Members and eligible members of the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS) are invited to join a briefing session given by pensions expert, Brendan Mulkern.
As part of our commitment to help you understand more about your pension scheme, sessions have been organised for each of the Faculties and for Professional Services, as well as International staff and Early Career Researchers.
The background
USS has now published an update report into the 2020 valuation and says pension contributions will need to rise sharply if existing benefits are to be maintained.
USS has emailed all members of the scheme about these latest developments. Later this month, Universities UK (UUK), which represents 140 UK universities, will consult all USS employers on the way forward.
More about the USS briefings
Brendan Mulkern will run 8 sessions, each lasting 1 hour and 30 minutes and with time for questions. Each session will be chaired by a different member of the Executive Board.
What will the USS briefings cover?
The sessions will provide an update for members and eligible members of USS on matters relating to their USS pension.
The scheme’s trustee has undertaken a financial review of the pension scheme as at March 2020. Attendees will hear about the background to the valuation, the initial outcomes presented by the trustee and the potential solutions which exist for the stakeholders in responding to some of the challenges which might need to be faced. The presentation will also explain the next steps, and the overall review timeline.
Who is Brendan Mulkern?
Brendan Mulkern was the Head of Policy and External Affairs at USS until 2016 and he has a strong knowledge of USS, its stakeholders and their perspectives. More recently Brendan has been involved in providing pensions consulting support to several higher education bodies. Brendan has presented to members and eligible members of USS at the University of Southampton in the past. He brings a fair and balanced presentation of the facts about the latest developments.
How can I book a session?
Please choose the session for your faculty/group and click on ‘Register’ in the table. The sessions will be held on Teams and the link is in the right-hand column. The Teams link will also be sent to those who have registered nearer the event.
| Date | Time | Group | Chair | Eventbrite link | Teams link |
| 15 Mar | 14:00-15:30 | Faculty of Arts and Humanities | Sarah Pook, Executive Director, Finance & Planning | Register | Teams |
| 22 Mar | 09.00 – 10.30 | Professional Services | Mark Spearing, Vice-President (Research & Enterprise) | Register | Teams |
| 23 Mar | 12.30 – 14.00 | Faculty of Medicine | Shaun Williams, Executive Director, Engagement & Advancement | Register | Teams |
| 24 Mar | 09.00 – 10.30 | International staff | Shaun Williams, Executive Director, Engagement & Advancement | Register | Teams |
| 25 Mar | 11.00 – 12.30 | Faculty of Engineering & Physical Sciences | Faculty of Engineering & Physical Sciences | Register | Teams |
| 12 Apr | 13.30 – 15.00 | Faculty of Environmental and Life Sciences | Sarah Pook,
Executive Director, Finance & Planning |
Register | Teams |
| 14 Apr | 13.30 – 15.00 | Early Career Researchers | Mark Spearing,
Vice-President (Research & Enterprise) |
Register | Teams |
| 15 Apr | 14.00 – 15.30 | Faculty of Social Sciences | Anne-Marie Sitton, Executive Director of Human Resources | Register | Teams |
You can find further information below:
Previous SUSSED posts on pensions
