Sexual misconduct by university staff is rife on campuses, with more than four in 10 students reporting that they have suffered unwelcome advances and assault, including sexualised comments, inappropriate touching and rape, research shows. The study, Power in the Academy: Staff Sexual Misconduct in UK Higher Education, warns that the sector is “not currently a safe environment”, with many students facing “sexualised touching, comments or even threats from staff members”. Under UK law “inappropriate touching and groping” also constitutes sexual assault, although the report does not specify this. Only a quarter of those who reported staff sexual misconduct thought that their university had taken proactive steps to prevent such incidents from happening again. Hareem Ghani, an NUS women’s officer, said the scale of staff sexual misconduct should push Universities UK to “introduce specific guidance on student-staff relationships and highlight the power imbalance that exists in these relationships”.

Source: The Guardian April 03, 2018 06:00 UTC