The Office for Students (OfS) is to propose a new condition of
registration, which would place requirements on universities and
colleges to address harassment and sexual misconduct.
The regulator has also announced that it has begun work to
develop a ‘prevalence survey’ to understand the scale and nature
of sexual misconduct affecting higher education students in
England.
The OfS plans to consult on the proposed condition in early 2023.
Subject to the outcomes of the consultation, a new condition
could be in place before the start of the next academic year. The
OfS would run a pilot prevalence survey on the same
timetable.
Earlier this year the OfS commissioned an independent evaluation
of the actions universities and colleges had taken in response to
its Statement of Expectations which provides recommendations for
the systems, policies and practices institutions need to have in
place to prevent and effectively respond to harassment and sexual
misconduct.
The full evaluation, which will be published in November, is
expected to show that universities and colleges have taken steps
to improve their approach, for example, making it easier for
incidents to be reported. But evidence from students suggests
that progress has been inconsistent and too slow, with many
students still not knowing what to do if this happens to them, or
having a poor experience when they do report incidents of
harassment or sexual misconduct to their university.
The OfS’s prevalence survey will aim to measure the extent of
sexual misconduct in higher education. Students will be surveyed
to provide reliable data about who is subject to incidents of
sexual misconduct, and where and when incidents take place. This
will help universities to target action to prevent incidents and
to know whether their interventions are having a positive impact.
The data will also provide regulatory intelligence for OfS to
inform its work in this area.
Susan Lapworth, chief executive of the OfS, announced these plans
while giving evidence to a House of Commons Women and Equalities
Committee hearing today. After the meeting, she said:
‘Tackling harassment and sexual misconduct in higher education is
incredibly important and we think there is more that universities
can and should do.
'The OfS has funded and evaluated over 100 projects in this area.
We have published effective practice and resources so all
universities and colleges can learn more about what works best.
Our voluntary statement of expectations for universities and
colleges has been in place for 18 months. Preliminary findings
from an independent evaluation show that many universities and
colleges have taken action but progress is inconsistent and too
slow. Students tell us they have not experienced the tangible
improvements they would expect.
'We have always been clear we would consider moving to sharper
regulation if self-regulation did not have the impact we want to
see. We will present proposals for new regulatory requirements
and intervention early next year and look forward to hearing the
views of students, universities and colleges, and other
stakeholders during our consultation.’
