Leicester UCU Fighting Fund 2025

Published: 12th September, 2025

Donate

Please donate by transfer to our account at Unity Trust Bank (details below).

NOTE: Most banks now impose a variety of checks on payments. Please use the exact details as below. If you are asked to describe the type of payment, our account is classed as a “business” account rather than a personal one. In some cases it may take up to 3 days for the payment to reach our account.
Name of account (if required): UCU Leicester LA30
Sort Code: 60-83-01
Account: 20444031
Many thanks to those who have already made generous donations. Please spread the word and encourage others to donate.

Background

The University of Leicester is currently threatening to launch a redundancy programme in November 2025 with the goal of cutting the staffing budget by £11m. Six academic areas have been targeted for potential redundancies — Chemistry; Geography, Geology & the Environment (GGE); Modern Languages; History; Film Studies; and the School of Education. Hundreds of professional services staff across the university have also been through a pre-change engagement process, which may also lead to redundancies. Leicester University executive has also now announced the first compulsory redundancy programme for the new academic year—targeting a group of academic-related professional services staff in the Division of Biomedical Services.

The branch is determined to resist these redundancies. In the ballot for industrial action, there was an impressive 62% turnout of which 79.5% voted in favour of strike action and 87.0% in favour of action short of a strike. In light of this result, we are calling members to go out on strike for 3 consecutive weeks starting the 29th of September. This will mean a considerable financial loss for hundreds of members, as well as being a morally challenging period for them. Therefore, we are asking for both your financial support and solidarity for our action.

We invite you to consider donating to the branch (priority will be given to colleagues on lower grades). Really, any donation matters. We also warmly invite you to send a message of solidarity to our branch members (email ucu@uculeicester.org.uk).

Use of donations:

The branch intends to use all donations received to the Leicester UCU Fighting Fund to support members’ pay deductions. Any money remaining after all payment rounds will (at the discretion of the Branch Committee) be used to increase payments already made, kept for future disputes, transferred to support other branches taking action, or transferred to the national UCU Fighting Fund.

Guidelines on claiming from the LUCU Fighting Fund (from September 2025)

1. The Branch Committee will establish a Panel of at least 3 members (including the Branch Treasurer) to assess claims and oversee payments made from the Fund. The Panel’s decision in all matters will be final.
2. Following consultation with the Branch Committee, the Panel will determine a methodology to ensure fair distribution of funds. This methodology will be determined by the Panel following a review of donations and the amount available in the Fund. Sums payable may vary according to the subscription band of the member.
3. Payment will only be made on receipt of a completed official claim form accompanied by a scan/screenshot of the payslip showing the deduction. In exceptional circumstances, the Panel may consider other equivalent evidence of deductions made.
4. Payment will only be made to members who are paying their UCU subscription at the correct rate for their current salary and membership category. Members who have not paid at the correct rate for at least 6 months will have to pay arrears for 6 months in order to be eligible for payments from the Fighting Fund.
5. Payment will only be made to members who have claimed their full entitlement to claim from the national Fighting Fund.
6. In no circumstances will payments made to a member exceed the amount of pay deducted.
7. The official claim form (see below) should be submitted by email to Branch Treasurer Emi Mise (em92@leicester.ac.uk).
8. Payments will be paid irrespective of personal circumstances. Members who are able to sustain the deduction of pay are encouraged not to claim.
9. Members must claim in accordance with a timetable determined by the Panel and publicised to members.

The claim form can be downloaded here: