UPDATE: On Wednesday 20th of November, the Vice-Chancellor announced the decision to cut 170 full-time staff roles at UEA. You can read his statement in full, here.

The University of East Anglia (UEA) is facing further budget cuts of 3% and the possibility of redundancies as it continues to grapple with a severe financial deficit. 

The cuts, announced last month by Vice-Chancellor Professor David Maguire, come in response to rising inflation and a drop in international postgraduate students. 

Maguire said the university needed to save £11m against an expenditure of around £350m. The cuts will reportedly target non-pay costs such as building maintenance, library acquisitions, travel, and training. However, Maguire did not rule out redundancies, adding that some reductions in headcount may also be necessary. 

The announcement has been met with dismay by the University and College Union (UCU). Nadine Subair, UCU co-chair, said she was “absolutely shocked” at the news, coming on top of last year’s job losses. “We’re back in a situation where we’re potentially going to lose hundreds more,” she said. 

Subair questioned the university’s commitment to growth while cutting essential resources. “You can’t grow a university without investing in it,” she said. “How do you grow student recruitment if there are no books for them, if there are no people to teach them?” 

UEA has been struggling financially for several years. In 2023, the university faced a £45m deficit and implemented a voluntary severance scheme. Maguire, who took over as Vice-Chancellor in May 2023, said the university had made significant progress in addressing its financial problems but acknowledged the need for further cuts. 

The news of further cuts comes amid localised controversy over a sharp rise in the number of staff receiving total pay packages of more than £150,000. The university now has 22 employees in this bracket, up from 12 in 2022. The rise follows a recruitment drive that has seen the total number of employees earning six-figure salaries on campus reach 78, including the Vice-Chancellor, who receives a total remuneration package of £340,000. (Remuneration refers to a total pay package that can include a base salary plus pension contributions, expenses, bonuses and other benefits). 

However, the increase in top salaries has drawn criticism from unions and a Norwich Member of Parliament. UCU co-chairs Nicholas Grant and Nadine Zubair questioned the ethics of high salaries for senior leaders while the university was cutting staff and claiming to be unable to pay the real living wage. 

Chris Kershaw – UEA Students’ Union’s Campaigns and Democracy Officer – commented: “This is nothing but a reward for failure. As the University slips down the ranking tables, as students report decreasing satisfaction, and as teaching and support staff face the threat of redundancy, I wish I could say I was surprised to see that the number of people taking home more than £7,500 a month has doubled. Unfortunately, I’m not. “ 

On Thursday 7th of November, Clive Lewis, Labour MP for Norwich South, told Concrete: “I met with campus unions to gauge their reaction so I could put those to university management along with my own concerns and those of the many constituents who’ve contacted me. Among other things, unions have said they want management to look again at their Deficit Reduction Plan and capital expenditures and review executive team remuneration, including pay raises and promotions. These all seem perfectly reasonable requests, and I’m waiting for a response from the Vice Chancellor’s office.” 

In response, a UEA spokesperson told Concrete:

“Over half of the roles that are paid over £150k are in clinical specialities where the remuneration is linked to NHS work and the University, therefore, does not pay all of that salary. Only seven of the roles in question are fully salaried by UEA. 

“The salary for UEA Vice-Chancellor Prof David Maguire is lower than that of his predecessor and in the bottom 25% of all Vice-Chancellor posts nationally. He has not had any pay increases since he started in the role in May 2023. 

“Last year, the University reluctantly had to withdraw from our commitment to pay the Real Living Wage (RLW) but agreed to ‘match’ the existing rate for the period of January–July 2024. 

“The new rate for the RLW was announced in October 2023, and following careful consideration, the decision has been made not to match the RLW from August 2024, in line with other cost-saving measures. We are committed to reviewing this difficult decision this financial year.” 

The UEA’s financial challenges reflect a broader downward trend in the higher education sector. It was revealed by the Office for Students last week that almost three in four UK universities will be ‘in the red’ (financial deficit) next year and it would take “bold and transformative action” to compensate for a £3.4bn drop in income forecast for 2025/26. 

The university plans to give staff more information on its provisional plans by the end of the month, following union consultation. Whether senior management can successfully navigate these challenges and emerge stronger remains to be seen. 

Image Credit: UEA.