Regulator nudges campuses towards staff-student relationship ban

England’s higher education regulator has dropped plans to require universities to keep a register of “personal relationships” between staff and students but stopped short of mandating an outright ban, although it warned institutions that do not prohibit such liaisons that they must take steps to limit the risk of abuses of power.

The decisions, which follow a consultation first launched in February 2023, come as a pilot survey of sexual misconduct on campuses reveals that 20 per cent of students have experienced sexual harassment while at university. 

The OfS said bans on intimate personal relationships between relevant staff and students “would generally be more appropriate and effective” than a register, however it stopped short of mandating one.

“We are not however mandating a ban for every provider,” it said, adding: “A provider may choose to implement a ban on intimate personal relationships that allows for exemptions, or may choose not to implement a ban at all. In either of these cases, intimate personal relationships between relevant staff and students may be permitted.”

Whether a university decides to introduce a ban or not, higher education institutions should “seek to manage and address any actual or potential conflict of interest, or abuse of power, as a result of the relationship”.

The OfS also said universities and colleges will no longer be able to use non-disclosure agreements in cases of harassment or sexual misconduct. 

Its Sexual Misconduct Prevalence Survey pilot, released alongside the new policy, also found that 9 per cent of survey respondents had experienced unwanted sexual assault or violence between September 2022 and September 2023. Of these, 54 per cent said the experience involved someone connected with the university, occurred in a university setting, or both.

Overall, women were more than twice as likely to experience sexual harassment compared to men (27 per cent compared to 12 per cent), and over three times more likely to experience sexual assault or violence than men (13 per cent compared to four per cent). 

Susan Lapworth, chief executive of the OfS, many universities already have bans on staff-student relations, and she said “we expect many more will now follow” after the new advice.

“Students have told us clearly that they want to see more active regulation to tackle harassment and sexual misconduct in higher education,” she said.

She added: “More regulation is rarely popular with those subject to it. But we are clear that the action we’re taking today is targeted on an important issue that matters very much to students. We are pleased to be able to regulate in their interests.” 

juliette.rowsell@timeshighereducation.com