Universities ordered to step up protection against sexual harassment

The Office for Students (OfS) has said that it will introduce standards that need to be reached when it comes to reporting systems, disciplinary processes, and staff training.

This is to be coordinated with Universities UK (UUK), representing 142 universities, and supported by the National Union of Students (NUS).

The move comes after the OfS launched a consultation on tackling harassment and sexual misconduct.

As a response to findings, universities will be held to a “condition of registration” to tackle both. This means requirements will be set out in order for ‘universities’ to claim their title and award degrees.

The Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson, said a new ban on the use of NDAs will ensure victims “do not suffer in silence”

The requirements are as followed: training for staff and students to “improve understanding of what constitutes harassment and sexual misconduct”, publishing information about their policies and procedures, and banning the use of non-disclosure agreements when dealing with cases of harassment or sexual misconduct.

Non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) have been negatively used in cases of sexual misconduct in the workplace. In 2020, the BBC found in an investigation that nearly a third of universities had used NDAs to silence student complaints of sexual misconduct, bullying and harassment.

The Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson, said a new ban on the use of NDAs would ensure victims “do not suffer in silence”.

Relationships between staff and teachers were not included in the banned acts, despite it being considered previously.

Sanctions for those not following guidelines include being fined, stripped of access to student loan funding, or deregistration

According to the BBC, universities will have until 1 August 2025 to make changes and identify where steps must be taken, with an earlier deadline for the non-disclosure agreement element coming into force on 1 September 2024.

Sanctions for those not following guidelines include being fined, stripped of access to student loan funding, or deregistration.

Charlotte Keely, Our Streets Now campaign group member, claimed that the OfS has taken a “minimum standard approach” when it came to training. She highlighted the lack of depth in tackling a “culture of sexual harassment” as focus is predominantly on understanding what sexual harassment is. She told the BBC that “active bystander training, training on trauma-informed practice, or training on developing effective structures of report and support” are necessary.

The OfS report comes alongside a survey that was deemed “sobering” by UUK. It found that from students at 12 providers, 1/5 had experienced some form of sexual harassment, though this was not a representative study.

The Times also reports that over 1/4 of women in higher education surveyed by the regulator said that they had experienced unwanted sexual behaviour in the 2022/2023 academic year. However, this is paired with the statistic that 12% of students who experienced sexual harassment in that year made a formal report to their university.