Developed specifically for higher education, Unitemps helps universities strengthen compliance, reduce staffing and agency costs, generate additional income, and create more paid work opportunities that improve student experience and employability.
Unitemps helps universities and local businesses fill temporary and permanent roles, graduate, internship and placement opportunities, and specialist disability support roles, with the service shaped around the needs of each institution.
Founded by the University of Warwick in 1997, Unitemps now operates through 21 university branches across the UK.
Unitemps provides consistent, HE-specific processes for Right to Work checks, Student visa restrictions, onboarding, timesheets, and audits, supported by specialist compliance guidance and reporting.
Unitemps connects students with paid work on campus and with local employers, helping them build experience, confidence, networks and transferable skills alongside their studies.
Moving suitable roles away from commercial agencies can reduce agency margins and associated VAT costs, subject to the university’s individual arrangements and tax position.
Branches can supply staff to external employers, creating additional income for the university while widening opportunities for students and strengthening local employer relationships.
Unitemps gives students a clear and transparent route to paid work that fits around their studies, helping with cost-of-living pressures and widening access to opportunities.
candidates worked*
*1st August 2024 to 31st July 2025
paid out in wages*
*1st August 2024 to 31st July 2025
savings in VAT compared to using a commercial agency*
*1st August 2024 to 31st July 2025
Unitemps has 21 university branches across the UK. Each branch is owned and operated by its university, while benefiting from the experience, support and shared learning of the wider network.
Our vision is to be the leading university-owned staffing network in UK higher education, helping universities deliver safe and effective staffing services while creating more opportunities for students and the wider communities they serve.
Your university owns and operates its Unitemps branch, giving you control over where the service sits, how it is structured and which areas of staffing it supports.
The University of Warwick provides the established Unitemps brand, specialist technology, implementation support, training, compliance guidance, marketing and ongoing support from an experienced franchise team.
As a university-owned service, the value created by the branch remains within the university rather than going to a commercial staffing agency.
Unitemps is much more than a staffing system. Your university is supported by experienced people as well as specialist technology, from initial planning and implementation through to launch and ongoing development.
A dedicated franchise relationship manager supports your university through implementation, launch and the ongoing operation and development of the branch.
Unitemps provides consistent, HE-specific processes for Right to Work checks, Student visa restrictions, onboarding, timesheets and audits, supported by specialist compliance guidance and reporting.
An experienced project team helps plan and manage implementation, coordinating the university and Warwick teams through each stage of the launch.
Our IT team supports system configuration, testing, and technical preparation, working with relevant university teams throughout implementation.
Business development support helps branches identify opportunities, build relationships with local employers, and develop external staffing activity within their agreed territory.
Our marketing team provides co-branded materials, campaign support and guidance to promote Unitemps to students, university departments and local organisations.
Branch teams benefit from regular meetings, ongoing operational and compliance training, an annual conference, and shared learning across the Unitemps network.
A specialist staffing CRM supports vacancies, candidates, workers, compliance processes, bookings and online timesheets.
Our national website and candidate portal allows people to search and apply for opportunities, manage their profile and connect with their local Unitemps branch.
Branch teams have 24/7 access to operational guidance, templates, training materials and shared resources through the online operations manual.
A dedicated IT service desk provides ongoing technical support, responds to system queries, and helps resolve issues experienced by branch teams.
Reporting tools help universities monitor staffing activity, compliance, financial performance and branch development to support effective decision-making.
‘I have been involved in successful Unitemps branches at four universities. At Gloucestershire, the main drivers were student experience, cost-of-living challenges and confidence in legislative compliance. The revenue generated was reinvested in improving student facilities and lives. The Unitemps franchise team provided valued support throughout implementation, and I would recommend the model to any university looking to improve temporary staffing on and off campus.’
‘We joined Unitemps in 2024 to grow commercial income while enhancing student employability. In its first year, Unitemps Teesside created hundreds of paid opportunities for students and graduates, supported local employers and became a successful new revenue stream. It is more than a staffing service: it helps students and graduates build confidence, financial independence and employability.’
‘Suitable employment opportunities are an important part of the student experience at Heriot-Watt. Unitemps has significantly reduced the administrative burden for hiring managers and helped us grow the number of students employed by the university across a wide range of roles. The team have been great to work with, from implementation through to launch and beyond.’
