Professional Services Reps Network Restructure Social Solidarity strike Survey Teachout Training UCURising Unison unite unite the union USS WeAreTheUniversity Workload