The message below was sent to members and eligible members of USS on Tuesday 26 October via the USS bulletin. Notice of thes statutory consultation was then emailed to members and eligible members on Friday 29 October.
In the next few days you will receive a message via the USS bulletin explaining how you can give your views on proposed changes to the benefits offered by the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS).
The message will give you, as a member or eligible member of the scheme, statutory notice of these proposed changes as part of a formal employer consultation exercise overseen by USS which, as the trustee, has proposed the changes. From 1 November, you will be able to click through to a section of USS’s website to learn about the changes in detail, access a modeller so that you can see how they would affect you, and provide feedback. The consultation closes at 5pm on 17 January.
What changes are being proposed?
You can read a summary of the proposed changes to benefits on the USS section of the University’s website. This explainer to the 2020 valuation by Anthony Odgers, the University’s Chief Financial Officer, provides additional information. The cuts to benefits would apply to future accrual only.
USS is also consulting on proposals to increase member and employer contribution rates, which would take effect from 1 April 2022 and further increase every six months until 2025, if the proposals for benefit reform were not implemented. More detail on this will be available on the consultation website.
All staff at Cambridge are strongly encouraged to take part in the consultation. Your views can influence or change the proposals.
Open meetings
We have organised two online open meetings on the following dates. The links to attend these meetings were sent in the USS bulletin and will be circulated again before the meetings take place.
- Wednesday 24 November, 11.45 – 12.45
- Friday 10 December, 2.15 – 3.15
There will be a presentation by the University’s actuary, and he and Sue Curryer, Head of Pensions, will be available to take questions. All USS members and eligible members at Cambridge are welcome to attend the meetings irrespective of whether their principal employer is the University, a College or Cambridge University Press and Assessment.