University of Sunderland: An Inspire HE Top Quartile Winner  

A quick insight

The University of Sunderland was People Insight’s number one ranked university in the 2025 Inspire HE Awards for institutions with more than 1,000 staff. With 84% engagement, 71% participation and standout results for agile working, Sunderland’s results show how staff voice, flexibility and collaboration can help shape a positive employee experience.

University of Sunderland: People Insight’s number one ranked university in the 2025 Inspire HE Awards 

The University of Sunderland was People Insight’s number one ranked university in the 2025 Inspire HE Awards for institutions with more than 1,000 staff, recognising its strong commitment to creating a positive employee experience. 

This is a significant achievement. Its latest results show a university where colleagues feel proud, motivated and supported to do their best work. With an 84% engagement score and 71% participation rate, Sunderland’s survey results reflect high levels of colleague trust, involvement and connection. 

The University’s approach is shaped by consultation, communication, staff voice and a clear focus on making improvements that support both colleagues and students. 

Creating a positive employee experience 

Several factors have helped Sunderland build such a strong colleague experience.  

At the heart of this is an engaged and committed workforce. Colleagues report a strong sense of pride in working for the University and a motivation to do their best work. 

The University has also strengthened consultation, communication and involvement in decision-making. Enhanced staff voice mechanisms, leadership engagement activity and structured forums have helped colleagues feel heard, included and able to influence decisions.  

Together, these actions show a coordinated and intentional approach to improving colleague experience. 

Building trust in the staff survey process 

Sunderland’s 71% participation rate reflects a strong level of trust and engagement from colleagues. 

This has been supported by a clear, visible commitment to listening and acting on feedback. The University has put mechanisms in place to strengthen colleague voice, including enhanced consultation approaches and more opportunities to influence decision-making. 

Local leaders also played an important role in encouraging participation. In a pre-survey video, Alison Harkness, Facility Support Manager within Estates and Facilities, explained how she brought staff together in small groups to understand how they felt and why. She also highlighted the importance of giving colleagues time and support to complete the survey, particularly for team members who do not work at a computer every day. 

As Alison put it: “If nothing changes, then nothing changes. This is their opportunity to make a difference.” 

The University also connected survey participation to a wider cause. For every colleague who completed the 2025 Staff Engagement Survey, Sunderland donated £1 to the NSPCC, raising £1,332 in total. It was a simple incentive, but one that reinforced the value of voice, listening and positive impact beyond the University. 

The University also ran a pulse survey in early 2026 as a check-in on progress, helping colleagues see that their views continue to matter between full survey cycles. 

Turning feedback into focused, measurable action 

Sunderland’s approach to employee experience is not only about listening. It is also about closing the feedback loop and helping colleagues see how their feedback leads to action. 

The University has focused on clearly communicating what has been heard, what action is being taken at both University-wide and local levels and how progress is being made over time. This helps colleagues see that their views are valued and that feedback can lead to meaningful outcomes. 

There is already evidence that colleagues are seeing the impact of previous feedback. Improvements in areas such as learning and development suggest that actions taken in response to earlier feedback are beginning to have a positive effect. 

People Insight’s platform has supported this approach by giving Sunderland’s leadership community access to clear survey dashboards, helping leaders translate insight into focused, measurable action plans. 

Flexible working that supports people and students 

Flexible and agile working is one of Sunderland’s standout strengths. 

93% of colleagues say the University’s approach to flexible and agile working positively impacts their ability to carry out their role. This is supported by a culture of trust, supportive line management and a clear focus on wellbeing. 

Flexible working is not treated as a standalone policy. It is part of a broader commitment to supporting colleagues, improving work-life balance and creating a better employee experience. 

Keeping the student experience strong 

Sunderland has worked to balance flexibility for colleagues with a strong student experience. 

70% of colleagues say the University’s approach to flexible and agile working positively impacts students, a nine percentage point increase in two years. 

The University treats flexibility and student experience as mutually reinforcing. It has also set clear expectations around campus presence, helping maintain connection with students and colleagues while still giving staff flexibility.  

Supporting wellbeing and work-life balance 

Work-life balance is another strength in Sunderland’s results, with 77% of colleagues saying they can achieve a good balance between work and home commitments. 

The University’s approach is supported by trust, positive manager relationships and collaborative team environments. Sunderland has also launched a Wellbeing Network, with Wellbeing Champions working proactively to improve workplace wellbeing and work-life balance. 

This helps make wellbeing feel practical and visible, rather than separate from everyday working life. 

Strengthening collaboration across the University 

Cooperation across departments has improved by five percentage points in two years and now sits 20 points above the HEI benchmark. 

Sunderland has spent time reinforcing the benefits of collaboration within teams, between teams and with students and partners. 

The launch of the University of Sunderland culture framework in late 2023 has also helped bring values to life, with examples from colleagues showing what collaboration looks like in practice. 

That focus has helped make collaboration a clearer and more visible part of the employee experience. 

How People Insight helped 

People Insight’s platform helped the University of Sunderland turn colleague feedback into clear, comparable insight. 

With robust survey data and accessible dashboards, Sunderland has been able to identify strengths, understand where improvement is needed and support more focused conversations across the leadership community. 

This has helped keep colleague voice connected to decision-making, giving leaders the insight they need to prioritise meaningful improvement. 

Lessons we can learn from the University of Sunderland’s approach to employee experience 

What lessons can we take from Sunderland, its Inspire HE recognition and its wider approach to employee experience? 

1. Employee voice builds trust when it is visible: Sunderland’s approach shows the value of consultation, structured forums and leadership engagement in helping colleagues feel heard. 
2. Flexibility works best when it is built on trust: Flexible working is effective because it is supported by managers, teams and a clear focus on outcomes. 
3. Staff experience and student experience can strengthen each other: Sunderland’s results show that flexible working can support colleagues while maintaining a strong student experience. 
4. Wellbeing needs practical support: The Wellbeing Network and Wellbeing Champions help make wellbeing visible, active and connected to everyday work. 
5. Culture becomes stronger when values are made real: Sunderland’s culture framework has helped colleagues understand what collaboration looks like in practice. 

Work with us to create an inspirational culture in HE 

Sunderland’s story shows what can happen when a university listens carefully, involves colleagues and builds employee experience around trust, flexibility and collaboration. 

At People Insight, we help higher education institutions listen more effectively, understand what sits behind the scores and comments and turn insight into meaningful improvement. Whether you are looking to strengthen participation, support managers with action planning or build greater belief in action, we can help. 

See how we support higher education staff surveys or get in touch to find out how we can help you create an inspirational culture in HE.