Universities too afraid to record sexual assaults, says researcher

UNIVERSITIES are not collecting data on sexual assaults to avoid being named and shamed, a researcher has said.

Many institutions are not properly recording sensitive information about student complaints and some are using this to evade transparency, according to Andrew Wootton, a lecturer at Salford University. “Anecdotal evidence suggests that universities are not collecting incident data on sexual assault so they can avoid freedom of information requests,” he said.

He explained that if institutions did not record data on incidents such as hate crimes, sexual assaults and suicides, it meant that when such information was requested they could simply reply that they had no recorded data on the matter. Releasing such information could be damaging for the institution’s reputation.

Mr Wootton, who is director of Salford University’s Design Against Crime Solution Centre, has spent the past two years researching the systems in place at British universities to deal with student security and wellbeing.

“We asked how institutions are collecting incident data generally,” he said. “Some are using a proper system, some are using Excel, some are writing it down. Some don’t collect anything; it is not well structured.

“We know there has been a big increase in demand for student support; it has virtually doubled. There has been a large increase in student suicides, sexual assault is a growing issue and a number of universities are not dealing with it very well.”

A study by the Institute for Public Policy Research showed that in the past five years there has been a 94 per cent increase in demand for counselling among students. Separate research by the Samaritans shows that student suicides increased by 79 per cent between 2007 and 2015.

Mr Wootton and his team have designed a higher education code of practice for dealing with student safety and sexual harassment. “Universities need to have a formal policy on student mental health,” he said.

Universities are investing heavily in beefing up their student support systems to accommodate the influx in demand for such services. Bristol University is spending £1million on “wellbeing advisers” amid concerns about mental health, following a recent spate of suspected student suicides.

Mark Ames, director of student services at Bristol University, said that parents are increasingly asking at open days about what they have in place to support students’ mental well-being.

All universities can apply to sign up to the higher education code, called ProtectED. A team of researchers at Salford University will then review the application and if they meet the necessary standard, the institution would receive accreditation.

“There is a change in the way universities are positioned, they now have much more of a consumer relationship with students,” Mr Wootton said.

Mr Wootton will talk about ProtectED at a conference at Salford University on Tuesday. Dr Kirsty Fairclough, the associate dean at Salford University who will chair the conference, said: “The evidence of sexual harassment in higher education is overwhelming – and there is no legislation to protect students.”