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<p>Any form of harassment, violence or sexual assault is abhorrent and unacceptable
anywhere in society, including in our universities which should be safe and inclusive
environments. I have been clear that sexual harassment is in no way tolerable on our
campuses and online environments. The government urges university leaders to ensure
a zero-tolerance approach to all harassment and sexual misconduct and to ensure they
have robust systems in place for reporting incidents where they do occur.</p><p>The
Office for Students (OfS) statement of expectations on harassment and sexual misconduct
was published on 19 April and is a useful tool for providers. As part of its next
steps on harassment and hate crime, the OfS will now be considering options for connecting
the statement of expectations to its conditions of registration. The OfS wrote to
providers on 10 June, asking them to review and update their systems, policies and
procedures in line with the statement of expectations on harassment and sexual misconduct
by the beginning of the next academic year. I have made it clear that the government
sees the OfS statement as the minimum that providers should be doing to keep students
safe from sexual harassment and misconduct, and to handle reported incidents appropriately
when they do occur.</p><p>I also wrote to the sector on 2 July reasserting the government’s
firm expectations that providers take a zero-tolerance attitude towards sexual harassment
and that they have robust policies and procedures in place to address it when it does
occur. This includes giving urgent consideration to the OfS request to update their
systems and procedures before the beginning of next academic year. I detailed the
way in which the government will legislatively tackle the use of Non-Disclosure Agreements
(NDAs) in relation to workers and employers. I also outlined that I have asked my
officials to explore options for going further in this area in higher education (HE).
The use of NDAs in relation to sexual violence, harassment and misconduct is wholly
inappropriate.</p><p>I was extremely concerned that many of the deeply disturbing
testimonies that continue to be posted on the ‘Everyone’s Invited’ website reference
experiences within HE settings. I met with the founder of Everyone’s Invited in June,
to discuss tackling sexual harassment in HE. I also met with Universities UK (UUK)
to discuss this issue, including their existing guidance for providers in this area.
I understand they are preparing guidance on staff to student sexual misconduct, which
they will publish in the coming months.</p><p>On 10 June Ofsted published its review
into sexual abuse in schools and colleges. Whilst HE was not part of the Ofsted review,
many of its findings can inform our work. One of the most important findings of the
review is the prevalence of sexual harassment and online sexual abuse. As such, Ofsted
recommends that schools act as though sexual harassment and online sexual abuse are
happening, even when there are no specific reports. I have been clear that I want
to see HE providers taking the same approach – the issue needs urgent action to ensure
it is appropriately addressed.</p><p>I know that sexual harassment and misconduct
is an area that for several years HE providers, the OfS and sector bodies have been
working together on. In 2015, UUK set up a taskforce on harassment at the request
of government. Since 2016, a total investment of £4.7 million, match funded by HE
providers, has been invested by the OfS and its predecessor, funding 119 safeguarding
projects. £2.45 million of this was given to 63 projects specifically focused on tackling
sexual and gender-based violence in HE. In my recent letter to the sector, I highlighted
that it may also be timely to revisit the resources produced by these OfS-funded projects
relating to this area, available at: <a href="https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/advice-and-guidance/student-wellbeing-and-protection/student-safeguarding-evaluation-and-resources/"
target="_blank">https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/advice-and-guidance/student-wellbeing-and-protection/student-safeguarding-evaluation-and-resources/</a>.</p><p>All
HE providers should discharge their responsibilities fully and have robust policies
and procedures in place to address harassment, making sure that HE is a genuinely
fulfilling and welcoming experience for everyone. We expect providers to ensure that
students continue to have access to support services, and complaints processes, during
the COVID-19 outbreak, to ensure they are able to report any issues. I will continue
to work across government to ensure that sexual harassment is stamped out of our world
leading HE sector.</p>
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