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In our second staff pulse survey of the year in October, 1,742 colleagues shared their views on working life at Sussex. This represents a higher number of responses than in the spring 2022 pulse survey, with an increased percentage of staff also indicating that they believe action will be taken as a result of the survey.

There were notable increases in positive responses about not experiencing bullying and harassment, about staff development, and about feeling that there is support for staff wellbeing at the University. However, the overall score for staff engagement (feelings of pride about working at Sussex, recommendation of Sussex as a place to work, and a desire to stay at Sussex over the next two years) in this survey was 59%, 1% lower than our spring 2022 result and 3% lower than in our previous survey in September 2021*.

Our engagement score indicates that there is still work to do around a number of issues and we remain focused on this. Work is already underway on many of the areas identified which represent positive steps towards building an inclusive Sussex and being recognised as an employer of choice. The recently announced UCU agreement addressed a broad range of issues relating to pay, working conditions, equalities, and workload, with enhanced support for colleagues on fixed term contracts as well as updated Maternity and Adoption policies and carer support. The £6.6m cost-of-living package of support included two cost of living payments to support staff which, in addition to our Real Living Wage accreditation, will benefit those on the lowest salaries.

Running a staff survey every six months was designed to help us track our progress against the short, medium and long-term activities in our ongoing action plans. A small set of core questions were included in both surveys, and each survey also included further questions on specific areas that we considered needed close attention. Staff development, workload management and leadership were the focus for the latest survey this autumn.

Full results from our autumn survey were shared with our University Leadership Team (Heads of Schools and Professional Services Directors) in late November, and local results were also made available to the nominated dashboard users in every School and Division for cascade and discussion within teams. An update on ongoing action plans following the latest survey will be shared with staff in the new year.

Sasha Roseneil, Vice-Chancellor, said: "Meeting staff and listening to what they have to say about working at Sussex has been the focus for me during my first few months at the University, and the staff survey provides another way to understand what colleagues are thinking and feeling. Whilst the latest survey suggests that there have been some improvements around staff development, bullying and harassment and wellbeing, it is disappointing that our engagement score has decreased slightly. It is hugely important to me that we work towards everyone feeling that they are respected and fully part of the Sussex community, and that colleagues think that Sussex is a university doing great things, of which we can all can be proud. I will be working with the University Leadership Team to agree meaningful actions that seek to bring about the improvements needed to make the University a place where everyone is well supported and able to flourish in their work. I am aware that the experience of staff varies substantially across the University, and we have already started working collaboratively to share good practice and address longstanding problems."

Robin Banerjee, Head of School (Psychology) and Chair of the Survey Steering Group said: "I am pleased that nearly 2,000 colleagues responded to the latest survey, giving powerful insights into both wonderful experiences and significant challenges in relation to working at Sussex. Thank you for taking the time to share what is going well and what really needs to change. Drawing on your feedback, key priorities for future action at Sussex will include making improvements around fair and equitable management of workload (as also specified in the UCU agreement), and leadership more generally.

"We have now completed a full cycle of the six-monthly staff surveys and, as planned, we are now reviewing the overall approach to make sure we are getting this right. We have already received lots of feedback, and there will be further opportunities for you to get involved and contribute to this review too. We have to make sure that people are able to share their experiences more easily, see the results of surveys more quickly, and feel more confident that those results are being translated into genuine positive changes."

Below are some of the key headlines from the latest results, summarised by our external survey provider, People Insight:

Completion rates

• 42% of staff completed the survey, an increase on the previous figures of 39% in April 2022 and 36% in September 2021. This survey’s figure rises to 48% if we separate out those people on our ‘casual payroll’ i.e. those people who work for us from time to time, such as summer school tutors. Although the increase is welcome, this completion rate is still lower than the sector norm of 50%, based on surveys run by People Insight.

Overall engagement score

• The overall engagement score (comprising pride in working for the University, commitment to staying here, and recommendation of the University as a great place to work) was 59%, which as noted above was 3% lower than September 2021* and 1% lower than in the spring survey.

• Looking at the elements of this score more closely, feeling proud to work for the University is down five percentage points to 65% in comparison to September 2021. The desire to still be working at the University in two years’ time was down three percentage points to 60%. Advocacy in terms of recommending the University as a great place to work had decreased slightly by one percentage point to 51%.

Improvements

• A number of areas showed improvement, including a 5% increase in people saying they believe action will be taken as result of the survey. 

• There was a 15% increase in positive responses on the topic of staff development, including managers and academic leads coaching their teams and developing their skills.
  
  
• Responses to questions about bullying and harassment have improved, with four percentage point increases in positive responses, in terms of not experiencing or witnessing these behaviours. We are committed to continuing this positive trend so that all colleagues feel they are treated with dignity and respect at Sussex.

• We have also seen a 3% increase in satisfaction with the support available to help colleagues with their health and wellbeing.

View the headline findings from the October 2022 survey (login required)

What’s next

• Schools and Divisions are reviewing their results and updating their action plans based on the results over the coming weeks.
  
  
• In the new year, updated University-level action plans will be shared with all staff. Results and updated action plans for Schools and Divisions will also be published.  
  
  
• We will communicate with colleagues in the new year about our review of the overall approach to surveying staff, and taking meaningful action in response to results.

Progress against our survey action plans is monitored regularly by the People, Culture, and Inclusion Committee, the University’s Executive Group, the Strategic Performance and Resources Committee and Council.

You can find out more about our survey, including results and ongoing action plans, on the staff survey webpages.

*The engagement score was 61% in September 2021, and 59% in October 2022 but due to decimal rounding of all figures by our survey provider, People Insight, the difference in scores is 3%.

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