Industrial action: guidance for students

The university fully respects and will not seek to undermine the right of our staff to take industrial action and to withdraw their labour. 

The action is in relation to the 2025-26 pay award. You can read more about the Local Pay Bargaining Full and Final Offer 28 May 2025. 

We commenced this year's local pay bargaining with our JTU colleagues in April and have had four meetings, which you can read more about on our web page.

While we entirely respect the right of our trade unions and their members to undertake industrial action, our immediate priority is to minimise the impact on your studies, and we are making every effort to do so.

Your department will provide more information if any variations to arrangements are required. 

No, the university will remain open as normal.

Most funds from withheld salaries will be paid directly into the Student Support Fund. Some funding may be allocated to departments if they need to mitigate the impacts of the strike action on students. Any unspent funds will be redirected back to the Student Support Fund.

Lectures and tutorials 

We're working hard to mitigate the impact on teaching and assessment activities. Where teaching cannot be delivered as scheduled, it may be rescheduled, delivered by another member of staff, or delivered in a different format. 

You should complete and submit your coursework by the deadlines agreed upon as usual, even if your lecturer is taking part in the strike. In some instances, the potential absence of staff members due to strike action might make coursework impossible to complete by the agreed deadline. If this is the case, please contact your department.

The strike action is not a valid reason to apply for mitigating circumstances. If any of your teaching has been affected by the strike action, inform your department, and this will be addressed on a case-by-case basis. We understand your concern and assure you that we are committed to minimising the impact of any strike action. 

Please continue to seek their support and advice if you're already in touch with your department (via a personal tutor, senior tutor, department office, wellbeing adviser, etc.).

 In particular, if you believe that the strike action has exacerbated any existing mitigating circumstances, you should seek advice about submitting additional evidence in support of this through your department, using the standard mitigating circumstances process. This will ensure that the Board of Examiners are fully aware and can act accordingly.  

If you're feeling any impact on your health or wellbeing and you're not already in contact with your personal tutor, we strongly advise that you do so. Please visit the Student Support Zone for further information. 

Please continue to seek their support and advice if you're already in touch with your department (via a personal tutor, senior tutor, department office, wellbeing adviser, etc.). In particular, if you believe that the strike action has exacerbated any mitigating circumstances, you should seek advice about submitting additional evidence in support of this through your department, using the standard mitigating circumstances process. This will ensure that the Board of Examiners are fully aware and can act accordingly.

If you're feeling any impact on your health or wellbeing and you're not already in contact with your personal tutor, we strongly advise that you do so. Please visit the Student Support Zone for further information.

It is possible that arrangements for the viva or reviews may be rescheduled. You are advised to discuss this with your supervisor if you have any concerns. If your supervisor is not available, there are staff within the department who have oversight of research degree students. If you do not know who this is for your department, check with your departmental office.

UKVI Student Sponsor guidance confirms that academic activity/teaching cancelled due to industrial action should not be treated as an unauthorised absence and should not affect your visa status.

On strike days, there will likely be a polite picketing presence at some entrances to our campuses. While pickets may ask you not to cross a picket line, they cannot stop you from entering the campuses or require you to engage in discussion with them.

Those who wish to cross a picket line are allowed to do so. Pickets should consist of a maximum of six people on any picket line. Picketing at Imperial has always been conducted respectfully without intimidation of staff, students or visitors , and we're confident this will continue.

Most university services and facilities are expected to operate as normal during any period of industrial action. If a staff member chooses to strike,  they may tell their department in advance, which will help us plan to mitigate any impact on your access to support services.   

In some specific instances, the impact of industrial action may mean that services need to reduce of change their operating hours, rearrange appointments or there may be some variation in delivery. However, such instances are expected to be minimal , and every effort will be made to ensure that services are accessible as normal. 

If you have questions that have not been answered here, you should first contact the teaching office of your department or your personal tutor.
If you still don't have the information you need, you can email strike-guidance@imperial.ac.uk. 

In line with the Office for Students’ Guidance we are working hard to deliver the education that you have been promised, as planned. 

We are reviewing all course delivery in light of industrial action. In the unlikely circumstance that learning outcomes have been impacted, we will be in touch with students who have been affected when this review has been completed.  

In line with the Office for Students’ Guidance we are working hard to deliver the education that you have been promised, as planned. 

We are in the process of contacting all departments affected by industrial action to gather details about how they intend to deliver your learning outcomes.