Congratulations on your new role and welcome to Sussex! 

As a new starter, you should read through your welcome email and the Welcome to Sussex Digital Pack, which is typically sent out prior to your start date. This email contains key information about your role and the University. If it is your first day and you haven't received your welcome email, or for more information, please contact human.resources@sussex.ac.uk. 

Visit the Working at Sussex webpage to learn more about the benefits of working at Sussex, our family-friendly policies and childcare services, accommodation guidance for staff, and healthcare on campus.

New staff inductions

Your line manager is responsible for welcoming you into your new place of work and setting you up on any relevant systems. At the start of your new role, these two documents should be completed with your manager:

• New Staff Induction Checklist [Word 64.96KB]
• Induction Training Plan for New Members of Staff [DOCX 60.43KB]

Line managers responsible for onboarding new staff should read the Onboarding New Employees Digital Pack.

Mandatory training for new staff

Mandatory training ensures that the University is compliant with current regulations and that staff are in the best position to support students, colleagues and customers. It is very important that all staff complete the mandatory training for their role and any other essential role-specific training identified as a requirement by the Line Manager in the Induction Training Plan.

Health and Safety

Your induction should also include key information about arrangements for first aid, fire safety, incident and hazard reporting and any relevant safety information necessary for your role. Each School and Division has Health and Safety Coordinators that can support you on these arrangements. There is also a central Health and Safety Team that offers resources to support the varied aspects of your work, including research and teaching.

Staff Welcome Sessions

All new staff will receive an email invitation to attend a Welcome Session within their first six months. These sessions offer an opportunity to meet members of the University Leadership Team, to learn more about our history and our plans for the future, and to meet other new colleagues in different parts of the University. Download the Speaker Slides from the Welcome Session on 25 April 2024.

For the networking part of the event, colleagues from across the University set up stalls showcasing the services and resources that their departments offer for staff. Welcome Session attendees will be able to meet and talk to colleagues from:

• Sussexsport
• Educational Enhancement
• Organisational Development
• Staff Wellbeing
• Reward and Benefits
• Library Services
• Research Staff Office
• Payroll and Pensions
• Health and Safety
• and Human Resources.

Guidance for Graduate Associates

As a Sussex graduate, you can access Careers and Entrepreneurship services for three years after you graduate. This includes careers skills workshops, employer events and recruitment talks, Make it Happen and other alumni networking events. Visit the Student Hub Events page to see upcoming workshops and events.

Join the Graduate Associates staff network

The Graduate Associates staff network is an informal Teams channel, set up by a Graduate Associate, as a space for GAs across the University to connect and to find out about upcoming events and development opportunities. If you would like to join the channel, please contact od@sussex.ac.uk. 

Guidance for new managers

If you are a new manager at Sussex, there are a number of additional resources available that we encourage you to engage with. This will not only help you better understand your role as a manager, but also enable you to connect with other managers across the University.

• Read the Digital Guide for New Line Managers for key information about being a line manager at Sussex.
• The Guidance for Line Managers: Onboarding New Employees Digital Pack is a comprehensive guide for line managers responsible for onboarding new employees. 
• Join the Manager's Development Channel on MS Teams.
• Browse The Managers' Toolkit to find webinars, online learning, and other resources to develop your skills and knowledge.

Your development

Responsibility for your learning and development ultimately lies with you. However, your manager is responsible for planning and facilitating learning that is relevant to your role, and your annual Achievement and Development Review is the perfect time to identify development opportunities that you might want to engage with. 

The Organisational Development department supports the professional development of Sussex staff through their termly calendar of workshops and events, the Staff Apprenticeship Scheme, the Staff Mentoring programme, and the Job Shadowing scheme.

Other staff development opportunities

• PGCertHE and the Starting to Teach module
• Researcher Development Programme
• Educational Enhancement events
• IT skills training
• Financial literacy training
• Careers and Entrepreneurship workshops for recent graduates.