Today (Thursday 6 May), an invitation was sent to all academic staff and Professional Services staff on grades 7-10 to attend a USS staff forum on 13 May. You can read the full email below.

Thank you to everybody who has completed our survey about the 2020 valuation of the USS pension scheme. We have had more than 250 responses so far and your feedback will help to inform the University’s response to Universities UK’s current consultation with the 340 employers in USS, including Sussex. The survey remains open until 5pm tomorrow (Friday 7 May), so you still have time to give your views.

Over the past couple of months, we have held a number of staff webinars with an independent pensions expert, who has provided colleagues with clear information about the benefits of USS, the 2020 valuation and what is happening with USS at the moment. These webinars were all recorded and you can watch them on our website. If you don’t know much about the pension scheme or the valuation, you are encouraged to watch these.

We appreciate, however, that you may have questions about USS for the University, as your employer. With that in mind, the Vice-Chancellor, Adam Tickell, and Director of Finance, Allan Spencer, are hosting an open staff forum on USS next Thursday (13 May) at 11.30am – 12.30pm. There will be a presentation followed by a Q&A. You will be able to ask questions anonymously during the session or you can ask a question in advance when you book your space via Eventbrite. If you are unable to attend, a recording will be made available as soon as possible after the event.

If you would like more information about USS or the 2020 valuation in the meantime, please watch the webinar recordings (login required) or visit our USS 2020 valuation web pages.

Best wishes,
Internal Communications