Universities in England need to step up efforts to protect students from sexual harassment, their watchdog has said.
The Office for Students (OfS) said it will introduce certain bars that need to be reached when it comes to reporting systems, disciplinary processes and staff training.
It stopped short of requiring them to ban relationships between staff members and students, which it had previously been considering.
Universities UK (UUK), which represents 142 universities, said its members would work “constructively and rapidly” with the OfS.
The OfS, which regulates universities in England, launched a consultation on tackling harassment and sexual misconduct last February.
As a result, it is introducing a “condition of registration” for universities that is designed to deal with both issues.
It means institutions will only be able to call themselves “universities” and award degrees if they meet certain requirements, including:
- training for staff and students “to improve understanding of what constitutes harassment and sexual misconduct”
- publishing information about their policies and procedures
- banning the use of non-disclosure agreements when dealing with cases of harassment or sexual misconduct.
The OfS said it expected every university to identify the steps it needs to take.
Universities will have until 1 August 2025 to implement the changes – apart from the ban on non-disclosure agreements, which will come into force on 1 September 2024.
The regulator encouraged universities to ban staff-student relationships, but stopped short of requiring them to do so – a proposal it had previously floated.
The OfS also published findings from a survey of students at 12 providers, which suggested a fifth of them had experienced some sort of sexual harassment – although the sample cannot be seen as representative.
UUK called the survey results “sobering” and comes “despite much positive work in the sector to tackle” sexual harassment.
“Universities must go further still, doing everything possible to bring about a cultural change and stamp out sexual misconduct on campus,” it said in a statement.
“UUK and our members will now work constructively and rapidly with the OfS to help implement changes in support of our shared commitment to tackling harassment.”
Additional reporting by Hope Rhodes and Mary Litchfield
