OIA publishes a casework note and case summaries relating to harassment and sexual misconduct

The casework note sets out some of the issues we see in the small but rising number of complaints we review from students who have reported experiencing harassment or sexual misconduct to their higher education providers, and from students whose conduct has been considered under their higher education provider’s disciplinary procedures.

We have also announced our intention to prepare a new section of our Good Practice Framework gathering together principles that higher education providers can follow in designing fair and supportive processes for responding to reports from students. This will draw upon learning from the complaints we have seen and also on the expertise of front-line practitioners and other organisations that support students.

This is a timely piece of work, building on considerable sector activity as regulated higher education providers prepare to meet the new regulatory condition from the Office for Students (OfS) designed to tackle harassment and sexual misconduct. We welcome the work of the regulator in this space, particularly the emphasis on the importance of clarity, ease of access, transparency and fairness in addressing student concerns.  

The complaints we have reviewed demonstrate that higher education providers are making progress in providing students with clear routes to report when they have experienced an unwelcome behaviour. But, students are not always clear about the different options available to them and what actions are likely to happen under each route. Students do not always receive clear outcomes to complaints they have made, especially when complaints about members of staff are addressed within employee disciplinary processes. In our view, it is essential that reporting students are given clear outcomes, that explain what steps have been taken, and provide assurances about how they will be supported in continuing their studies. 

Providers have also been taking firm steps under their disciplinary processes to address misconduct. Our experience shows that investigators and decision-makers may not always be clear about the limits of their role, or understand how to test and weigh up evidence in a way which recognises the need to support all parties involved. It is important that providers are clear that they are considering whether a student has breached their codes of conduct, and are not making findings about any criminal offence. 

The cases we have seen have often been complex. The case summaries we have published have been carefully selected to ensure that no individual can be identified. In some instances, we have simplified the narrative of events to draw out learning points more clearly. 

Helen Megarry, the Independent Adjudicator said,