University of Essex SU demands ‘urgent’ changes to complaints procedure

The Students’ Union (SU) at the University of Essex has started a petition calling for “urgent” changes to the way sexual harassment complaints are handled, claiming that the university is “seriously failing students”.

The university, who has recently apologised to students for previous delays, were accused of “silencing” those who had made assault complaints.

In May, the BBC found that despite the university’s aim to deal with complaints within 60 days, a number of cases had taken a year to be dealt with.

Since a new system was launched, 46 students have made complaints, 38 of which were related to sexual harassment. Several were regarding the handling of complaints.

A student journalist who sent a Freedom of Information (FoI) request to the university, found four complaints where the university noted that “the complainant did not wish to take the matter to the police”.

Three students told the BBC that they regret not going to the police before informing the Student Conduct Office.

Another three revealed that despite reporting their assaults over a year ago, a hearing date had only just been set.

One student, who reported a serious sexual assault in May last year, said: “It’s made me feel like I have been taken advantage of not just by him, but by the university.

“I feel they silenced it. He is still able to walk around on campus… and nothing has been done about it. It doesn’t give me any closure.”

Essex SU is now calling for 10 points to be introduced to the complaints procedure. Some proposals include “proper support” for students who report complaints, conducting a “detailed review” of the experience of those affected, and introducing “compulsory sexual harassment response training” for all members of staff.

They also propose that all investigations into sexual harassment be completed within 60 days.

Although we believe we’ve responded appropriately we accept that the time it has taken to resolve some of these cases has left students in a very difficult position due to the uncertainty they’ve felt

– University of Essex

The university’s registrar Bryn Morris said: “We are listening to our students and we will have changes in place for the beginning of the new academic year.

“It is vital we work together with students to stamp out any incidents of sexual harassment or assault on our campuses and only through our combined effort will this be possible.”

In May, an official from the National Union of Students (NUS) told the BBC that university students are posting allegations of sexual abuse online as they do not feel that their universities are listening.

NUS Women’s Officer Sarah Lasoye said that sexual assault was the “biggest issue facing female students at university”.

Both Universities UK (UUK) and the Office for Students (OfS) have been asked by the government to tackle sexual abuse at universities. A UUK spokesperson said that all students and staff are “entitled to safe and positive experience” and that “all universities have a duty of care to provide that outcome”.

OfS Chief Executive Nicola Dandridge added that the higher education watchdog has “invested £2.4m in projects based in universities and colleges across England, to devise better ways of tackling sexual assault and harassment”.

A spokesperson for the University of Essex told the BBC in May that they were sorry if students are disappointed with the way they’ve dealt with complaints.

They added: “We’ve reviewed the specific cases highlighted by the BBC and our records show we provided face-to-face advice and support including information about reporting incidents to the police then followed this up with a full investigation through our Student Conduct Office.

“Although we believe we’ve responded appropriately we accept that the time it has taken to resolve some of these cases has left students in a very difficult position due to the uncertainty they’ve felt.”