Student union to review sexual misconduct polices
A UNIVERSITY union has been forced to commission a formal review of disciplinary procedures after it failed to report allegations of sexual misconduct by one of its board members to other university institutions.
The Queen Margaret Union (QMU), one of the two student unions at the University of Glasgow, has come under fire for its lack of a sexual harassment policy and failure to “properly discipline” the member following four reports of sexual misconduct.
The institution has described its guidelines in dealing with such incidents as ‘no longer fit for purpose’ following an expose by a student newspaper.
Student publication the Glasgow Guardian reported that a former events convener at the QMU was removed from its board of management and given a six month ban following the reports.
The ban was later extended to 12 months after an appeal.
It has been reported that the QMU was not seeking to extend the ban and that the board member would be able to run for re-election to the board of management when he returned under existing rules.
The Guardian’s investigation found the only occasion in which the QMU liaised with other student bodies regarding the case was to the speak to the Students’ Representative Council (SRC), which at the time was running a Let’s Talk About Sexual Violence programme.
The QMU informed SRC president Lauren McDougall it was ‘inappropriate’ for its member to continue to participate as a sexual violence prevention trainer following the allegations.
It is alleged the QMU refused help from the SRC in reporting the allegations to the University Senate.
Mata Durkin, QMU president, said: “It is now evident that although we strictly followed our own guidelines, these are clearly no longer fit for purpose.
“In light of this, myself and those on the Disciplinary Committee admit to having let our members down.
“In an effort to learn from this incident so that it does not happen again, effective immediately we will begin working to ensure that our procedure for reporting sexual misconduct within the QMU is clear and easy for all University of Glasgow students and staff to use.”
In comparison to the QMU, the University of Glasgow has a comprehensive and detailed harassment and bullying policy, disciplinary memorandum and complaints procedure
A spokesperson for the University of Glasgow said: “The University takes all allegations of misconduct extremely seriously, whether this takes place on University premises, in the unions or anywhere else on campus.
“We expect the highest standards to be adhered to at all times and would e ncourage anyone who feels that they have been mistreated in any way to come forward.”