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qmucu.bsky.social
QM_UCU
@qmucu.bsky.social
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Local University & College Union branch at Queen Mary University of London. || Account checked only part-time; allow time for responses or reach us via email. https://qmucu.org/
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qmucu.bsky.social
QM_UCU @qmucu.bsky.social · Nov 15
Quick digest of what's happening
⭐️ reorganisation: qmucu.org/qmul-transfo...
⭐️ management break-in in union office: docs.google.com/document/d/e...
⭐️ punitive deductions: qmucu.org/2023/09/12/l...
⭐️ legal challenge to deductions: qmucu.org/working-grou...
⭐️ news: qmucu.org/itn/ pic.x.com/Skb3gbpm86
leaflet with black background an orange, salmon, teal, and baby blue boxes with info what is happening? outsourcing, snitch forms, centralisation, grade 1 lingers, reorganisation, redefining pgr, student-staff ratio, union busting, surveillance. These interventions are communicated in isolation but together irrevocably change the nature of QMUL. They all are justified by financial savings, yet there is little accountability about the accounts, projections, and miscalculations. Staff & students should be involved in these decision making processes, receive transparency about financial justifications, and set priorities. leafletwith black backgound and orang and teal boxes entitled "let's act together." we need transparency, students and staff are the university, we are collectively affected by restructures
Reposted by QM_UCU
ucu-solidarity.bsky.social
Useful background to the current debate about #studentloans, unpicking the #WilletsPlan.

It includes an important reminder that university staff have been paying the cost with cuts in pay and jobs.

@ucu.org.uk
seanawallis.bsky.social Sean Wallis @seanawallis.bsky.social · 1d
It is high time that the Higher Education student loans system is being challenged.

Great!

But the fees+loans system was more than an attack on a generation. It was a deliberate mechanism for a much wider assault on Higher Education. What lay behind it?

We need to go back to the Willetts Plan.
🧵1
February 7, 2026 at 10:54 AM
Reposted by QM_UCU
ninamarkl.bsky.social
‘haphazard’ and ‘uncoordinated’ is a real through line in cost cutting in the university sector

it’s almost like the people making decisions here fail to understand that universities are very complex institutions and that very few people (if any) ‘do the same job’ within them
melissaterras.bsky.social Melissa Terras @melissaterras.bsky.social · 24d
Missing from the coverage of redundancies at Edinburgh: this was done in such a haphazard, uncoordinated way, there are now core teams who have gone from 5 people to 1 with no change in workload or pressure and huge loss in knowledge of institutional process. www.heraldscotland.com/news/2576321...
Hundreds of staff leave Edinburgh University amid cuts drive
According to the university, 345 of these departures were the result of a targeted voluntary severance (VS) scheme run by the institution in 2025.
www.heraldscotland.com
January 15, 2026 at 8:03 AM
qmucu.bsky.social
Former senior manager here who got promoted to VC at another university said in a public town hall: "If it looks we're making up as we go along, that is because we're making up as we go along across the sector."

But sure, let that lot run/ruin the entire #UKHE sector.
ninamarkl.bsky.social Nina Markl 🏳️‍⚧️🏳️‍🌈 @ninamarkl.bsky.social · 24d
‘haphazard’ and ‘uncoordinated’ is a real through line in cost cutting in the university sector

it’s almost like the people making decisions here fail to understand that universities are very complex institutions and that very few people (if any) ‘do the same job’ within them
melissaterras.bsky.social Melissa Terras @melissaterras.bsky.social · 24d
Missing from the coverage of redundancies at Edinburgh: this was done in such a haphazard, uncoordinated way, there are now core teams who have gone from 5 people to 1 with no change in workload or pressure and huge loss in knowledge of institutional process. www.heraldscotland.com/news/2576321...
February 7, 2026 at 1:04 PM
Reposted by QM_UCU
qmucu.bsky.social
A governance structure which is run on pleasing one man incentivises people to hide things that aren’t pleasing, make unrealistic pitches & hope the consequences won’t be for you, and refrain from asking critical but needed questions.

In the absence of actual checks, you end up with crazy costings
qmucu.bsky.social QM_UCU @qmucu.bsky.social · Jun 24
You're 'learning lessons' about buildings in 2025.
The Principal is an engineer. We've had buildings since 1123. How do you still not know about the cost of building?

www.qmul.ac.uk/governance-a...
The Committee received the draft agenda for the next meeting on 19 June 2025. The following points were noted: [a] The Committee would receive a paper on lessons learned relating to the costing of capital projects. This arose out of the growing costs for the School of Business and Management and Queens’ Building Phase 2 projects. The scheduled deep dives on external risks and the regulatory landscape would be combined to allow for the additional item.
June 25, 2025 at 8:13 AM
Reposted by QM_UCU
qmucu.bsky.social
You're 'learning lessons' about buildings in 2025.
The Principal is an engineer. We've had buildings since 1123. How do you still not know about the cost of building?

www.qmul.ac.uk/governance-a...
The Committee received the draft agenda for the next meeting on 19 June 2025. The following points were noted: [a] The Committee would receive a paper on lessons learned relating to the costing of capital projects. This arose out of the growing costs for the School of Business and Management and Queens’ Building Phase 2 projects. The scheduled deep dives on external risks and the regulatory landscape would be combined to allow for the additional item.
June 24, 2025 at 7:33 PM
qmucu.bsky.social
The building works on this are still not resumed. But now every other building on the campus is being turned into a coffee shop, cutting drastically in academic office space, to create more 'student space'.

All without mentioning the large elephant on campus which would host student space.
qmucu.bsky.social QM_UCU @qmucu.bsky.social · Jun 24
There should be a rule that you have to finish your megalomaniac building work before you can start another one.

Funnily enough, we feel like that's an unspoken rule among investors... my.qmul.ac.uk/news-and-eve...
screenshot from a QMUL webpage. the title is 'constructin work in the Queens' Building' and hte sentence highlighted is 'all of hte building works should be completed by the second quarter of 2025." Construction work in the Queens’ Building We are pleased to announce that Planning and Listed Building consent has been granted to begin major construction works in the Grade II listed Queens’ Building. Published:23 May 2023 Now that Planning and Listed Building consent has been granted, major construction works in the Grade II listed Queens’ Building will start within the next few weeks. There will be preliminary enabling works from early June to mid-September 2023, followed by a major refurbishment which will transform the courtyard, basement, and ground floor spaces of the building. These essential works will transform the look and feel of the building, greatly enhancing student experience, to turn it into a vibrant, accessible student hub combining support services, informal study spaces and breakout areas for students. We know that when student services are co-located, teams become more integrated and work together more collaboratively. Areas impacted include the east, west and cross block of the ground floor, including the main reception, which will become a virtual function for the entire duration of the works. Regular updates will be shared with stakeholders to inform them of planned works in the building which may cause disruption. All of the building works should be completed by the second quarter of 2025. We apologise in advance for any inconvenience during the more disruptive phases of the construction. Here’s a reminder of which services have been relocated during the refurbishment: Student Enquiry Service – IQ East Court Building (Ground Floor) Careers and Enterprise Services – IQ East Court Building Fees Office – IQ East Court (Ground Floor) Global Opportunities – Graduate Centre If you have any questions, contact: Gerry Ackerman or Emmanuel Nibo.
February 7, 2026 at 12:35 PM
qmucu.bsky.social
Hey! Remember this?

Senior Management claims they'll find millions of investment for this 'Life Sciences' project. Yet they're planning to close our fully accredited Pathology Lab: www.qmul.ac.uk/blizard/rese...

What are they going to put in the shiny building if they're cutting all the content?
qmucu.bsky.social QM_UCU @qmucu.bsky.social · Jun 20
When the message is this defensive, you know the multi-million pound purchase of land is going to be a doozy, don't you?
Today, QM signed an agreement with the Department of Health and Social Care to acquire significant land in Whitechapel, adjacent to our existing campus. This acquisition is a strong statement of our commitment to East London, to world-class research, education and civic engagement, and it will future-proof our University at a time of considerable change and challenge to the sector. This investment will enable us, working with partners from all sectors, to develop significant multi-disciplinary life sciences capacity in East London, driving better outcomes for local people and for communities across the globe. Along with the entire UK higher education sector, we continue to operate in a financially challenging environment, and I know there will be questions about the decision to acquire this land at this time. Acquiring this land in Whitechapel now has a number of important long-term strategic benefits: We expect the value of this land, in a part of London where transport links have recently been significantly upgraded, to increase over time; By controlling all of the site that surrounds our existing Whitechapel campus, we are able to shape its development at our own pace and in the interests of us and our partners; and owning this coveted site will help us attract investment from both existing and new national and international partners to curate a multi-disciplinary, multi-sector life sciences campus, which will address health inequalities for communities in East London and across the globe. We are buying this land using a low-cost and long-term form of borrowing, which we previously arranged a few years ago, when the markets were in our favour, to enable us to invest in our physical estate for the long-term without impacting on the money we use for our day-to-day operating costs. The conditions of the long-term loan mean we can only use the money in this way, and it cannot be used for normal running costs. Having access to this low-cost finance allows us to invest
February 7, 2026 at 12:32 PM
Reposted by QM_UCU
qmucu.bsky.social
Essex (uni & local community) is facing brutal cuts. Our members know from experience how much it matters to fight back and to know you've got the support of the rest of the membership in that.

Donation should be with you now @ucuessex.bsky.social, and our solidarity you'll continue to have #UKHE
This branch notes: That colleagues in the University of Essex’s UCU branch have voted to take strike action over management’s plans to close the Southend Campus and cut 400 Academic and Professional Services roles, more than one in 10 of the workforce. That to support its members taking this action, the branch needs adequate strike funds. That the leaders of the University of Essex UCU branch have requested our support in their action. This branch believes: That it is impossible to axe one in 10 employees at the University of Essex without hurting students and damaging the teaching and research capacity of the university. That the proposed closure of Southend campus would devastate the area, as it is not only home to hundreds of students but a driver of growth in the local economy. This branch resolves: To donate £1,500 from our branch funds to the UCU University of Essex branch strike fund. To send a message of solidarity and support to members of the UCU University of Essex branch. To write to Essex’s VC, Professor Frances Bowen (vc@essex.ac.uk), to condemn these draconian plans.
February 6, 2026 at 12:55 PM
Reposted by QM_UCU
birminghamucu.bsky.social
Poor political decisions, a broken funding model, managerial leadership, and metric‑driven governance, which together are transforming the sector into something barely recognisable as a public university system by Constantinos Alexiou and George Saridakis

blogs.lse.ac.uk/impa...
​
Why are UK universities failing? - LSE Impact
The HE sector in the UK faces the prospect of a university going into administration. How have universities fallen so low and is change possible?
blogs.lse.ac.uk
February 6, 2026 at 1:44 PM
Reposted by QM_UCU
birminghamucu.bsky.social
UoB has now published* their response to the HSE finding the University in breach of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974

*deposited in the darkest recesses of the staff intranet.

Go to bham.sharepoint.com/... and keep scrolling until you get to the very end.

#HSEStressBreach
February 6, 2026 at 7:19 PM
qmucu.bsky.social
It is great that the wider public is growing aware of the farce that is the fees + loan system. It is key that they understand it is one radar in the whole mess of the #UKHE financial system.

We need the entire overhaul.
seanawallis.bsky.social Sean Wallis @seanawallis.bsky.social · 1d
It is high time that the Higher Education student loans system is being challenged.

Great!

But the fees+loans system was more than an attack on a generation. It was a deliberate mechanism for a much wider assault on Higher Education. What lay behind it?

We need to go back to the Willetts Plan.
🧵1
February 7, 2026 at 11:20 AM
Reposted by QM_UCU
julietterowsell.bsky.social
To say there's been anger about the Plan 2 student loans recently is an understatement. But what about those who have both a Plan 2 loan and a master's loan?

www.timeshighereducation.com/news/scandal...
‘Scandalous’ master’s loans ‘forgotten’ in student debt debate
English system that provides funding for less than cost of third of degrees, with repayment thresholds frozen below minimum wage, ‘no longer fit for purpose’
www.timeshighereducation.com
February 6, 2026 at 10:34 AM
Reposted by QM_UCU
amcgettigan.bsky.social
ifs.org.uk/articles/how...
How do Plan 2 student loans work, and how have they changed over time? | Institute for Fiscal Studies
Plan 2 student loans were issued to English students who started university between 2012 and 2022.
ifs.org.uk
February 6, 2026 at 10:24 AM
Reposted by QM_UCU
kmcdono.bsky.social
Some days I can't decide if the UK is in advance of the US (there is no tenure in #UKHE, finances are opaque/dire), or behind (unis still "public" - maybe?).

Is there comparative international research on declining uni funding & increasing academic precarity? I would like to read work like this...
mcopelov.bsky.social Mark Copelovitch @mcopelov.bsky.social · 2d
Our flagship public universities are already not "public" universities. Soon, they'll either be fully privatized, or they'll be "universities." The question for places like UW - Madison is which one we'll become. Others have already made their choices. And the rest simply haven't admitted this yet.
mcopelov.bsky.social Mark Copelovitch @mcopelov.bsky.social · Mar 8
Here is UW - Madison's budget. Our <largest> funder is the federal government. 25%. It used to be the state. Either way, the university in its current form ceases to exist if these federal cuts really happen. But The. Public. Doesn't. Know. This. And our leaders are absent from the public debate.
February 5, 2026 at 10:38 PM
Reposted by QM_UCU
harrietcannon.bsky.social
Another day, another report setting out the grim experiences of disabled students in #UKHE. As usual there are no real surprises in this for university disability practitioners like me, but the fact these issues persist should make unis hang their heads in shame www.gov.uk/government/p...
Disabled people's lived experience of education in the UK: an evidence review
www.gov.uk
February 6, 2026 at 8:28 AM
Reposted by QM_UCU
profdcotton.bsky.social
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre... #UKHE
Bad and getting worse: for students like me, the loan system is the disaster that never ends | Rohan Sathyamoorthy
The current situation in England and Wales is akin to generational warfare – Martin Lewis is right when he takes ministers to task, says student Rohan Sathyamoorthy
www.theguardian.com
February 6, 2026 at 11:17 AM
Reposted by QM_UCU
ucunorthumbria.bsky.social
But if you 'raise the floor', don't you bang your head?
insidehighered.com Inside Higher Ed @insidehighered.com · 2d
Career Advice | AI Can Raise the Floor for Higher Ed Policymaking

Used carefully, AI tools can aid us in developing university policy based on evidence, not anecdote or intuition. https://bit.ly/4qZoiKK

#EDUSky #HigherEd #AcademicSky
A photo of a three icons for AI apps on a smartphone: from left to right are icons for Perplexity, NotebookLM and ChatGPT.
February 5, 2026 at 2:49 PM
qmucu.bsky.social
Essex (uni & local community) is facing brutal cuts. Our members know from experience how much it matters to fight back and to know you've got the support of the rest of the membership in that.

Donation should be with you now @ucuessex.bsky.social, and our solidarity you'll continue to have #UKHE
This branch notes: That colleagues in the University of Essex’s UCU branch have voted to take strike action over management’s plans to close the Southend Campus and cut 400 Academic and Professional Services roles, more than one in 10 of the workforce. That to support its members taking this action, the branch needs adequate strike funds. That the leaders of the University of Essex UCU branch have requested our support in their action. This branch believes: That it is impossible to axe one in 10 employees at the University of Essex without hurting students and damaging the teaching and research capacity of the university. That the proposed closure of Southend campus would devastate the area, as it is not only home to hundreds of students but a driver of growth in the local economy. This branch resolves: To donate £1,500 from our branch funds to the UCU University of Essex branch strike fund. To send a message of solidarity and support to members of the UCU University of Essex branch. To write to Essex’s VC, Professor Frances Bowen (vc@essex.ac.uk), to condemn these draconian plans.
February 6, 2026 at 12:55 PM
Reposted by QM_UCU
ucunorthumbria.bsky.social
In the UK, exacerbated by a democratic and accountability deficit, racist policies, and a crumbling financial model.
erinbartram.bsky.social Erin Grievances @erinbartram.bsky.social · 2d
It feels like it's been impossible to get people outside of higher ed to understand that eliminating staff/programs/majors is primarily an ideological project, whatever claims are made about finances.

What's happened at the Post is what's been happening in higher ed for ages.
February 5, 2026 at 2:49 PM
Reposted by QM_UCU
ucunorthumbria.bsky.social
@ucunorthumbria.bsky.social are on strike 12, 13, 17-19 Feb and 2-6 March to stop bosses @northumbriauni.bsky.social slashing pay and pensions forever. Please donate to the branch fighting fund here: Unity Trust Bank, UCU Northumbria Univ NE119, Hardship Fund, SC 608301, AN 20295578
February 5, 2026 at 6:58 AM
Reposted by QM_UCU
manmetucu.bsky.social
Marie is our Regional Support Officer & is fantastic.

Trade union victimisation is indefensible & abhorrent. To see it done by a union employer undermines the work of all trade unionists.

We have written to the GS to call for a stop to the victimisation and to settle the dispute.

#HandsOffMarie
uniteucu.bsky.social Unite UCU @uniteucu.bsky.social · 8d
📣 Hands off Marie!

Tell @drjogrady.bsky.social and @ucu.org.uk to stop victimising Unite UCU's safety rep.

✍️ jgrady@ucu.org.uk

#HandsOffMarie

#UniteTheUnion @unitetheunion.bsky.social
Photo of Marie, Unite UCU's health and safety rep, who is being victimised by her trade union employer
February 5, 2026 at 12:29 PM
Reposted by QM_UCU
qmucu.bsky.social
Honestly completely irresponsible how press & policy makers rely on one man so obviously ideologically committed to a failed policy he drove through when he was special advisor to Willets.

He's spent his career lashing out about that, and press & policy makers have enabled him.
January 23, 2026 at 10:37 AM
Reposted by QM_UCU
qmucu.bsky.social
Go get them!

The Office for Students is the most ideological undermining of the notion of a “regulator” and through that higher education in general. Parliament deemed them not fit for purpose in 2023 yet somehow nothing has happened to rein them in. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
University begins High Court challenge against £585k free speech fine
The University of Sussex says the watchdog overstepped its legal powers in imposing the fine last year.
www.bbc.co.uk
February 4, 2026 at 9:22 AM
Reposted by QM_UCU
ucukent.bsky.social
A lot of people outside of Higher Education have very little idea of how physically and mentally demanding lecturing can be...and that's when all the other demands of the job are ignored.
UK universities need more full time permanent staff.
lvhicks.bsky.social Leonie V. Hicks @lvhicks.bsky.social · 4d
Phased return and reduced hours are hard. Some days I feel back to normal, over-do it and then end up shattered. Tomorrow will be a challenge with teaching 9-1, then 5-7 - that's my 6 hours for the day right there.

I really hope employers take note of the Birmingham HSE case on work-place stress.
February 4, 2026 at 10:54 AM
Reposted by QM_UCU
birminghamucu.bsky.social
Together we are stronger. Join the Union join.ucu.org.uk
lboroucu.bsky.social Loughborough University UCU @lboroucu.bsky.social · 5d
Stronger together ✊

Hear from #LboroUCU members on why union membership matters and how we support each other.

Be part of it: ucu.lboro.ac.uk/join/

@ucu.org.uk #UCU #JoinAUnion
February 4, 2026 at 1:30 PM