Following our successful fundraising events in 2025, we’re excited to share two upcoming events in West Sussex.

1. Crawley Library Office, Third Floor, Wednesday 10th June, 10.30am-1pm.
2. Chichester County Hall, Reception Area, Thursday 11th June, 10.30am-1pm.

We will be selling Palestinian goods with proceeds going to non-profit organisations in Palestine. Sale items will include jewellery, olive wood decorations and soaps from Palestine. We will also be selling homemade cakes and biscuits with proceeds going to Women In Hebron.

Women in Hebron is a unique cooperative that seeks to economically empower Palestinian women and their families, as well as encourage the passing down of Palestinian culture and traditional handicraft products to younger generations. Women in Hebron is our UNISON President’s currently selected charity to benefit from fundraising in her presidential year.

More information about Women in Hebron can be found on their website and also from when their founder visited UNISON’s offices in London.

UNISON representatives will be at the events in Crawley and Chichester to answer any queries you may have about how UNISON is involved in global issues.

We would recommend coming early for the widest selection of goods and treats.

Cash and card payments will be accepted. Thank you in advance for your support for this worthy charity.

Download a poster for your UNISON noticeboard.

UNISON has joined with other education unions in raising concerns about government proposals that could eventually see all state schools required to join academy trusts.

The joint statement, issued by unions representing school support staff and teachers across the education sector, warns that further large scale academisation risks increasing fragmentation across the school system while diverting funding away from frontline education.

At a time when schools are already facing significant financial pressures, staffing challenges and increasing SEND demands, the unions say there are serious concerns about the impact further structural reorganisation could have on pupils, staff and local communities.

The statement highlights concerns around:

• Funding being diverted away from classrooms and support services into structural chang
• Decision-making becoming more remote from parents, staff and communities
• The impact of inconsistent employment practices across academy trusts
• Ongoing workload and recruitment pressures affecting both teachers and support staff
• Leadership time being diverted away from supporting pupils and implementing SEND reforms

The unions also point to the lack of clear evidence that academisation alone improves educational outcomes, while parents consistently prioritise high-quality teaching, support and properly funded schools over changes to structures and governance.

The joint statement was issued by UNISON, NASUWT, NEU, AEP, GMB, Unite and Community.

UNISON believes that school staff deserve properly funded schools, fair employment practices and transparent decision-making. Schools are already able to collaborate effectively through a range of existing partnerships and federations without unnecessary disruption or additional financial cost.

School support staff are already under enormous pressure. Our priority should be ensuring schools are properly funded and supported so they can meet the needs of pupils and staff, rather than creating further disruption and uncertainty through large-scale structural change.

UNISON will keep the pressure up to ensure these damaging plans do not come to pass.

The successful election of Andrea Egan as General Secretary has caused a by-election in a national Female Local Government seat.

West Sussex branch committee has completed the branch nomination stage and decided to back Liz Wheatley, branch secretary at Camden branch.

Now all members in Local Government will get to vote, including members in the West Sussex branch.

Postal ballots will start to land through letterboxes of all of UNISON’s 613,000 members in Local Government from Friday 8th May. If you’re in the Local Government Service Group, look out for your ballot, and make sure you vote, and encourage colleagues to do the same.

Why we are backing Liz

Liz is Branch Secretary of Camden UNISON, and was a regional rep on UNISON’s NEC from 2019-2025.

Liz has organised successful strikes – Camden traffic wardens winning a £5,000 pay increase. Camden is currently fighting for more pay for Teaching Assistants, with strike action taking place in schools currently in the London borough. Liz is committed to an organising union and says:

I was proud to support Andrea Egan to be our General Secretary. I am committed to working closely with her to bring about the changes necessary for UNISON to be a union that stands up to the bosses and politicians when they try to cut the services we provide, the wages we deserve or attack working class people.

No longer should we put the interests of the Labour Party first; UNISON members must be our priority. We need a UNISON where branches and activists get the organising support and resources they need, and we deliver real wins for members.

West Sussex branch thinks Liz is the best candidate in this election and hope to see her alongside West Sussex branch members Dan Sartin and Abi Holdsworth on our Union’s National Executive Council soon.

Liz Wheatley

Do you use your car for work? Have your say in our survey

Thanks to UNISON’s campaigning, the Government has announced a review of HMRC mileage rates. This could put money back in the pockets of frontline public service workers who use their cars to do their jobs.

The review will be undertaken over the next few months, with any changes announced at the Budget in the Autumn. UNISON will be engaging closely to ensure that our members’ experiences are reflected in the review – especially as Ministers described this as a “workers first” review.

UNISON has therefore put together a survey so that members can contribute to the review directly – comments and the issues raised will be compiled into a report and handed directly into the Treasury.

Contribute to our mileage survey

The survey deadline is 21 May.

The recent US/Israel war on Iran has added even more strain to workers.

UNISON general secretary Andrea Egan said:

“Frontline staff deliver essential public services, but have been left thousands out of pockets due to inaction on mileage rates by government after government. We can achieve more when workers come together to organise and demand better.”

Contribute to our mileage survey

Latest

Last week, UNISON’s NJC Committee met and agreed very clearly to REJECT the employers’ offer of behalf of members. The Committee was clear that the offer falls significantly short of what members in councils and schools need and deserve.

Preparations are being made for the next steps in our campaign for a better pay offer, and you will hear more very soon. We will keep members up-to-date with developments.

The claim

As reported previously, UNISON submitted a pay claim for members on 1st December 2025 for the following, presuming a one-year pay deal:

• An increase of at least £3,000 or 10% (whichever is greater) across all NJC spinal column points
• A minimum pay rate of £15 an hour for the NJC pay spine
• A two hour reduction in the working week
• An increase of one day annual leave
• The ability of all school support staff to take a day of paid leave during term time
• The abolition of Level 1 Teaching Assistant role and instead all Level 1 role holders be moved onto Level 2

The offer

A meeting was held on March 24, 2026 between the employers and unions, and in the afternoon a letter was received by the unions making an offer, as follows:

• 3.3% uplift across all NJC spinal column points and allowances.

The employers:

• REJECTED A minimum pay rate of £15 an hour for the NJC pay spine
• REJECTED A two hour reduction in the working week
• REJECTED An increase of one day annual leave
• REJECTED The ability of all school support staff to take a day of paid leave during term time
• REJECTED The abolition of Level 1 Teaching Assistant role and instead all Level 1 role holders be moved onto Level 2

For members on HAY, Agenda for Change and SMG4 grades

As reported previously, WSCC has agreed that the same arrangements as applied in 2025-26 for WSCC staff on local pay (mostly team managers on HAY pay scales) will also apply next year in 2026-27. So if there is a formal UNISON consultation on the offer, you will be included in it alongside NJC colleagues.

Back pay if you leave WSCC or another NJC employer after 1st April

The NJC Pay award is due for the pay year that runs from 1st April 2026 to 31st March 2027. It seems likely, given that UNISON is rejecting the pay award due to it being insufficient, that any award made will not be paid until later in 2026 when the bargaining process has completed. This means that upon implementation there will be likely be back pay owed to staff for the months the award was not implemented in 2026-27.

If you have left or will leave WSCC or another NJC employer after 1st April, you may be owed this back pay for your wages paid from the period from 1st April to your leaving date, when your leaving date is before the pay award is implemented.

You can claim this missing back pay within 6 months of the pay day when the award is paid. This pay day is usually the 24th day of the month. For example, if the pay award is settled on 30th June and paid for the first time in salaries on 24th July, WSCC leavers will have until 24th January 2027 to get in touch with WSCC to request back pay.

Where relevant, contact WSCC Payroll by email at hr.customer.services@westsussex.gov.uk or call 01243 642148. This also is back pay which will be added to your LGPS.

Support and advice is available of course to members by contacting the UNISON West Sussex branch.

1. All about pensions

These free sessions are open to UNISON members who would like to gain a better understanding of their pensions! They are hosted by an expert financial adviser and is designed to help you understand how to secure the income you need for a comfortable retirement. There will also be sessions for those who are members of the LGPS.

• LGPS*: 14 May 2026; 10:00-11:00; Course code 08-26-0010
• All members: 13 May 2026; 10:00-11:00; Course code 08-26-0009

*for Local Government Pension Scheme members

Please email membereducationse@unison.co.uk with your membership number and the course you wish to attend.

2. Cruse loss and bereavement

UNISON partner with Cruse to deliver online high quality workshops to support our members  both whilst at work and at home. As an organisation, Cruse helps people through one of the most painful times in life, with bereavement support, information and campaigning. This training will give delegates a better understanding of how a bereavement can impact an individual and the factors that influence how they grieve. It will explain what support people need when they are grieving and help overcome the barriers to talking about death, loss and grief.

• 11 May 2026; 10:15-12:45; Course code 08-26-0002

Please email membereducationse@unison.co.uk with your membership number and the course you wish to attend.

3. Makaton

Makaton is a unique communication programme that uses symbols (pictures), signs (gestures)
and speech to enable people to communicate. It supports the development of essential communication skills such as attention and listening, comprehension, memory, recall and organisation of language and expression. Each course is designed for those working in certain settings so that signs and symbols learnt can reflect your working environment. We are offering online Makaton courses for those working in Schools and Social Care.

• Those working in Schools: 14 August 2026; 9:00-12:30; Course code 08-26-0064
• Those working in Social Care: 1 September 2026; 9:00-12:30; Course code 08-26-0065

Please email membereducationse@unison.co.uk with your membership number and the course you wish to attend.

4. Empower your future and learn with your union

UNISON is committed to lifelong learning. We partner with adult education organisations and train out own tutors to ensure every member has the opportunity to gain valuable skills for both work and everyday life.

From confidence building, CV writing, EXCEL, bereavement awareness, money skills and more.

Learning is FREE for UNISON members.

Find out what courses are on offer here.

The UNISON West Sussex branch has significant concerns about Local Government Reorganisation, or LGR, which we have reported on before. Real concerns exist about what a damaging distraction this change will be, at a time of chronic and unresolved local government funding cuts.

However, the West Sussex branch favours a one unitary solution for West Sussex, if we are to have such change forced upon us.

Central government was due to give a decision on its preferred model for Sussex local government this week.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, despite all the work undertaken by local councils, central Government has delayed the decision on its preferred model for local government in Sussex until after the May elections.

It has also indicated a presumed preference for a 2-unitary model for West Sussex, which is not the preferred outcome of either UNISON West Sussex branch or West Sussex County Council.

You can read the Council’s statement here.

You can read the Secretary of State’s letter to council leaders here.

Given how badly Labour is widely anticipated to do in the local elections, it remains to be seen if the government will be in a fit state to take a decision after May. We could find the Labour Party plunged into dealing with a leadership challenge to Keir Starmer, and then LGR will be in the in-tray of a new PM.

So watch this space. But members can be reassured that UNISON is ready to support its members through the necessary organisational change processes whenever they come, even though these are not now imminent.

The branch is discussing with the UNISON Regional office our plan for negotiating and dealing with that change, and is holding a training day for West Sussex reps in Chichester next week.

The extent of the change and disruption we will see remains linked to the model the Government finally chooses.

if you have questions, please contact us at office.unison@westsussex.gov.uk.