All staff and students have the right to live, study and work in a safe and supportive environment without being discriminated against, belittled, harassed, humiliated or excluded by others. The longlasting impact of discrimination can be detrimental to one’s emotional and physical health, often leading to social and work/study place withdrawal, greater anxiety, low self-esteem and reinforcement of stereotypes. The University strives to promote a culture that is free from discrimination.
It is against the law to discriminate against someone on the basis of their protected characteristic(s). These are defined by the Equality Act 2010 as:
- age
- disability
- gender identity or reassignment
- marital status (including civil partnership status)
- pregnancy and maternity
- race
- religion and belief
- sex
- sexual orientation
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At London Met, we believe that all students and staff have the right to study and work in a safe and dignified environment in which they are free from any form of unwanted conduct of a sexual nature. Sexual misconduct can occur in all relationships and situations, regardless of age, disability, economic status, ethnicity, faith, gender identity, sexual orientation and marital status.
Our It Ends Here campaign will educate, offer training and develop a culture of understanding to tackle the root cause of harassment and sexual misconduct.
In recent years, there have been a number of studies and surveys relating to harassment and sexual misconduct in higher education. The range and scope of statistics vary and underreporting remains prevalent. Nonetheless, each piece of research reiterates a clear picture: sexual misconduct is rife in universities.
- In 2017, The Crime Survey for England and Wales showed that students were more likely to have been a victim of sexual assault in the year ending 2017 than adults of other occupations.
- In 2018, a national study conducted by Revolt Sexual Assault in partnership with The Student Room revealed that in their sample, almost two thirds (62%) of students and graduates had experienced sexual violence at UK universities.
- In 2019, the Brook survey results revealed a significant gap in understanding of consent and what constitutes sexual harassment and violence: 56% experienced unwanted sexual behaviours at university but only 15% realised that these behaviours counted as sexual harassment.
The It Ends Here campaign aims:
- to build a culture where there is zero tolerance for harassment, hate crime and sexual misconduct against anyone
- to develop collective ownership of the need to change attitudes and to establish common values
- to engage staff and students across the university to build programmes to promote a safe, anti-discriminatory culture for all
- to enable open communication about issues pertaining to harassment, hate crime and sexual misconduct
- to provide effective training to students and staff to unpack entrenched and discriminatory ideas on marginalised groups
The University’s Safeguarding Policy (including anti-bullying and harassment) sets out the expectations, duties and requirements of students and staff in respect to the safeguarding the wellbeing of members of the University community (including children and adults at risk) within the University. Read the University’s Safeguarding Policy in full.
The University defines a complaint as “a formal expression of dissatisfaction with any alleged act or omission of the University by a student, former student, applicant or any other user of the University’s services.” Read the University’s Complaints Procedure. We are revising our processes during 2020-21.
