Sheffield’s renowned chemistry department at risk in latest cuts

Plans to reduce staff numbers in the University of Sheffield’s famed chemistry department risk causing “lasting damage” to the institution and a research field central to Labour’s industrial strategy plans, a union has warned.

Regarded as one of the UK’s highest performing chemistry departments, Sheffield’s chemistry school has been home to four of the institution’s Nobel prizewinners – including Richard J. Roberts and Harry Kroto, laureates in 1993 and 1996, who took their undergraduate and PhD degrees there. Its latest Nobelist, in 2016, was Fraser Stoddart, who worked in the department for 20 years until 1990.

However, staff were told on 19 May that a consultation had begun on restructuring the department with the likely loss of six full-time equivalent (FTE) posts, about 20 per cent of employees.

A similar restructure is also taking place in Sheffield’s materials science and engineering department, where eight FTE posts are set to be cut, again about 20 per cent, while further posts are set to go in East Asian studies, mainly in Japanese and Korean studies.

More cuts are also expected in professional services related to the Research, Partnerships and Innovation Hub, while reviews are under way in four other departments – English; history, philosophy and digital humanities; medicine and population health; and social studies – which could, in turn, lead to further restructures.

Taken together, the restructures and reviews bring about 550 staff in scope, following a similar exercise last year, which affected 1,200 staff, the University and College Union (UCU) has said. The university has said about 70 posts are currently under review, with any future reviews likely to bring a maximum of 150 posts in scope.

The proposed cuts to Sheffield’s chemistry department, which finished joint 15th in the 2021 Research Excellence Framework, follow the University of Nottingham’s announcement on 12 May of plans to cut 14 members of its chemistry staff, with 31 of its 46-strong department receiving letters warning them that they are at risk of redundancy. An open letter protesting the cuts has been signed by more than 1,000 scientists, including five Nobel laureates.

Commenting on the threats to science jobs at Sheffield, David Hayes, president of Sheffield’s UCU branch, said the subjects “are historically important and significant research areas for our university”, pointing to the Nobel wins and involvement in the invention of stainless steel, which “became an essential part of the industrial and cultural identity of the city of Sheffield”.

“They are also key to the current government’s clean energy research priorities,” said Hayes, who added that the university “cannot claim to be committed to environmental sustainability while placing these disciplines at risk”.

“Job cuts in these areas will mean the loss of highly specialist research and technical expertise that is much more difficult to rebuild than it is to cut. There is a real risk of doing lasting damage to these areas at the University of Sheffield, and at a national and international level,” he said.

In early 2026 UCU members at Sheffield voted marginally in favour to extend its mandate to strike, with the branch subsequently calling on members to strike for six days in May to protest the threat of compulsory redundancies.

Union members have downed tools several times in the past year after executives said Sheffield needed to save £23 million, a figure that UCU claimed could equate to more than 400 jobs going.The university said it has so far avoided compulsory redundancies. 

A spokesperson for the University of Sheffield, said: “Like many UK universities, we are adapting to changing sector demands and shifting student enrolment. Doing nothing is not an option if we want to shape our own future and protect the high-quality student experience Sheffield is known for."

“To ensure long-term sustainability, we are carefully reviewing structures in specific areas in line with current and future teaching, research, and support needs. While around 70 roles are currently under review, we expect any final number of potential redundancies to be very small," they added.

“We know this is an unsettling time for colleagues; however our focus is entirely on using voluntary measures to achieve these savings—as we have successfully done in other restructures —and compulsory redundancies remain an absolute last resort," the university continued, adding: “No schools or disciplines are closing, courses will continue to be delivered to the same high academic standards, and these proactive steps will ensure the University remains well positioned to thrive for future generations.”

The university recorded an underlying operating deficit of £11.5 million in 2024-25 after it suffered a £56 million fall in income for the year, which was mainly driven by a 22 per cent reduction in international tuition fee income.

However, Hayes argued that the proposed cuts are “unnecessary because the university is not under any imminent financial risk”, with the union claiming the proposed cuts for 2025-26 and 2026-27 are based on “ideological desire rather than financial necessity”.

“Management has refused to consider strategies for increasing student numbers in these disciplines that would defend staff jobs and student education, and secure these areas as sites of continuing research excellence,” he said.

jack.grove@timeshighereducation.com