Are you a teacher who has witnessed sexual harassment taking place between students at your school? Did you know how to handle the situation? Do you feel your school is doing enough to educate and inform pupils about the issue?
Sexual harassment continues to be a widespread problem in society. The issue has been highlighted most recently by the #MeToo campaign, which asked people to share the words “me too” on social media if they had ever been a victim of sexual harassment or assault, in the wake of the allegations of sexual assault and rape against Hollywood film producer Harvey Weinstein.
Schools are far from unaffected. In fact, reports of sexual assault on children by other children in England and Wales have increased, up by 71% from 4,603 in 2013-14 to 7,866 in 2016-17, according to the BBC. Reports of sexual offences on schools premises also increased from 386 in 2013-14 to 922 in 2016-17, including 225 rapes on school grounds between 2013 and 2017.
There have also been complaints about the lack of clear government guidance on what schools should do when rapes and sexual assaults are reported, despite sexual harassment and sexual violence being flagged as a problem in schools more than a year ago in a report by the Women and Equalities Committee.
We’d like teachers to share their experiences of how schools are currently dealing with such cases, as well as your thoughts on what support schools need to tackle the problem. To take part, fill out the encrypted form below – you won’t need to give us your name or the name of where you work – and we’ll publish a selection of responses. Due to the sensitive nature of the topic, we will contact you before using what you have sent us.
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