Resources

Below, you can find a list of resources with more information and guidance around the USS Valuation, including background information, roles and responsibilities and key dates and milestones. 

Building blocks representing meeting goals over time

2020 valuation: indicative timeline

Known dates and milestones related to the 2020 valuation

Watering can over seedlings with coins

What is a valuation?

Information about pension valuations and what their purpose is

 
Group of people around a meeting table

The Pensions Regulator

A brief description of the role the Pensions Regulator plays

Files from a defined benefit pension plan

What is a defined benefit scheme?

Margaret de Valois explains defined benefit schemes

Person with charts and data maps

Why are we here?

A detailed explanation of the Universities Superannuation Scheme

 

USS Pensions briefing sessions 

Chief Financial Officer Margaret Monckton and Deputy Vice-Chancellor Professor Andy Long are leading a series of webinars on USS for staff to gain more insight and ask questions.

Below are links to the presentation PDFs, as well as to the recorded video sessions.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

Pensions caluculator

Universities UK have developed a new contributions calculator which shows how much more USS pension scheme members would pay each month if reforms were blocked. Use the calculator below: 

2020 valuation contributions calculator

Example scenarios

To help USS pension scheme members understand the changes that have been approved by the USS Trustee to avoid significant increases in contribution rates for members and employers, UUK and USS have developed a series of example scenarios. USS examples show the impact of the proposed benefit changes for members on various salary levels, while UUK examples show the impact on benefits if the reforms are imprements - and the impact on members' pay if they are not.

 

Russell Group videos

The Russell Group is publishing a series of short videos to help members of the USS pension scheme understand the series of changes to the scheme that have been approved by the USS Trustee.

To support these changes, university employers are making commitments to underpin the scheme’s covenant worth some £1.3 billion. Other reforms include commitments to explore alternative scheme designs, including conditional indexation; a major review of how the USS pension is governed; and the development of a flexible, low-cost option for lower paid members of staff.

The first video examines the affordability of the scheme for members and employers, and can be viewed below.

Affordability
 

The second video outlines the significant covenant commitments made by universities to underpin the scheme and can be viewed below:

Commitments 

The third and final video discusses plans to reform the governance of the scheme and can be viewed below:

Government Reforms