Staff surveys now open until 22 and 29 November

Underpinning all our activities over this new academic year must be our ability to have open and ongoing conversations about the experience of working at UCL.  

We’ve been inviting feedback through town halls, all-staff surveys, and consultations on strategic plans, which have collectively shaped UCL's priorities over the past years and helped identify where we have focused as an institution on improving. 

Alongside continuing to progress activity in these areas and our wider strategic priorities, we continue to look for opportunities for feedback and to amplify your voice in decisions.  

Opportunities to share your experiences and help shape UCL 

On Monday 11 November, we launched two complementary staff surveys:

• Staff Experience Survey: 11–29 November 
• UniForum Service Effectiveness Survey (Part 1): 11–22 November

Please set aside some time this week to complete these. Each survey should take no more than 20 minutes to complete.

These are important opportunities to make sure your voice is heard, and doing so will help us both identify the areas where we are doing well so that we can celebrate and replicate them, as well as the areas that need support so that, institutionally and locally, we can commit to key actions aimed at improving them. 

Staff Experience Survey: 11–29 November 

This survey is an opportunity to tell us what it’s like to work at UCL, share your experiences of leadership, culture, inclusion and health & wellbeing, and help us understand what matters to you.  

It has been sent out to all employees who have a Contract of Employment with UCL. You will have receiveed an invitation to complete the survey from the email address: UCLstaffsurvey@qualtrics-survey.com. 

The 2024 survey focuses on a set of clearly defined categories: Leadership, Culture, EDI, and Health and Wellbeing. The categories and questions were developed in collaboration with representatives from across UCL and ask about your experiences in areas including: 

• Performance, Growth & Development 
• Belonging, Inclusion and Psychological Safety  
• Health & Wellbeing and Stress & Workload 
• Bullying, Harassment and Harmful Behaviours 
• Strategy & Values 
• Communications, Culture and Advocacy 

Completing this survey will provide data that is critical to maintaining our institutional charters and the development of our equality action plans, and provide insight into the collective sense of progress staff have of UCL’s 2022-2027 strategic plan at the mid-way stage. 

Further information about the Staff Experience Survey, including what we have changed since the last survey and why, is available on the Staff Experience Survey Website.

UniForum Service Effectiveness Survey (Part 1): 11–22 November 

This survey will more specifically allow us to assess the effectiveness of our services. This helps benchmark ourselves against other universities, understand better the needs across different areas, and improve how we can best meet your needs.  

It has been sent out to all employees who work at least two days per week, have been employed for at least six months, and have a Contract of Employment with UCL. You will have received an invitation to complete the survey from the email address: ucl@surveys.cubaneconsulting.com.  

The UniForum programme is an international benchmarking exercise run in conjunction with NousCubane. Institutions across the US, Canada, Mexico, New Zealand and Australia, as well as a number of Russell Group universities in the UK, take part in the programme.     

There are two parts to the survey, the second will take place in spring. In November, staff will be asked about their experiences of: 

• Human Resources 
• Finance 
• General Administration (Purchasing focus) 
• Information Technology 
• Facilities Management 
• External Engagement (Marketing focus) 
• Student Support 
• Teaching Administration 
• Teaching Design, Development & Delivery 
• Research Administration 
• Research Facilities & Support 

We have participated in the programme since its inception in 2015 and the insight it provides is vital to helping us understand exactly how we resource the activities that support teaching and research. The UniForum Programme will now run annually, providing us with more regular insight into the effectiveness of our services and feeding into our ongoing improvement plans. 

Further information about the UniForum Service Effectiveness Survey, including what will be covered in Part 2 of the survey in spring, is available on the UniForum SharePoint site.