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Annie Lennox’s 30 greatest songs – ranked!

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Annie Lennox’s 30 greatest songs – ranked!

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As the Scottish pop icon’s debut solo album Diva turns 30, we run down through her best work with the Tourists and Eurythmics and as a solo artist

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Four-fifths of young women in the UK have been sexually harassed, survey finds | Sexual harassment | The Guardian

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Four-fifths of young women in the UK have been sexually harassed, survey finds | Sexual harassment | The Guardian

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More than four-fifths of young women in the UK have been subjected to sexual harassment, according to a survey for UN Women UK, which warns that most women have lost faith that the abuse will be dealt with.

Among women aged 18-24, 86% said they had been sexually harassed in public spaces, while just 3% did not recall ever having experienced sexually harassing behaviour. The remaining 11% chose not to answer the question.

According to the survey, published in a report by the all-party parliamentary group (APPG) for UN Women, 71% of women of any age said they had experienced sexual harassment in public spaces.

"This is a human rights crisis. It's just not enough for us to keep saying 'this is too difficult a problem for us to solve' - it needs addressing now," said Claire Barnett, executive director of UN Women UK.

"We are looking at a situation where younger women are constantly modifying their behaviour in an attempt to avoid being objectified or attacked, and older women are reporting serious concerns about personal safety if they ever leave the house in the dark - even during the daytime in winter."

The survey of more than 1,000 women, carried out by YouGov and seen exclusively by the Guardian, exposes a damning lack of faith in the UK authorities' desire and ability to deal with sexual harassment - 96% of respondents did not report incidents, with 45% saying it would not change anything. Among those who said the event was not serious enough to report were women who had been groped, followed and coerced into sexual activity, said UN Women UK.

As part of the UN Women UK's Safe Spaces Now project, the organisation collected stories from 400 women and sent an open letter to leaders, calling for better designed public spaces, improved reporting systems and education.

"We've seen really strong results elsewhere in the world. Our problem now is that sometimes in the UK, we think we are a leading light in terms of progress, and we forget to work on the gender-based violence that still happens every day at home, especially to women and marginalised groups," said Barnett.

Laura Bates, founder of the Everyday Sexism Project, said women were recognising the abuse they faced as sexual harassment, but it was unsurprising they had no faith in an "utterly broken" system.

"If you talk about wolf-whistling or street harassment in the UK, you are liable to find yourself on the front page of a tabloid being called a 'feminazi' and accused of overreacting, so of course young women don't think that they'll be taken seriously if they come forward," she said.

Bates pointed to TUC/Everyday Sexism research that found 52% of women had experienced sexual harassment at work, and of the one in five who had reported it, three-quarters said nothing had changed, while 16% said they were treated worse as a result.

"At the root of all this is the normalisation of the idea that a woman's body in a public place is simply public property and young women just have to put up with it. We have to shatter that normalisation through policy and in the press if we want to change the picture," she said.

This article was amended on 24 March 2021. Due to incorrect information supplied to us, an earlier version said the UN Women UK survey found that 97% of women aged 18-24 had reported being sexually harassed in public spaces, and 80% of all women; these figures are actually 86% and 71% respectively. The headline has also been amended to reflect this updated text.

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Four-fifths of young women in the UK have been sexually harassed, survey finds

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More than four-fifths of young women in the UK have been subjected to sexual harassment, according to a survey for UN Women UK, which warns that most women have lost faith that the abuse will be dealt with.

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Four-fifths of young women in the UK have been sexually harassed, survey finds | Sexual harassment | The Guardian

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Four-fifths of young women in the UK have been sexually harassed, survey finds | Sexual harassment | The Guardian

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More than four-fifths of young women in the UK have been subjected to sexual harassment, according to a survey for UN Women UK, which warns that most women have lost faith that the abuse will be dealt with.

Among women aged 18-24, 86% said they had been sexually harassed in public spaces, while just 3% did not recall ever having experienced sexually harassing behaviour. The remaining 11% chose not to answer the question.

According to the survey, published in a report by the all-party parliamentary group (APPG) for UN Women, 71% of women of any age said they had experienced sexual harassment in public spaces.

"This is a human rights crisis. It's just not enough for us to keep saying 'this is too difficult a problem for us to solve' - it needs addressing now," said Claire Barnett, executive director of UN Women UK.

"We are looking at a situation where younger women are constantly modifying their behaviour in an attempt to avoid being objectified or attacked, and older women are reporting serious concerns about personal safety if they ever leave the house in the dark - even during the daytime in winter."

The survey of more than 1,000 women, carried out by YouGov and seen exclusively by the Guardian, exposes a damning lack of faith in the UK authorities' desire and ability to deal with sexual harassment - 96% of respondents did not report incidents, with 45% saying it would not change anything. Among those who said the event was not serious enough to report were women who had been groped, followed and coerced into sexual activity, said UN Women UK.

As part of the UN Women UK's Safe Spaces Now project, the organisation collected stories from 400 women and sent an open letter to leaders, calling for better designed public spaces, improved reporting systems and education.

"We've seen really strong results elsewhere in the world. Our problem now is that sometimes in the UK, we think we are a leading light in terms of progress, and we forget to work on the gender-based violence that still happens every day at home, especially to women and marginalised groups," said Barnett.

Laura Bates, founder of the Everyday Sexism Project, said women were recognising the abuse they faced as sexual harassment, but it was unsurprising they had no faith in an "utterly broken" system.

"If you talk about wolf-whistling or street harassment in the UK, you are liable to find yourself on the front page of a tabloid being called a 'feminazi' and accused of overreacting, so of course young women don't think that they'll be taken seriously if they come forward," she said.

Bates pointed to TUC/Everyday Sexism research that found 52% of women had experienced sexual harassment at work, and of the one in five who had reported it, three-quarters said nothing had changed, while 16% said they were treated worse as a result.

"At the root of all this is the normalisation of the idea that a woman's body in a public place is simply public property and young women just have to put up with it. We have to shatter that normalisation through policy and in the press if we want to change the picture," she said.

This article was amended on 24 March 2021. Due to incorrect information supplied to us, an earlier version said the UN Women UK survey found that 97% of women aged 18-24 had reported being sexually harassed in public spaces, and 80% of all women; these figures are actually 86% and 71% respectively. The headline has also been amended to reflect this updated text.

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Four-fifths of young women in the UK have been sexually harassed, survey finds

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More than four-fifths of young women in the UK have been subjected to sexual harassment, according to a survey for UN Women UK, which warns that most women have lost faith that the abuse will be dealt with.

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Rights of Women survey reveals online sexual harassment has increased, as women continue to suffer sexual harassment whilst working through the Covid-19 pandemic. - Rights of WomenRights of Women

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Rights of Women survey reveals online sexual harassment has increased, as women continue to suffer sexual harassment whilst working through the Covid-19 pandemic. - Rights of WomenRights of Women

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Women's rights charity survey data shows that Covid-19 has seen women experience an upsurge in online sexual harassment whilst working from home, as harassers take advantage of online work platforms and social media during the pandemic.

Nearly 1 in 2 women who have experienced sexual harassment at work reported to experience some to all of it online.

15% of women who have experienced sexual harassment at work reported an increase in online harassment whilst working from home during Covid-19.

Nearly 1 in 3 women who have reported sexual harassment to their employer said that the process had been negatively impacted by the pandemic.

Since announcing a package of commitments to tackle sexual harassment at work last year, the Government Equalities Office (GEO) has yet to respond to their consultation on sexual harassment. Rights of Women are calling on the Government to urgently prioritise making guidance on sexual harassment for employers statutory.

Between 23 rd November and 15 th December, leading women's charity, Rights of Women, conducted an online survey to gather information on women's experiences of sexual harassment at work and working from home through the Covid-19 pandemic.

This inaugural data is the first of its kind in England and Wales and reveals the ways in which women are unsafe and unprotected from sexual harassment at work during Covid-19.

The survey exemplifies how current protections in the Equality Act 2010 are not robust enough to challenge the culture of sexual harassment at work, or whilst working from home, and a mandatory preventative duty for employers is needed to tackle the issue.

Rights of Women is calling on the Government to act by strengthening the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) 'Sexual harassment at work technical guidance' and making it statutory for all employers.

Rights of Women also urges the Government to publish its response to its 'Sexual Harassment in the Workplace' September 2019 consultation, which was due in spring of this year.

Survey exposes an upsurge in online sexual harassment whilst working from home

45% of women experiencing sexual harassment, reported experiencing the harassment remotely. Remote sexual harassment refers to the following: sexual messages (e.g. email, texts, social media); cyber harassment (e.g. via Zoom, Teams, Slack etc); and sexual calls.

42% of women experiencing sexual harassment at work have experienced some to all of the harassment online.

23% of women who have experienced sexual harassment reported an increase or escalation whilst working from home, since the start of lockdown (23rd March 2020),

15% of women who have experienced sexual harassment reported that some or all of the harassment has moved online whilst working from home, since the start of lockdown (23rd March 2020).

One woman highlighted how working from home has enabled her harassers to further invade her privacy: "having to let colleagues into my bedroom (via video meetings) means I feel my privacy has been invaded and nowhere is safe. The men now have more ammunition to mock me with."

One woman spoke of her experience of cyber harassment, via Zoom: "The director of the company uses Zoom to take screenshots of myself and other women which he shares with colleagues making derogatory statements and implying the photos look like we're doing sexual acts."

One woman spoke of the impact working from home has had on her ability to report sexual harassment: "The fact it's on Zoom in front of others in a jokey manner makes it difficult to address."

Survey reveals women's access to justice and safety from sexual harassment at work has been negatively impacted by the pandemic, as investigations stall

72% of women experiencing sexual harassment at work do not feel their employer is doing enough to protect and/or support them from the harassment and abuse.

29% of women who have reported sexual harassment to their employer reported that the response has been negatively impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic.

One woman wrote of how working from home impacted their employer's response and investigation into sexual harassment: "due to restrictions in limiting contact with people, management haven't wanted to go into the home of the perpetrator to speak with them about the matter because it's not viewed at necessary and could be risky. It also took a long time to get a meeting arranged because, due to restrictions, only management staff were allowed into the office. It took a long time for them to answer my emails due to Covid so the pandemic had a huge impact on the way the situation was handled."

A key worker at a hospital told us of how the investigation process into sexual harassment was stalled, and she had to continue working with her harasser, due to the pressures of the pandemic: "As the pandemic was declared, all attention was diverted in managing clinical pressures and needs as I work in a hospital. This meant an investigation was not started for months. In the meantime, I felt unprotected as there was no system in place to remove the harasser from the department whilst an investigation was pending. ...There is no policy in this mammoth organisation that addresses sexual harassment."

Deeba Syed, Senior Legal Officer, Rights of Women, said:
"These statistics echo what women have been telling us already, sexual harassment at work happens online as well as in-person. Although more women are working from home, online sexual harassment has increased and women continue to suffer sexual harassment despite the Covid-19 pandemic. Women working from home have seen their harassers take to Zoom, Microsoft Teams, social media, messages, and phone calls, to continue the torrent of abuse. What is more, women's health and safety from sexual harassment at work is being undermined and overlooked by their employers. Women have told us that employers are exploiting the Covid-19 pandemic to delay and frustrate the justice processes for women who do come forward to report harassment. In doing so, they continue to neglect their legal responsibility to prevent and protect women from sexual harassment at work. The survey highlights how the current legal framework for sexual harassment complaints is not-fit-for purpose, as employers continue to undermine their responsibility to keep women safe from sexual harassment and harassers repeatedly evade justice. Until legislation and guidance reflect the lived realities of women, whether working from home or on site, no space is safe from harassment and abuse for women at work. It has been over a year since the GEO closed their 'Consultation on Sexual Harassment in the Workplace' and we are still waiting on the Government's response and next steps which they pledged to release by spring. Earlier this year, the Equality and Human Rights Commission published technical guidance for sexual harassment, and now more than ever this guidance must be is made statutory for all employers to follow as an urgent priority."

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Rights of Women survey reveals online sexual harassment has increased, as women continue to suffer sexual harassment whilst working through the Covid-19 pandemic. - Rights of Women

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Women's rights charity survey data shows that Covid-19 has seen women experience an upsurge in online sexual harassment whilst working from home, as harassers take advantage of online work platforms and social media during the pandemic. Nearly 1 in 2 women who have experienced sexual harassment at work reported to experience some to all of ...

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Mayor Of London Addresses Sexism With ‘Have A Word’ Campaign | The Drum

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Mayor Of London Addresses Sexism With ‘Have A Word’ Campaign | The Drum

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Mayor of London addresses sexism with ‘Have a Word’ campaign

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The Mayor of London is seeking to stamp out sexism in the capital by calling on male residents to ’have a word with yourself, then your mates’ around any sexist attitudes or inappropriate behaviors they may harbor or observe.

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Sex trafficking: Children groomed in Romania sent to UK

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The BBC has found that children as young as 10 are being groomed in Romania, to be trafficked to the UK.

Once they arrive as teenagers, they're kept captive and pimped out for sex.

With police struggling to stop this brutal trade, BBC correspondent Jean Mackenzie has spent two years travelling between Romania and the UK. She uncovers why this industry is thriving, as she meets the girls being bought and sold.
Watch the full documentary Reporter Jean Mackenzie Produced by Sara Monetta and Emma Ailes Filmed and edited by Andy Smythe Executive Producer: Kimberley Rowell If you have been affected by issues in this report, support is available at Image shows an actress. BBC Action Line or the UK modern slavery and exploitation helpline: 08000 121 700. https://www.modernslaveryhelpline.org/ Sold: Sex Slaves Next Door on BBC iPlayer.

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The children groomed for the UK sex trade

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The BBC has found that children as young as 10 are being groomed in Romania, to be trafficked to the UK. Once they arrive as teenagers, they're kept captive and pimped out for sex. With police struggling to stop this brutal trade, BBC correspondent Jean Mackenzie has spent two years travelling between Romania and the UK.

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EMB 22.30: ‘We are deeply ashamed’: Government apologises to the thousands of rape victims who have ‘gone without justice’ - The Independent

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EMB 22.30: 'We are deeply ashamed': Government apologises to the thousands of rape victims who have 'gone without justice' - The Independent

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Ministers pledge to increase number of prosecutions but victims' groups criticise missed opportunities in two-year review

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Child sexual exploitation victims tell of abuse followed by blame

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A report from the Independent inquiry into child sexual abuse has found "extensive failures" in the way child sexual exploitation by criminal gangs is tackled.

Over the course of two months in 2020, the inquiry heard evidence from more than 30 witnesses which revealed how police and local authorities failed to properly tackle the problem.

Evidence offered only a glimpse of the ordeals suffered by young victims.

One victim, identified only as CS-A371, said her parents were heroin addicts and she was taken into foster care when she was 10 years old. From the age of 13 she was regularly sexually exploited by adult men who also supplied her with alcohol, cannabis and cigarettes. They were subsequently prosecuted, but the victim described the trial as "very much like I was being bullied" and said defence barristers accused her of being racist and "a slag".

Another victim, CS-A372, grew up in a family where there was neglect and domestic violence. From the age of 12 she was sexually exploited by a 30-year-old man who forced her to have sex with other men. She said children's social care opened and closed her case on multiple occasions, with records showing one of the reasons behind a decision to close her case was because they thought she was "putting herself at risk". Aged 14, she was forced to perform oral sex on more than 20 adult men. This was also filmed. A number of men were charged, although the charges were later dropped.

CS-A317 spent her childhood in a number of council-run children's homes. From the age of 14, she was sexually abused and made to have sexual intercourse with adult men. She said staff in the children's homes were "aware that she was having sex with an older male" but were dismissive and took no action to protect her. The abuse escalated and she said when she was 18 years old, she was raped by the main perpetrator of her exploitation. No action was taken by the police, who considered that she had consented. She had a breakdown and tried to take her own life. CS-A317 felt that "it was easier for the police to criminalise the children rather than go after the abusing adults".

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Child sexual exploitation victims tell of abuse followed by blame

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A report from the Independent inquiry into child sexual abuse has found "extensive failures" in the way child sexual exploitation by criminal gangs is tackled. Over the course of two months in 2020, the inquiry heard evidence from more than 30 witnesses which revealed how police and local authorities failed to properly tackle the problem.

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Ofsted Review 2021 - The inspection handbook update 28 June 2021

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Ofsted Review 2021 - The inspection handbook update 28 June 2021

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New section - Comes into effect for inspections from September 2021

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This guidance applies from 1 September 2021.

Introduction

1. This handbook describes the main activities that inspectors carry out when they inspect further education and skills providers in England under part 8 of the Education and Inspections Act 2006. It sets out the evaluation criteria that inspectors use to make their judgements and on which they report.

2. The handbook has 2 parts:

3. This handbook is a guide for inspectors on how to carry out inspections of further education and skills providers. It is also available to providers and other organisations to inform them about inspection processes and procedures. It balances the need for consistent inspections with the need to respond to each provider's individual circumstances. This handbook applies to inspections from 1 September 2019 under the education inspection framework (EIF). Inspectors will apply their professional judgement when they use this handbook.

Types of providers subject to inspection covered by this handbook

4. The providers we inspect under the Education and Inspections Act 2006 and using this handbook are:

further education colleges

sixth-form colleges

independent specialist colleges

local authority providers

employer providers

16 to 19 academies/free schools

5. The term 'further education and skills provider' covers all of these types of provider and all of the types of provision set out in detail at paragraph 99 (education programmes for young people, adult learning, apprenticeship provision at all levels, and provision for high needs learners). Apprenticeship training at all levels is understood to be part of skills training.

6. 'Learner' is a collective term used throughout this handbook to refer to any person aged 16 or over (or, where relevant, 14 or 15 years old) whether they are a student, an apprentice or similar, who is in education or training of the kind set out in paragraph 99.

7. 'Teacher' is a collective term used throughout this handbook to refer to teachers, trainers, lecturers, mentors, assessors and staff in similar roles.

Privacy notice

8. During an inspection, inspectors will collect information about staff and learners by talking to them, by looking at documents, records and survey responses and other recorded information and by observing everyday life at the provider. Inspectors may also meet with employers where appropriate. Ofsted uses this information to prepare its report and for the purposes set out in its privacy policy. We will not record names, but some of the information may make it possible to identify an individual.

9. Individuals and organisations have legal requirements to provide information to Ofsted as part of inspections. Ofsted has legal powers under section 132 of the Education and Inspections Act 2006 that relate to inspecting providers of further education and skills for learners aged 16 and over. Inspectors can 'inspect, take copies of, or take away any documents relating to the education or training' of students from the provider's premises. These powers also enable our inspectors to inspect computers and other devices that may hold this information.

Inspection and the COVID-19 pandemic

10. This section sets out our approach as inspections resume. It covers how we will reflect the COVID-19 context when making judgements. It also covers the transitional period. We will keep our handbooks and methodology under review as circumstances change and we continue to emerge from the pandemic. This section should be read alongside the other parts of the inspection handbook.

Preparation and planning

11. During the planning call with the inspection nominee, the lead inspector will seek to understand the specific impact of COVID-19 on the provider and learners and how leaders and managers responded to the situation.

12. This discussion will also explore how the provider implemented the curriculum and what, if any, elements of remote education remain in place at the time of inspection.

13. In this conversation, the lead inspector and nominee will agree safety protocols that the inspection team will follow to ensure that the inspection is completed in a COVID-19 secure way as necessary (see 'Actions for FE colleges and providers during the coronavirus outbreak').

Curriculum

14. Inspectors recognise that providers may have been unable to implement the curriculum in the usual way during the COVID-19 pandemic. They will seek to understand how leaders and managers have adapted and prioritised the curriculum.

15. This will include exploring how the provider implemented the curriculum remotely. Inspectors will also look at how managers and staff have been identifying learning gaps and any new starting points of learners and how managers and staff have been responding to that in their curriculum planning.

Personal development

16. When forming judgements about personal development, inspectors will seek to understand what took place before the pandemic, what the provider has in place currently and what its future plans are. Inspectors recognise that many elements of personal development that were in place before the pandemic may have been disrupted. Therefore, they will focus on understanding the steps that leaders have taken to offer or to restore a wide range of personal development opportunities.

Remote education

17. Inspectors recognise that there are some limited circumstances in which learners may need to learn remotely. Ofsted does not have a preferred model for remote education. The quality of remote education between March and August 2020 will not impact on our judgement of the provider's education.

18. Where remote education remains in place, inspectors may observe remote teaching and training and review materials. We will only expect to see the provider's typical approach to remote education and do not expect providers to arrange anything solely for inspection.

19. To understand the implementation of the curriculum, inspectors may discuss remote education with teachers, trainers and learners. They may also review completed work and teaching materials.

20. Given the above, when we refer to the intent, implementation and impact of the curriculum and quality of education within this handbook, we are including remote education. We consider that education delivered remotely or online should be integrated into the programme of education/training, and be designed to support the wider implementation of the provider's curriculum.

External data

21. Inspectors will consider available external data, as set out in paragraphs 153 to 155. However, they will be mindful of the age and relevance of this data when making judgements.

Leadership

22. Inspectors will seek to understand how leaders have adapted their development plans as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, including the rationale for any new or modified improvement priorities.

Safeguarding

23. Inspectors will consider how leaders and managers adapted approaches to safeguarding during the pandemic to make sure that:

Inspectors will discuss how safeguarding arrangements have changed over time due to the pandemic, and how leaders and managers have made sure that they remain effective.

Remote elements of the inspection

24. As with our practice before the pandemic, we will continue to carry out some elements of the inspection or monitoring visit using video or telephone calls, where that is the most effective means of gathering information. We may use these calls to involve staff, learners, employers, those responsible for governance, subcontractors and others.

Part 1. How further education and skills providers will be inspected

How providers are selected for inspection

25. To decide when we should next inspect a provider, we use the 'frequency of inspection' guidance set out below. We also use risk assessment to ensure that our approach to inspection is proportionate, so that we can focus our efforts where we can have the greatest impact.

26. We use a broad range of information to assess risk and performance when selecting providers for inspection. This process applies in particular to good or outstanding providers. The indicators include:

27. We can use relevant information received at any point during the year to select providers. We will review this information regularly.

Frequency of inspection

28. Inspection intervals have been extended where necessary due to the suspension of routine inspections during the COVID-19 pandemic from March 2020. The time extensions are detailed in footnotes. Further changes to inspection timescales will take effect from April 2022 onwards following the government's spending review. These are detailed throughout this section.

Providers judged outstanding

29. Providers judged outstanding for overall effectiveness at their most recent inspection are now all subject to routine inspection.

30. Those judged to be outstanding at their previous inspection before September 2015 will normally receive a full inspection. We will prioritise these inspections and they will continue to take place during 2022, regardless of the following changes to inspection arrangements.

31. The following types of provider will receive a full inspection between September 2022 and September 2025 in any case if currently graded outstanding (or any other grade):

32. Any outstanding provider delivering apprenticeship training (and not covered in paragraph 31) will receive a full inspection by September 2025, unless it has already had a full inspection since April 2021.

33. For any providers that are not covered in paragraphs 31 and 32, the following will apply. Those judged to be outstanding at their previous inspection before September 2015 will normally receive a full inspection by September 2025, which we will prioritise, unless they have already had a full inspection since April 2021. Those providers judged outstanding from September 2015 onwards at their previous inspection will normally receive a short inspection by September 2025, unless they have already had a full inspection since April 2021. For more information, see the section on short inspections (paragraphs 181 to 212).

34. Any outstanding provider in the following categories will receive an inspection as set out in paragraphs 30, 32 and 33:

This inspection will be within 6 years of the report publication date of their previous inspection or by September 2025, whichever is the sooner. Subsequent inspections of an outstanding provider would normally take place within six years of the publication of the inspection report of a provider being judged to be outstanding overall.

35. A provider judged as outstanding may also be inspected as part of our survey or research work, or through a monitoring visit.

Providers judged good

36. Providers judged good for overall effectiveness at their most recent inspection will normally be inspected within 5 years of the publication of their previous inspection report (extended to 7 years where the suspension of routine inspections during the COVID-19 pandemic had an impact on inspection activity) and certainly by September 2025.

37. Inspections of good providers will continue to take place during 2022, regardless of the following changes to inspection arrangements.

38. The following types of provider will receive a full inspection between September 2022 and September 2025 in any case if currently graded good (or any other grade):

39. Any good provider delivering apprenticeship training (and not covered in paragraph 38) will receive a full inspection by September 2025 (unless it has already had a full inspection since April 2021).[footnote 10]

40. For any providers that are not covered in paragraphs 38 and 39, the following will apply. They will normally receive a short inspection. However, they may receive a full inspection if information suggests that this is the most appropriate way forward. This includes, for example, if there are concerns about safeguarding, if the provider's performance has declined or if its provision has changed substantially. For more information, see the section on short inspections (paragraphs 181 to 212) and paragraphs 25 to 27 on selecting providers. A good provider may also be inspected as part of our survey or research work, or through a monitoring visit.

Providers judged to require improvement

41. Providers judged to require improvement at their most recent inspection will normally receive a full inspection within 12 to 30 months of the publication of their previous inspection report.[footnote 11] These providers will normally be subject to a monitoring visit before the full inspection, normally 7 to 13 months after the publication of their previous inspection report (see paragraph 77).[footnote 12]

Providers judged inadequate

42. Providers judged inadequate will receive re-inspection monitoring visits, as outlined in paragraphs 78 to 80. These providers will then receive a full inspection (known as a 're-inspection') within 15 months of publication of their previous full inspection report, provided they continue to be funded.[footnote 13] The major exceptions to this are providers that no longer receive their main funding or that have been removed from the Register of Apprenticeship Training Providers (RoATP) and deliver only apprenticeship provision. From that point, neither a re-inspection monitoring visit nor a full re-inspection will normally take place. If a provider has apprenticeship provision graded inadequate and has also been removed from the RoATP but still has other substantial funding, that apprenticeship provision will not normally be covered as part of the re-inspection monitoring visit and subsequent re-inspection.

New providers

43. We will normally carry out a monitoring visit to any provider that becomes newly, directly and publicly funded to deliver education and/or training.[footnote 14] This funding may be received from the Education and Skills Funding Agency ( ESFA), from a mayoral or combined authority ( MCA) or the Greater London Authority ( GLA) in the case of adult education, or through the apprenticeship levy.[footnote 15] The monitoring visit will normally take place within 24 months of the provider starting to deliver directly funded provision.[footnote 16] New providers starting to deliver provision from April 2021 onwards will normally receive their new provider monitoring visit within 18 months of starting to deliver. For more details about monitoring visits, see paragraphs 67 to 76.

44. New providers will normally receive their first full inspection within 24 months of the publication of their monitoring visit report.[footnote 17] From April 2022 onwards, new providers will normally receive their first full inspection within 18 months of the publication of their monitoring visit report. That will apply to providers whose monitoring visit reports were published from 1 April 2022 onwards. When a provider receives one or more insufficient progress judgements at their monitoring visit, it will normally receive a full inspection within 6 to 12 months of the publication of the monitoring visit report. We may carry out a full inspection of these providers without carrying out a monitoring visit, where appropriate.[footnote 18]

45. If a provider has made insufficient progress in safeguarding, it will normally receive one further monitoring visit to review only its safeguarding arrangements within 4 months of the publication date of its previous monitoring visit report.[footnote 19]

Providers with level 6/7 apprenticeship provision

46. Since 1 April 2021, Ofsted has been responsible for inspecting apprenticeship training (as defined in paragraph 99) at levels 6 and 7 (both degree and non-degree) as well as at levels 2 to 5.

47. How this affects providers in different categories is set out below.[footnote 20]

Providers with level 6/7 apprenticeship provision that have already received a full inspection

48. This relates to existing providers that have already received a full Ofsted inspection (whether under the EIF or previous inspection frameworks) and that deliver level 6/7 apprenticeship training. When they next receive a full or short inspection or monitoring visit, we will inspect their level 6/7 apprenticeship provision alongside any level 2 to 5 apprenticeship provision and any other provision they deliver subject to Ofsted inspection (as set out in paragraph 99). The timing of their inspection will depend on their overall effectiveness grade, as usual and as set out above.[footnote 21]

Providers with level 6/7 apprenticeship provision and no other provision subject to Ofsted education inspection

49. Providers that only deliver apprenticeship provision at levels 6 and 7 and have been delivering no other provision subject to Ofsted inspection (see paragraph 99) will be regarded as a new provider from April 2021. Currently, they will receive their first new provider monitoring visit within 24 months of 1 April 2021, when our extended remit came into effect.[footnote 22] From April 2022, this will change; new providers of level 6 and 7 only provision will normally receive their first new provider monitoring visit within 18 months of 1 April 2021.

50. These providers will then receive a full inspection within 24 months of the monitoring visit report being published. From April 2022, a new provider of this kind will normally receive its first full inspection within 18 months of the publication of its monitoring visit report. That will apply to providers whose monitoring visit reports were published from 1 April 2022 onwards. When a provider receives one or more insufficient progress judgements at its monitoring visit, it will normally receive a full inspection within 6 to 12 months of the publication of the monitoring visit report. Paragraph 45 will also apply where a provider has made insufficient progress in safeguarding.

New providers with level 6/7 apprenticeship provision that have not yet received their monitoring visit or full inspection

51. New providers that deliver apprenticeship provision at levels 6 and 7 as well as at levels 2 to 5 and have not previously received a monitoring visit or a full inspection will normally receive a monitoring visit within 36 months of the date they started to deliver apprenticeship provision (on account of COVID-19). New providers starting to deliver any apprenticeship provision (or other relevant funded provision) for the first time from April 2021 onwards will normally receive their new provider monitoring visit within 18 months of starting to deliver (see paragraph 43). The monitoring visit will take account of apprenticeship provision at all levels.[footnote 23]

52. These providers will then receive a full inspection within 24 months of the monitoring visit report being published. From April 2022, a new provider of this kind will normally receive its full inspection within 18 months of the publication of its monitoring visit report. That will apply to providers whose monitoring visit reports were published from 1 April 2022. When a provider receives one or more 'insufficient progress' judgements, the full inspection will usually be within 6 to 12 months. Paragraph 45 will also apply where a provider has made insufficient progress in safeguarding.

New providers with level 6/7 apprenticeship provision that have received a new provider monitoring visit but not a full inspection

53. New providers that have received their first new provider monitoring visit but have not yet received their full inspection will normally receive this within 40 months of the date of publication of their new provider monitoring visit.

Newly merged colleges

54. A newly merged college will normally receive a full inspection within 3 years of the merger.[footnote 24] This will normally be a full inspection. For inspection purposes, regardless of the type of merger, we view all merged colleges as new colleges.[footnote 25] A newly merged college will not carry forward any inspection grades from predecessor colleges. It will have no inspection grade until the first full inspection.

55. Any newly merged college may receive a monitoring visit at any reasonable time. A newly merged college will normally receive a monitoring visit before the first full inspection if the overall effectiveness grade of one or more of the predecessor colleges was requires improvement or inadequate.[footnote 26] These monitoring visits will focus on relevant themes about the progress of the merged college, including from the most recent report(s) of the predecessor college(s). Monitoring visits will normally arrive at progress judgements against these themes as set out in paragraph 69. The monitoring visit report will normally be published. Concerns about risks arising from this or other sources may lead to an earlier full inspection.[footnote 27]

Sixth-form colleges that convert to become 16 to 19 academies

56. Sixth-form colleges that convert to become 16 to 19 academies will be treated according to their most recent inspection outcome. Those that are outstanding will receive either a full or short inspection by September 2025 (see paragraphs 30, 32 and 33). Those that were good will normally receive a short inspection within 7 years of the publication of their previous inspection report and certainly by September 2025 (but may receive a full inspection within that timeframe if risks are identified, see paragraphs 36, 38 and 39). Those judged as requires improvement will normally be inspected within 12 to 30 months of the publication of the previous report. They will normally receive a monitoring visit within 7 to 13 months of the publication of the previous report (as set out in paragraphs 41 and 77). Those judged inadequate will normally be inspected within 15 months of the publication of the report of the previous inspection of the converted college.[footnote 28] They will normally receive re-inspection monitoring visits as set out in paragraphs 42 and 78 to 80.

57. A 16 to 19 academy/free school that is re-brokered (transferred to a new sponsor) for performance reasons will be treated as a new provider from the point of re-brokerage for the purposes of inspection.

Types of inspection

Full inspection

58. Providers that are graded as requires improvement or inadequate will undergo a full inspection as outlined in paragraphs 41. Inspectors grade the overall effectiveness, the types of provision and the other key judgements areas in accordance with the criteria and grade descriptors set out in part 2 of this handbook.[footnote 29]

59. Providers judged as outstanding will have a full inspection if they fall into the categories set out in paragraphs 30 to 32.

60. Providers judged as good will have a full inspection if they fall into the categories set out in paragraphs 38 and 39. They may also have a full inspection if they fall into the category of provider as set out in paragraph 40 if, for example, there are concerns about safeguarding, their performance has declined or the provision in scope for inspection has changed substantially.

61. New providers will receive a full inspection once they have had a new provider monitoring visit as set out in paragraphs 43 to 45 and 49 to 53.

62. Ofsted reserves the right to carry out a full inspection of any provider at any reasonable time.

Short inspections

63. Providers judged good at their previous inspection will normally receive a full inspection if they fall into categories set out in paragraphs 38 and 39. They will normally receive a short inspection but may receive a full inspection if they fall into categories set out in paragraph 40.

64. Providers judged outstanding whose previous inspection took place before September 2015 will normally receive a short inspection next providing that they do not fall into the categories set out in paragraphs 31 and 32.

65. A short inspection will determine primarily whether the quality of education/training that learners receive is good (in the case of a good provider) or outstanding (in the case of an outstanding provider). For information about short inspections, see paragraphs 181 to 212 of this handbook.

Survey and research visits

66. We may visit any provider, including those judged good or outstanding, as part of our surveys and research work, based on our national priorities. We may carry out visits at any reasonable time.

Monitoring visits

67. A monitoring visit is an interim type of inspection that explores one or more specific themes. The purpose of a monitoring visit is to assess progress against these themes to encourage improvement, assess risk and measure progress. We may carry out a monitoring visit of any provider at any reasonable time. For example, if we have significant cause for concern, such as about safeguarding or a breakdown in leadership and management, we may carry out a monitoring visit focused on that specific issue.

68. Providers will normally receive 2 working days' notice of a monitoring visit, although they may be unannounced where that is considered appropriate. They will normally last up to 2 days on site. They will normally result in a published monitoring visit report. Concerns arising from monitoring visits may lead to an earlier full inspection or to a further monitoring visit as appropriate.

69. We will normally use one of the following progress judgements on monitoring visits:

reasonable progress: the provider's actions are already having a beneficial impact on learners, and improvements are sustainable and are based on the provider's thorough quality assurance procedures

significant progress: progress has been rapid and is already having considerable beneficial impact on learners

70. Monitoring visits follow a similar process to that set out in part 1 of this handbook, except where otherwise noted. Inspectors will make progress judgements based on the themes explored on that visit. They will use part 2 of this handbook as the broader context for monitoring visits.

Monitoring visits to providers that are newly directly publicly funded

71. We will normally carry out a monitoring visit to any provider that becomes newly directly and publicly funded, as set out in paragraph 43. This visit will normally be carried out within 24 months of starting to deliver the directly funded provision. New providers starting to deliver provision from April 2021 onwards will normally receive their new provider monitoring visit within 18 months of starting to deliver. These monitoring visits will follow themes. In each case, inspectors will review:

72. The precise wording of the themes for the most commonly recurring types of new provider are as follows.

Type of new provider

Leadership and management theme

Quality of education and/or training theme

Safeguarding theme

Providers newly directly funded to deliver apprenticeship training provision from or after April 2017 and new providers of level 6 or 7 apprenticeship provision[footnote 31]

How much progress have leaders made in ensuring that the provider is meeting all the requirements of successful apprenticeship provision?

What progress have leaders and managers made in ensuring that apprentices benefit from high-quality training that leads to positive outcomes for apprentices?

How much progress have leaders and managers made in ensuring that effective safeguarding arrangements are in place?

Providers newly directly funded to deliver adult learning provision from or after August 2017[footnote 32]

How much progress have leaders and managers made in designing and delivering relevant adult learning provision that has a clearly defined purpose?

How much progress have leaders and managers made to ensure that learners benefit from high-quality adult education that prepares them well for their intended job role, career aim and/or personal goals?

How much progress have leaders and managers made in ensuring that effective safeguarding arrangements are in place?

New independent specialist colleges newly ESFA funded from August 2018 onwards

How much progress have leaders and managers made in designing and delivering relevant learning programmes that are clearly defined and tailored to suit the individual needs of learners?

How much progress have leaders and managers made in ensuring that learners benefit from high-quality learning programmes that develop their independence, communication and skills, and help them to achieve their personal and/or work-related goals?

How much progress have leaders and managers made in ensuring that effective safeguarding arrangements are in place?

New 16 to 19 academies directly funded from August 2019 onwards and new providers that deliver only 16 to 18 provision

How much progress have leaders and managers made in designing and delivering relevant education programmes that have a clearly defined purpose?

How much progress have leaders and managers made to ensure that learners benefit from high-quality education programmes for young people that prepare them well for their intended job role, career aim and/or personal goals?

How much progress have leaders and managers made in ensuring that effective safeguarding arrangements are in place?

73. We will adapt these themes to apply to other types of new providers as necessary to ensure best fit. They will still follow the format and approach set out above.

74. For these new providers, inspectors make progress judgements by taking into account that the provider is newly directly funded and by considering the impact of actions taken to develop the necessary knowledge, skills and behaviours of learners.

75. If the provider has other types of provision, each type of provision will be covered by a separate theme and progress judgement.[footnote 33]

76. If a provider is judged to have made insufficient progress in the safeguarding theme, it will normally receive one further monitoring visit to review only its safeguarding arrangements within 4 months of the previous monitoring visit.

Monitoring visits to providers judged to require improvement

77. We will normally carry out a monitoring visit to a provider that has been judged to require improvement. The visit will normally take place between 7 and 13 months from the publication of its inspection report in which it was judged to require improvement.[footnote 34] Inspectors will make progress judgements on the main areas for improvement identified in that report. The monitoring visit will result in a published report.[footnote 35] Through the monitoring visit, inspectors will challenge the provider to improve so that it can become good by the next full inspection.[footnote 36] The report will set out what progress the provider has made since the previous inspection.

Re-inspection monitoring visits to providers judged to be inadequate

78. We normally carry out re-inspection monitoring visits to providers found to be inadequate overall after the publication of their inspection report, except when their main funding has been terminated and/or they have been removed from the RoATP and they deliver only apprenticeship provision.[footnote 37]

79. Re-inspection monitoring visit themes will be based on the main areas for improvement identified in the inspection report. Inspectors will make a progress judgement against each theme as set out in paragraph 69. The re-inspection monitoring visit report will be published. Through the monitoring visit, inspectors will challenge the provider to improve. The report will set out what progress the provider has made since the previous inspection.

80. The first re-inspection monitoring visit will normally take place within 6 months of the date of publication of the previous inspection report, if the provider continues to be funded. A second re-inspection monitoring visit will normally take place within 10 months of the date of publication of the previous inspection report, if the provider continues to be funded.[footnote 38]

Interim visits and progress monitoring visits

81. We suspended routine inspection activity between 17 March 2020 and 15 March 2021. During that time, we carried out the following forms of interim inspection activity.

Interim visits

82. Between September and December 2020, we carried out interim visits to a range of providers. We published the reports. These included no specific judgements or recommendations.

Progress monitoring visits

83. From 25 January 2021 to 19 March 2021, we carried out progress monitoring visits (PMVs) to:

providers that were judged to require improvement and that had not yet received a monitoring visit since their previous full inspection

providers that were judged inadequate and that had not yet received a monitoring visit since their previous full inspection or that were due their second re-inspection monitoring visit (if they continued to be publicly funded)

new providers (as per paragraphs 43 and 44) that were due a full inspection and that had received a new provider monitoring visit 2 years ago or more (subject to a provider's individual circumstances)

other providers as necessary

84. These PMVs were a type of monitoring visit so we published their reports and these included a single progress judgement against the following overall theme:

What progress are leaders and those responsible for governance making to ensure that staff teach a curriculum and provide support to meet learners' needs, including the provision of remote/online learning?

85. We carried out PMVs under the national lockdown in force at that time. Therefore, we did them remotely. This limited our ability to provide the same level of assurance that on-site activity would provide.

86. Following the PMV, a provider that requires improvement would receive a requires improvement monitoring visit ( RIMV), following normal arrangements. However, these providers may have chosen to forgo their RIMV and go straight to a full re-inspection as their next inspection activity.

87. Following the PMV, an inadequate provider would normally receive a re-inspection monitoring visit ( RMV), following normal arrangements. However, these providers may have chosen to forgo their RMV (or both RMVs if they are due 2 visits) and go straight to the full re-inspection as their next inspection activity.

88. Following a PMV, all other providers will receive whatever inspection they would expect under normal arrangements. We will take into account the outcome of a provider's PMV when reviewing the timing of its next full inspection.

Pilots

89. From time to time, we may pilot different approaches to inspection. We will provide details for this on a case-by-case basis.

Scope of inspection

90. We will normally inspect providers that have one or more of the following that they are directly responsible for:

91. Subcontracted provision that is part of the directly funded provider's responsibility is also within the scope of inspection. As part of the inspection, inspectors may look at any provision carried out on behalf of the provider by subcontractors or partners. Typically, visits to, or communications with, subcontractors are likely to include inspecting the direct contract holder's arrangements to quality assure and improve the provision.

92. Inspections will not include provision that the provider operates under subcontracted arrangements on behalf of other providers.

93. Ofsted reserves the right to inspect and grade any subcontractor and its provision as a separate entity against the EIF and this handbook.

94. Any provision that is part of a pilot scheme is normally outside the scope for inspection. Provision funded by the European Social Fund is normally outside the scope of inspection.

Inspecting residential provision in colleges

95. We inspect residential accommodation in colleges taking into account the national minimum standards for the accommodation of students aged under 18. The standards apply to 'institutions within the further education sector', as defined by section 91 of the Further and Higher Education Act 1992, which have residential accommodation for 16- and 17-year-olds. These inspections are separate from the inspection of the education and training provision of the college described in this handbook.

96. Our social care inspectors carry out these inspections. The approach is set out in the 'Social care common inspection framework (SCCIF): residential provision of further education colleges'. If a college is registered as a care home, the Care Quality Commission inspects the accommodation.

Inspection of religious education and collective worship in relation to Catholic sixth-form colleges

97. In the case of these colleges, the relevant Catholic diocese will inspect their denominational religious education, Catholic ethos and the content of collective worship. Our inspectors will not comment on the content of religious worship or on denominational religious education. Inspectors may visit lessons and assemblies in order to help them evaluate how these contribute to students' personal development and behaviour and attitudes.

What inspections will cover

98. On a full inspection, inspectors will make an overall effectiveness judgement and key judgements on:

99. They will also make judgements on each major type of provision offered, as set out in the table below.

Type of provision

Description of provision

Education programmes for young people

Provision funded through the ESFA 16 to 18 classroom-based funding stream for study programmes and traineeships for those aged 16 to 18 and for ESFA-funded full-time provision for 14- to 16-year-olds enrolled in colleges. This may include provision funded through the 16 to 19 tuition fund. T level technical education programmes are not currently treated as within inspection scope.

Adult learning programmes

Provision funded through the adult education budget and/or advanced learning loans, including employability training for learners aged 19 and over referred for training by Jobcentre Plus. This includes community learning provision and traineeships for those aged 19 and over. This may include adult education provision funded by GLA and/or MCAs. This currently does not include skills bootcamps. It does not cover the diploma for education and training.

Apprenticeships (at all levels)

Apprenticeship training at all levels: that is levels 2 to 7 funded by the ESFA and/or through the apprenticeship levy in whatever type of provider they are delivered.[footnote 41] This includes, from 1 April 2021, apprenticeships at levels 6 and 7 (whether degree or non-degree).

The whole of a provider's apprenticeship provision is inspected, graded and reported on collectively, irrespective of the level(s) of provision delivered. The inspection of the level 5 learning and skills teacher apprenticeship standard and level 6 teacher apprenticeship fall under the initial teacher education inspection framework and handbook. and not the education inspection framework and so not on inspections covered by this handbook.

Provision for learners with high needs

Provision for learners for which providers receive high-needs funding in addition to 16 to 18 ESFA funding for study programmes and/or 16 to 18 apprenticeships. Learners up to the age of 24 may be eligible for this funding.

100. Inspectors will take account of all types of provision within the scope of the inspection. They will grade and report on the types of provision. If the number of learners in a particular type of provision is very low and/or the provision is very new and inspectors cannot gather sufficient evidence to arrive at a graded judgement, it will not be graded.[footnote 42]

101. The quality of provision for learners with high needs and with special educational needs and/or disabilities ( SEND), a much broader group than those attracting high-needs funding, will always be considered during the inspection of any type of provision.

102. Sector subject areas will not be graded or reported on separately. However, inspectors may use their subject expertise to contribute to the evidence base for types of provision judgements, key judgements and progress judgements.[footnote 43]

103. The lead inspector will normally confirm to the provider which types of provision will be graded separately.

Before the inspection

104. The lead inspector's planning will focus primarily on how inspectors will gather evidence of learners' experiences, to evaluate the different types of provision offered by the provider against the 4 key judgements of the EIF.

105. Inspectors' evidence-gathering will be primarily made up of focused curriculum reviews or 'deep dives', including lesson/session/lecture/workshop visits, scrutinising learners' work/training and assessment, and discussions with learners and teachers/ trainers. Inspectors may carry out some inspection activities jointly with members of the provider's staff.

106. Inspectors may plan visits to learners at work at their employer's or at subcontractor's premises and carry out inspection activities. These visits give inspectors the opportunity to hold discussions with learners and employers, to discuss learning programmes and to look at learners' work. Inspectors may carry out interviews/discussions with learners, employers and staff via telephone, video calls or webinars.

The role of the nominee in inspection

107. Each provider is invited to nominate a senior member of staff to act as the provider's main link with the inspection team. The nominee should:

108. The nominee's responsibilities include:

providing information for the lead inspector to support inspection planning

liaising with the lead inspector and ensuring that documents and other information are available, and that staff can attend meetings

briefing the provider's staff about arrangements

informing learners, employers, parents, carers and staff that they can give their views through the relevant online questionnaires (see 'Seeking the views of learners, parents and carers, employers and staff' below)[footnote 45]

attending team meetings, in particular the final grading/ judgement team meeting

coordinating feedback arrangements in particular at the end of the inspection

Notification of inspection

109. Notification of all types of further education and skills inspections and monitoring visits normally takes place up to 2 working days before the inspection unless the inspection is unannounced. Ofsted reserves the right to carry out unannounced inspections or monitoring visits.

110. We will normally notify the provider in the morning of the notification day and will email the notification letter. The lead inspector will then contact the provider, normally by phone, as soon as possible and by the following morning at the latest. The lead inspector should make sure that:

Planning for the inspection

111. As soon as the provider has been notified of the inspection, staff should draw together the information in paragraph 114. These should be working documents and not prepared specifically for the inspection. Inspectors should keep the review of documentation to a minimum. Providers are not expected to prepare anything extra for inspectors.

112. Inspectors should be aware that the provider will need to accommodate the inspection while still managing day-to-day operations.

113. A provider may request a deferral of its monitoring visit or inspection. We will decide whether this should be granted in accordance with our deferral policy. The lead inspector will liaise with the provider to ensure that, wherever possible, the inspection or monitoring visit can go ahead.

114. To ensure that the lead inspector has a clear understanding of the scope and range of provision and information needed to plan the logistics of the inspection, the nominee will send the following information, as applicable, as soon as possible:

115. To ensure that the provider understands the inspection process, the lead inspector will hold a telephone planning meeting with the nominee/most senior member of staff.[footnote 47]

116. The lead inspector will use the telephone planning meeting to arrange how information is made available to inspectors. The provider should inform all subcontractors' staff, current learners, employers and other users about the inspection. It should emphasise that inspectors may visit any sessions involving learners either on the provider's premises or at other locations, including learners' workplaces or online.

117. During the planning call with the inspection nominee, the lead inspector will seek to understand the specific impact of COVID-19 on the provider and learners and how leaders and managers responded to the situation.

118. This discussion will also explore how the provider implemented the curriculum remotely and what, if any, elements of remote education remain in place at the time of inspection.

119. In this conversation, the nominee and lead inspector will agree safety protocols that the inspection team will follow to ensure that the inspection is completed in a COVID-19 secure way.

120. The lead inspector will discuss with the provider the inspectors' schedule and the activities that inspectors will carry out face to face and those they plan to carry out remotely, such as through telephone or video calls.

121. The lead inspector will draw up a pre-inspection team briefing for the inspection team and the nominee. The purpose of this briefing is to focus inspection activity and identify areas for exploration, in particular the areas of the curriculum that will be reviewed through 'deep dives' (focused curriculum reviews).

122. Inspectors will select the 'deep dive' curriculum review areas they will focus on (and associated inspection activities, such as which learners and employers are being visited). They will take into account a range of factors, including:

123. The team briefing letter will provide details about the start of the on-site inspection, including the location and timing of the initial meeting and any other relevant arrangements for the first day, including the planned curriculum reviews.

Seeking the views of learners, parents and carers, employers and staff

124. Learners' views are important to inspection. It is important that all learners can express their views to inspectors. This also applies to employers and any other key stakeholders. Inspectors will consider the views of learners, parents and carers, provider staff and employers as important evidence.

125. Ofsted's online questionnaires for learners and employers (called Learner View and Employer View) are available to gather the views of learners and employers at the point of inspection. There are also online questionnaires for parents and carers of learners and for provider staff available at the point of inspection. After notifying the provider of the inspection, we ask the nominee to tell all staff, learners, employers and (where appropriate) parents and carers of learners that the inspection is taking place. The nominee should ask them to give their views to the inspection team by using these online questionnaires.[footnote 48]

126. Surveys of the views of learners, employers, parents/carers and staff carried out by the provider, funding bodies or other organisations provide evidence for the inspection and may indicate themes to explore further. They do not replace talking with learners, employers and staff during the inspection or views collected through our online questionnaires.

127. Inspectors will speak to a range of learners and employers, often as part of the 'deep dive' focused curriculum reviews. This may happen face to face or remotely, for instance through a webinar or online meeting. We may use other surveys to capture views.

128. Inspectors will take account of views expressed to them by learners, employers, parents, governors, staff and the nominee. Staff and learners must be able to speak to inspectors in private to ensure that the presence of the nominee or senior staff does not influence their responses. Meetings during the inspection may include those with samples of learners selected by inspectors and open-invitation meetings. As part of the inspection of safeguarding arrangements, inspectors will meet with learners. This will normally involve meeting with specific groups of learners in particular single-sex groups, where the provider is a college with children and young people.[footnote 49]

129. The lead inspector will take account of any external views on the provider's performance, for example through briefings from commissioning and funding bodies or other relevant regulators or inspectorates.

During the inspection

Days allocated to inspection and inspection team members

130. Inspections and monitoring visits will be led by either one of Her Majesty's Inspectors (HMI) or an Ofsted Inspector (OI) assisted by other HMIs and/or OIs.[footnote 50]

131. A full inspection normally lasts between 2 and 5 days on site. The number of inspectors involved will vary according to the size and complexity of the provider. Some inspectors may only be needed for part of the inspection. How the lead inspector will deploy the team depends on the number of learners and sites, the type(s) of provision and range of learning programmes.

132. Short inspections (see paragraphs 181 to 212) normally last no longer than 2 days on site. The number of inspectors involved will vary according to the size and complexity of the provider. Some inspectors may only be needed for part of the inspection.

133. Monitoring visits usually last between 1 and 2 days, depending on the scope of the visit and size of the provider. They will usually involve one or two inspectors (but may sometimes involve more).

Gathering and recording evidence

134. Inspections will normally begin with in-depth discussions with provider leaders and managers about the provider's curriculum to establish the intent of the curriculum. Inspectors will ask about what leaders intend learners to learn; what are the end points and next steps they wish them to reach through this; what are the key concepts that they need to understand; and in what order they will learn them.

135. Although meetings with leaders are important, inspectors' first priority during inspections is to collect first-hand evidence.

136. Inspectors will primarily do this through a range of inspection activities, grouped into focused curriculum reviews, known as 'deep dives'. These will provide evidence of the effective implementation of the curriculum and its intent - but they will also gather evidence which may be relevant to the other key judgement areas and progress judgements. These activities will be focused on curriculum areas selected by the lead inspector (see paragraph 122).

137. These inspection activities include:

138. Evidence drawn from these different activities and focused on specific curriculum areas should provide valid, reliable and sufficient evidence of the quality of education and training when connected, combined and brought together.

139. Evidence from these curriculum-related activities will also inform the other key judgements: behaviour and attitudes; personal development; and leadership and management.

140. Inspectors will also carry out other inspection activities to gather evidence for the key judgements. These may include:

141. These will include reviewing records about safeguarding, including those relating to sexual harassment and violence and online sexual abuse.

142. During the inspection, inspectors will collect, analyse and record evidence and their judgements on paper or electronic evidence forms. It is essential that the evidence accurately reflects discussions. Inspectors should identify clearly information that was provided in confidence. The evidence forms, together with any briefings, plans or instructions prepared by the lead inspector, and responses from learners and employers (in hard copy, online or other formats) contribute to the evidence base. The lead inspector is responsible for assuring the quality of evidence.

143. Ofsted has no preferred teaching style. Inspectors judge the quality of education by the ways in which learners acquire knowledge, develop skills and exhibit appropriate behaviours for work and success in life or study. Teaching staff should plan their lessons/sessions as usual.

144. Inspectors may visit employers, to observe learners' on-the-job skills development and speak to employers and their staff.

145. Inspectors will not normally indicate which sessions they plan to observe. The team reserves the right to visit any learner or employer and may cancel or add visits to ensure that enough evidence is collected. Inspectors will not normally give feedback to individual members of staff following these sessions.

Observations of teaching and training

146. An important element of the inspection approach will be to visit lessons, workshops or sessions where teaching, training, learning and assessment are happening. This may include visits to online lessons. Inspectors may often invite appropriate staff from the provider to take part in joint observations of these learning sessions.

147. Observation is primarily useful for gathering evidence about curriculum implementation and how teaching and training sessions contribute to the quality of education and training. Inspectors can use observations to gather evidence about how well staff implement the curriculum by looking at teaching of one or more subjects, and by triangulating observations with evidence collected through discussions with staff, learners, and, where relevant, employers, and through work scrutiny.

148. Inspectors will connect observation activity to other evidence for triangulation and as part of the deep dives. Observation is not about evaluating individual teachers or trainers. Inspectors will not grade the teaching or training they observe. Instead, inspectors will view teaching and training across a sample of the provision to provide part of the evidence base to inform inspection judgements, in particular the quality of education and training.

149. Observation is also useful for gathering evidence that contributes to other key judgements, including behaviour and attitudes. Observation enables inspectors to see direct evidence about how behaviour is managed and how behaviours and attitudes are developed in individual learning sessions. This evidence will complement the other evidence that inspectors gather about behaviour and attitudes during inspection.

Work scrutiny

150. Inspectors may scrutinise learners' work across the provider and aggregate insights to provide part of the evidence for an overall view of quality of education, primarily around the impact of the education provided. Inspectors will not evaluate individual pieces of work. Inspectors will connect work scrutiny to lesson observation and, where possible, conversations with learners, staff and, where appropriate, with employers.

151. Inspectors may invite appropriate staff from the provider to take part in joint scrutiny of learners' work.

152. Work scrutiny is useful primarily for gathering evidence about the curriculum impact of the quality of education. Inspectors can use work scrutiny to evaluate learners' progress and progression through their course of study. Work scrutiny will show whether learners know more and can do more, and whether the knowledge and skills they have learned are well sequenced and have developed incrementally. Inspectors will synthesise what they find in order to contribute to their overall assessment of the quality of education across the provider.

The use of data

153. Inspection uses a range of data that is available. Both before and during the inspection, inspectors will analyse the performance of the provider using the most recent validated data. They will take into account the age and relevance of the data. Analysis may be at overall provider level and/or for individual subjects or types of provision. Although data alone will not lead directly to judgements, the primary data that measures success for each type of provision will provide important evidence for judging the impact of the quality of education.

154. Inspectors will evaluate learners' progress in relation to their starting points, based on their rate of learning, acquisition of knowledge, skills and behaviours and whether they have achieved their individual, challenging targets. They will also take account of data about the destinations learners go to when they leave the provider.

155. Inspectors will not look at internal progress and attainment data on GCSE and A-level courses where fixed-time terminal examinations comprise the entire assessment of the course. Similarly, inspectors will not normally look at predicted in-year achievement and attainment data more generally (teacher assessed grades from 2020 and 2021 will not normally be used to assess impact). That does not mean providers cannot use this data if they consider it appropriate. Inspectors will, however, put more focus on the curriculum and less on providers' generation, analysis and interpretation of performance data. Inspectors will be interested in the conclusions drawn and actions taken from any internal assessment information but they will not examine or verify that information first hand.

The self-assessment report

156. Inspectors will use self-assessment reports, or equivalent documents, to assess risk, monitor standards and plan for inspection.

157. If these documents are not available in advance, the provider should share the latest report/plan(s) with the lead inspector following notification of the inspection.

158. Inspectors will, in any case, use other readily available information about the provider.

159. Ofsted does not require self-assessment to be provided in a specific format. Any assessment that is provided should be part of the provider's processes and not generated solely for inspection purposes.[footnote 51]

Meetings during inspection

160. Inspectors are likely to have a number of different meetings with provider staff for different purposes. They will try to minimise disruption to the provider's regular business and to the inspection team's focus on assessing the quality of education and training. Therefore, meetings will be kept brief and purposeful.

161. Inspections will normally begin with in-depth discussion with senior leaders and managers about the provider's curriculum to establish the intent of the curriculum. This initial meeting will also provide useful insights into leadership and management and other areas. There may be other meetings with senior leaders, including the nominee as necessary, as the inspection progresses.

162. Inspectors carrying out deep dives focusing on specific areas of the curriculum will normally meet with key curriculum staff. This is to understand its intent and implementation before carrying out their inspection activities to review that area of the curriculum. Other types of meeting have been referred to above in paragraphs 134 and 137.

163. The inspection team itself will hold meetings. They may include the whole team or 2 or more inspectors. They may be held remotely, by telephone or video call, or face to face. These meetings may include:

an initial team meeting to:

brief the inspection team on the schedule for the inspection

clarify any queries about team members' roles

receive a brief update from the provider, including, if appropriate, an initial briefing from the provider's managers with relevant responsibilities for key areas to be covered of the inspection[footnote 52]

a meeting for the nominee to hear the emerging judgements and identify any opportunities to provide additional evidence

a grading/progress judgement meeting to reach judgements about the provider

164. The nominee may attend some inspection team meetings, although they may not contribute to decisions about inspection judgements. By taking part in discussions about evidence collected during the inspection, the nominee can help to ensure that all appropriate evidence is taken into account. Any concerns about evidence should be raised with the lead inspector. The nominee will report to the provider's staff on the progress of the inspection.

165. Inspectors may hold additional meetings with the provider's staff.

166. The lead inspector will hold a feedback meeting for the provider and invitees to hear the key messages at the end of the inspection. Members of ESFA staff may attend to hear the feedback.[footnote 53]

Reaching final judgements

167. Inspectors will discuss emerging findings with the nominee and, where appropriate, with senior staff.

168. The lead inspector will ensure that the inspection team agrees the judgements for full inspections using the descriptors in part 2 of this handbook.[footnote 54] The overall judgements will reflect all of the evidence considered by the inspection team. The evidence base must support the judgements convincingly.

Providing feedback

169. Before leaving, the lead inspector should ensure that the provider is clear:

that the points provided in the feedback, subject to any change, will be generally reflected in the report, although the text of the report may differ slightly from the oral feedback

about the main findings and areas for improvement

that inspection findings may be shared with the Further Education Commissioner, ESFA, DfE, Ofqual, Office for Students ( OfS) or other relevant regulator/inspectorate before the publication of the report

about the procedures that will lead to the publication of the report

about the complaints procedure

that, if the overall effectiveness or the leadership and management of a sixth-form college, further education college or designated institution are judged inadequate, this has implications for the college in relation to appointing newly qualified staff in future years

After the inspection

Arrangements for publishing the report

170. The lead inspector is responsible for writing the inspection report and submitting the evidence to Ofsted shortly after the inspection ends. The text of the report should reflect the evidence. The findings in the report should be consistent with the feedback given to the provider at the end of the inspection.

171. Inspection reports will be quality assured before we send a draft copy to the provider. The provider will receive the draft report within 18 working days after the end of the inspection. The draft report is restricted and confidential to the relevant personnel (as determined by the provider), including those responsible for governance, and should not be shared externally or published. The inspection process is not complete until the provider receives the final version of the report. We may share the draft findings and/or provisional judgements of the inspection/monitoring visit with the Further Education Commissioner, ESFA, MCAs or the GLA, DfE, Ofqual, OfS or other relevant regulator/inspectorate as necessary (that might entail sharing the draft report in whole or in part).

172. The provider will have 5 working days to comment on the draft report, inspection process and findings. We will consider all comments. We will respond to them when we share the final report with the provider within 30 working days after the inspection.

173. If the provider wishes to make a formal complaint, it has 5 working days after we have shared the final report with it in which to do so. If a complaint is not submitted, we will normally publish the report on our reports website 3 working days later. If a complaint has been submitted, the publication of the report may be delayed.

The inspection evidence base

174. The evidence base for the inspection must be retained for the time specified in our guidance.[footnote 56] This is normally 6 years from the publication of the report. We may decide that retaining it for longer is warranted for research purposes.

Incomplete inspections

175. We will apply our policy on incomplete inspections where appropriate.

Quality assurance and complaints

Quality assurance of inspection

176. All inspectors are responsible for the quality of their work. The lead inspector must ensure that inspections are carried out in accordance with the principles of inspection and the code of conduct (set out in the EIF).

177. We monitor the quality of inspections through a range of formal processes. Senior HMI or HMI may visit some providers or monitor remotely to quality assure inspections. We may also evaluate the quality of an inspection evidence base. The lead inspector will be responsible for feeding back to the team inspectors about the quality of their work and their conduct.

178. All providers are invited to take part in a voluntary post-inspection survey in order to contribute to inspection development. The link to this survey is included with the final inspection report to the provider.

Handling concerns and complaints

179. The great majority of Ofsted's work is carried out smoothly and without incident. If concerns do arise during an inspection visit, they should be raised with the lead inspector as soon as possible in order to resolve issues before the inspection is completed. The lead inspector should seek advice where necessary. Inspectors should note any concerns raised, and actions taken, in the inspection evidence.

180. If it is not possible to resolve concerns during the inspection, or through submitting comments in response to the draft report, the provider may wish to lodge a formal complaint. The lead inspector should ensure that the provider is informed of the procedures for making a formal complaint and that information about how to complain is available on GOV.UK.

Short inspections

181. Many of the providers graded good for overall effectiveness at their previous inspection and that fall within the categories set out in paragraph 39 will receive a short inspection (see paragraph 36). Providers graded outstanding for overall effectiveness at their previous inspection that took place on or after 1 September 2015 and that do not fall in the categories set out in paragraphs 31 and 32 will usually receive an initial short inspection by September 2025 (see paragraph 31 to 34).

182. A short inspection will determine primarily whether the quality of education/training that learners receive is good (for good providers) or outstanding (for outstanding providers). Inspectors will consider the provider's quality of education and/or training and the effectiveness of leadership and management. They will assess whether safeguarding arrangements are effective and if learners benefit from good-quality careers advice and guidance. Short inspections may also cover any areas particular to a provider that the lead inspector judges necessary.

183. In order to confirm whether the provider remains good/outstanding (as applicable), inspectors will use the criteria set out in part 2 of this handbook. They will not be expected to carry out a full inspection within a reduced timeframe but to arrive at sufficient evidence to demonstrate that the provider remains good/outstanding (as applicable) overall.

184. A short inspection report will not give graded judgements for provision types. It will not change the provider's overall effectiveness grade.

185. Ofsted reserves the right to carry out a full inspection to any provider at any reasonable time.

186. As with all other inspections under the EIF, the model of short inspections is designed to encourage constructive, challenging professional conversation between inspectors, leaders, managers and governors.

The purpose of a short inspection

187. The main purpose of short inspections is to evaluate sufficiently whether the provider remains good (if currently a good provider) or, outstanding (if currently an outstanding provider) and in particular:

whether the provider's quality of education/training remains good or outstanding

whether safeguarding arrangements are effective

whether leaders, managers and governors have the capacity to make continued improvement and manage change well

188. A short inspection will also take into account: any other aspect that the lead inspector considers particularly relevant given the findings of the previous inspection report; issues identified at the planning stage; and the particular nature of the provider.

189. Inspectors will focus primarily on the quality of education during a short inspection. They will not expect to cover the criteria within the quality of education judgement in part 2 of this handbook to the same extent as on a full inspection. They will focus on a number of key curriculum areas using deep-dive focused curriculum reviews to provide sufficient evidence that the provider remains good. This will follow the same approach as set out in the sections above: 'gathering and recording evidence', 'observations of teaching and training', 'work scrutiny' and 'use of data'.

190. A short inspection will be carried out by one or more inspectors over 1 or 2 days, depending on the size and type of provider.[footnote 58]

Outcomes of a short inspection

191. A short inspection has 3 possible outcomes.

Outcome 1 - the provider continues to be good/outstanding (as applicable). In these cases, it will receive a short inspection report following the report publication process.

Outcome 2 - a currently good provider continues to be at least good and there is sufficient evidence of improvement to suggest that it may be judged outstanding. In these cases, the short inspection will be extended to a full inspection.

Outcome 3 - the inspection team has insufficient evidence to satisfy itself that the provider remains good/outstanding (as applicable), or there are concerns arising from evidence gathered that the provider may not remain good/outstanding (as applicable). In these cases, the short inspection will be extended to a full inspection. This will usually be completed within 15 working days of the short inspection (see paragraph 187 below).

192. Inspectors will always report on whether safeguarding is effective. If safeguarding is not effective, inspectors will extend the short inspection to a full inspection.

Providers that remain good/outstanding (as applicable) (outcome 1)

193. If inspectors judge that a provider remains good/outstanding (as applicable) (outcome 1), they will confirm this judgement in the final feedback at the end of the short inspection.

Extending short inspections to full inspections (outcomes 2 and 3)

194. The short inspection will be extended to a full inspection if:

195. In the cases of outcomes 2 or 3, the lead inspector will inform the provider by the end of the short inspection of the decision to extend the inspection to a full inspection.

196. For outcomes 2 and 3, the short inspection will be extended to a full inspection as soon as possible. This will usually be completed within 15 working days of the short inspection. More inspectors may join the lead inspector on site. This may include HMI and/or OIs. The inspection team will gather and evaluate evidence to make a full set of graded judgements against the EIF. The lead inspector from the short inspection will usually continue the full inspection.

197. A decision to extend the inspection does not predetermine the outcome of the full inspection. At the end of the full inspection, the provider may receive any grade on the 4-point grading scale.

198. The lead inspector of the full inspection will contact the nominee and tell them when the full inspection will start. The lead inspector will share the team composition and deployment. The inspector may request further evidence and information for planning before the on-site stage of the inspection begins.

199. Between the end of the short inspection and the beginning of the full inspection following extension, evidence from the short inspection will be shared with the new team. The lead inspector and that team will build on the evidence to complete the full inspection, avoiding repetition or duplication.

200. The full inspection may move straight to evidence gathering, without an initial team meeting.

201. A short inspection report will not be produced when the short inspection extends to a full inspection. Instead, the provider will receive a full inspection report.

Inspectors' planning and preparation

202. The lead inspector will share with the inspection team:

Notification and introduction

203. We will normally notify the provider up to 2 working days before the inspection, unless the inspection is unannounced. Ofsted reserves the right to carry out unannounced inspections or visits. We will notify the provider in the morning of the notification day and will email the notification letter. The lead inspector will then contact the provider as soon as possible.

204. Leaders, managers and governors are not required to prepare documents or other materials for inspection. Inspectors will review documents and other materials that leaders, staff and governors use for normal day-to-day business. Any assessment should be part of the provider's usual evaluation work and not generated solely for inspection purposes. Inspectors will use what the provider has.

205. During the initial telephone call to a provider selected for short inspection, the lead inspector will:

206. Inspectors may also request further information during the initial telephone call, by subsequent email or at the first opportunity on site. This information may include:

information about learners, their types of provision, courses/programmes, subject areas and locations

timetables for lessons/sessions/workshops or other learning activities

a list of provider staff and/or a diagram of the organisational structure and key staff contact information

the current self-assessment report or equivalent and any evaluation of the impact of actions taken to date

recent data on learners' outcomes, performance, progress and destinations (but note paragraph 153 above about internal progress and attainment data on GCSE and A-level courses where fixed-time terminal examinations comprise the entire assessment of the course)

lists of employers and subcontractors and their locations

207. Requests for a deferral will be handled in accordance with Ofsted's deferral policy.

Feedback at the end of a short inspection

208. The lead inspector will give oral feedback at the end of the short inspection. The lead inspector is responsible for managing this meeting and agreeing attendance with the nominee.

209. The lead inspector will state one of the following:

210. The lead inspector will also make clear whether the provider's safeguarding arrangements are judged to be effective and provide feedback on other relevant areas covered in the short inspection (as outlined in paragraph 187).

Reporting on the short inspection

211. If the quality of provision remains good/outstanding (as applicable), the provider will receive a short inspection report setting out the inspection findings. These will include statements that the provider remains good/outstanding, a judgement on whether safeguarding arrangements are effective, and a summary of what the provider does well and what it can do better. If the short inspection is extended to become a full inspection, the provider will receive a full inspection report as outlined above and not a short inspection report.

Quality assurance and publication of the short inspection report

212. The short inspection report will be published on our website. Quality assurance and publication processes are the same as those for full inspection reports ( see paragraphs 170 to 180).

Part 2. The evaluation schedule: how further education and skills providers will be judged

Background to the evaluation schedule

213. Inspectors must use the evaluation schedule alongside the guidance set out in part 1 of this handbook and the EIF.

214. The evaluation schedule is not exhaustive. It does not replace the professional judgement of inspectors. Inspectors must interpret grade descriptors in relation to the type(s) of provision inspected and context of the provider.

215. In line with the EIF, inspectors will make judgements on the following areas:

216. We have created the criteria for each of these judgements using inspection experience, areas of consensus in academic research and our own research. You can find a full note of how the judgement criteria relate to the available research in our commentary (see 'Education inspection framework: overview of research').

217. Inspectors use the following 4-point scale to make all judgements, including, where applicable, on the effectiveness of the different types of provision offered:

The evaluation schedule and grade descriptors

Overall effectiveness

218. Inspectors must use all their evidence to evaluate what it is like to be a learner at the provider. In making their judgements about a provider's overall effectiveness, inspectors will consider whether the quality of provision is good or whether it exceeds good and is therefore outstanding. If it is not good, inspectors will consider whether it requires improvement or is inadequate. A provider will be inadequate under a particular judgement if one or more of the inadequate criteria apply, unless the inadequate criteria apply solely due to the impact of COVID-19.

219. In judging the overall effectiveness, inspectors will take account of:

220. Inspectors will first judge the overall effectiveness of each type of provision inspected. To do this, they will apply the grading criteria set out in the EIF. The section 'Evaluating types of provision' in this handbook sets out how inspectors will evaluate the overall effectiveness of each type of provision. The inspection report will include a numerical grade for each type of provision inspected. Inspectors will then grade the 4 key judgements. Where there are differences in grades given for a type of provision, inspectors will consider the following when awarding the grade for overall effectiveness:

221. Inspectors will always make a written judgement about the effectiveness of the arrangements for safeguarding learners.

222. Before making the final judgement on overall effectiveness, inspectors must evaluate the extent to which the education and training provided meets the needs of all learners. This includes learners with SEND and those who have high needs.

Grade descriptors for overall effectiveness

223. To judge whether a provider is good, requires improvement or is inadequate, inspectors will use a 'best fit' approach, relying on the professional judgement of the inspection team.

Requires improvement (3)

Inadequate (4)

The judgement on the overall effectiveness is likely to be inadequate when any one of the key judgements is inadequate and/or safeguarding is ineffective.

Evaluating types of provision

224. The following section outlines what inspectors will look for to demonstrate how the grade descriptors for each key judgement apply to each type of provision.

Education programmes for young people

225. To achieve comparability with the way in which we inspect and judge 16 to 19 provision in schools and academies under the EIF, the considerations below align with those in the school inspection handbook.

226. Inspectors will review provision for learners aged 14 to 16 enrolled full time at a college and provision for learners on traineeships aged 16 to 19 as part of this judgement.

Inspectors will consider how well leaders and teachers promote high expectations for achievement and progress through the systems they use to monitor and develop the quality of provision for learners, including the most disadvantaged, those with SEND and those with high needs.

Inspectors will review how well high-quality impartial careers guidance enables learners to make progress and move on to a higher level of qualification, employment, further training or independent living when they are ready to do so.

Inspectors will use observations of teaching and training activities, and discussions with learners, teachers, support staff and, where relevant, employers, to consider how well learners develop personal, social and independent learning skills.

Inspectors will judge how well learners achieve high levels of punctuality and attendance and how well learners' conduct and attitudes, including in non-qualification or enrichment activities and/or work experience, prepare them for employment or to progress to higher levels of study and/or independence.

Inspectors will also consider whether arrangements for safeguarding learners are appropriate and effective.

Adult learning programmes

227. Adult learning comprises a rich variety of learning and training, such as programmes for those with SEND, vocational training, employability training and community learning.

Inspectors will judge, where appropriate, how well the curriculum, including the wider curriculum, for each strand of a provider's adult learning programme has a clearly defined purpose that is relevant to the education and training needs and interests of learners, and to local employment opportunities, and supports local and national priorities.

Inspectors will judge how effectively leaders, managers and governors focus public funding on people who are disadvantaged and least likely to participate in education and training, and work with other partners to widen participation and support learners' progression to further learning and/or employment relevant to their personal circumstances.

Inspectors will assess how well leaders and managers use community learning funding to develop learning programmes and projects that develop stronger communities, where appropriate.

Inspectors will judge how effectively staff work with learners, employers and other partners such as Jobcentre Plus, to ensure that teaching, learning and assessment enable learners to develop personal, social and employability skills that prepare them well for their intended job role, career aims and/or personal goals.

Where appropriate, inspectors will judge how well providers record and recognise learners' progress and achievements to inform teaching and support programmes to help learners reach their goals.

Inspectors will also consider whether arrangements for safeguarding young people and vulnerable learners are appropriate and effective.

Apprenticeships

228. Inspectors will consider how well leaders and managers ensure that the apprenticeship curriculum meets the principles and requirements of an apprenticeship.[footnote 60]

Evidence will include the extent to which the provider's staff engage with employers to:

complete the apprenticeship commitment statement

plan the initial assessment, training, assessments, review points and milestones throughout

agree any additional qualifications to be included

monitor and support apprentices, including those with SEND and those who have high needs, to progress quickly, gain new knowledge, skills and behaviours and achieve to their full potential.

Inspectors will judge how well trainers, assessors, coaches and mentors communicate up-to-date vocational and technical subject knowledge that reflects expected industry practice and meets employers' needs.

Inspectors will determine whether apprentices acquire that knowledge effectively so that they demonstrate the required skills and behaviours that enable them to complete their apprenticeships, contribute to their workplace and fulfil their career aims by progressing to their intended job roles or other sustained employment, promotion or, where appropriate, moving to a higher level of apprenticeship or qualification.

Inspectors will also consider whether arrangements for safeguarding young people and vulnerable learners are appropriate and effective.

Provision for learners with high needs

229. Part 3 of the Children and Families Act 2014 explains the current arrangements for young people with learning difficulties and/or disabilities. The Act aims to encourage education, health and social care services to work together. Local authorities must describe the provision available to young people in the area by publicising the 'local offer'. A young person has a learning difficulty or disability if he or she has:

230. Inspectors will consider the extent to which leaders, managers and governors use the funding for learners with high needs so that their individual learning programmes challenge learners to: develop their independence; improve their communication skills; make relevant personal choices and decisions; and prepare themselves for adult life.

The quality of education

231. Inspectors will take a rounded view of the quality of education that a provider delivers to its learners.[footnote 61] They will consider:

Intent

232. In evaluating the provider's educational intent, inspectors will primarily consider the curriculum leadership provided by senior and subject leaders.

233. The evaluation focuses on factors that contribute to learners receiving education and training that enables them to achieve highly. These factors are listed below.

Leaders and managers have selected and developed a curriculum that develops the knowledge, skills and behaviours that learners need in order to take advantage of the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences that prepare them for their next stage in education, training or employment. In this way, it can powerfully address social disadvantage.

It is clear what the curriculum is preparing learners for. It is also clear what learners will need to be able to know and do at the end of their learning or training programmes.

Leaders, managers and teachers have planned and sequenced the curriculum so that learners can build on previous teaching and learning and develop the new knowledge and skills they need.

The curriculum offers learners the knowledge and skills that reflect the needs of the local and regional context.

The curriculum intent takes into account the needs of learners, employers, and the local, regional and national economy, as necessary. Curriculum planning takes account of delays and gaps that arise as a result of the pandemic.

The curriculum ensures that all learners benefit from high academic, technical and vocational ambitions. This means that the curriculum should be ambitious for disadvantaged learners or those with SEND, including those who have high needs, and should meet those needs.

The curriculum

234. The curriculum sets out the aims of a programme of education and training. It also sets out the structure for those aims to be implemented, including the knowledge, skills and behaviours to be gained at each stage. It enables the evaluation of learners' knowledge and understanding against those expectations.

235. We will judge providers taking radically different approaches to the curriculum fairly. We recognise the importance of providers' autonomy to choose their own curriculum approaches. If leaders are able to show that they have thought carefully, that they have built a curriculum with appropriate coverage, content, structure and sequencing, and that it has been implemented effectively, then inspectors will assess a provider's curriculum favourably.

Sources of evidence specific to curriculum intent

236. Inspectors will draw evidence about leaders' intent for the curriculum principally from discussion with senior and subject leaders. Inspectors will explore:

237. Inspectors will also consider any documentary evidence that leaders wish to provide in the format that the provider normally uses. Inspectors will not request materials to be produced or provided in any specific format for inspection.

Implementation

238. In evaluating the implementation of the curriculum, inspectors will focus on how the curriculum is taught at subject, class, lecture or workshop level.[footnote 62]

239. We will focus on the following factors.

The use of assessment

240. When used effectively, assessment can help learners to embed and use knowledge fluently and to show that they are competent in applying their skills. The results of effective assessment assist teachers to produce clear and achievable next steps for learners. However, assessment is too often carried out in a way that creates unnecessary burdens for staff and learners. It is therefore important that leaders and teachers understand its limitations and avoid misuse and overuse.

241. Inspectors will evaluate how assessment supports the teaching of the curriculum, while not driving teachers towards excessive individualisation, differentiation or interventions that are almost impossible to deliver without lowering expectations of some learners and/or driving up teachers' workload. This will include considering how the provider responds to any learning gaps that have arisen as a result of the pandemic.

Sources of evidence specific to curriculum implementation

242. The following activities will provide inspectors with evidence about the provider's implementation of its intended curriculum:

discussions with subject specialists, subject leaders and teachers about:

the curriculum that learners follow

the intended end points towards which those learners are working

their view of how those learners are progressing through the curriculum

reviews of curriculum plans or other long-term planning (in whatever form teachers and/or subject leaders usually produce and use them)

visits to classes, lectures, workshops and other activities, including observations of teaching and training

scrutinising work produced by learners

interviews with learners

discussions with teachers about how often they are expected to record, upload and review data

discussions with subject specialists and leaders about the content and pedagogical content knowledge of teachers, and what is done to support teachers, including with remote teaching

discussions with staff, including specialist staff, who support learners in developing their knowledge, skills and behaviours

where relevant, discussions with subject leaders and teachers about how the curriculum has been delivered remotely and reviews of learners' work completed remotely

243. In order to triangulate evidence effectively, inspectors will ensure that they gather a variety of these types of evidence in relation to the same sample of learners. Inspectors will also ensure that the samples of learners they choose are sufficient to allow them to reach a valid and sufficiently reliable judgement on the quality of education offered by the provider overall.

Impact

244. When inspectors evaluate the impact of the education provided by the provider, they will focus on what learners have learned, and the skills they have gained and can apply.

245. Inspectors will focus on the following factors.

A well-constructed, well-taught curriculum will lead to learners learning more and so achieving good results. There need be no conflict between teaching a broad, rich curriculum and achieving success in examinations and tests or assessments.

Disadvantaged learners and learners with SEND acquire the knowledge and skills they need to succeed in life.

End-point assessments and examinations are useful indicators of learners' outcomes, but they only represent a sample of what learners have learned. Inspectors will balance this with their first-hand assessment of learners' work.

All learning builds towards an end point. Learners are being prepared for their next stage of education, training or employment at each stage of their learning. Inspectors will consider whether learners are ready for their next steps.

Inspectors will also consider whether learners are ready for the next stage and are going to appropriate, high-quality destinations.

Sources of evidence specific to curriculum impact

246. Inspectors will gather evidence of the impact of the education offered by the provider from the following sources:

nationally generated and validated performance information about learners' progress and attainment, where it is available in published national data

first-hand evidence of the progress learners are making, drawing together the evidence from the interviews, observations, work scrutiny and documentary review, described above (see 'sources of evidence specific to curriculum implementation')

any information provided by the provider about the destinations to which their learners progress when they leave the provider

telephone conversations or other similar discussions with a selection of learners about their destinations

discussions with learners, for instance about what they have remembered about the knowledge and skills they have acquired and how their learning enables them to connect ideas

247. Inspectors will evaluate learners' progress in relation to their starting points, based on their rate of learning, acquisition of knowledge, skills and behaviours and whether they have achieved their individual, challenging learning goals.

248. Inspectors will not look at internal progress and attainment data on GCSE and A-level courses where fixed-time terminal examinations comprise the entire assessment of the course. Similarly, inspectors will not normally look at predicted in-year achievement and attainment data more generally.

249. That does not mean providers cannot use this data if they consider it appropriate. However, inspectors will put more focus on the curriculum and less on providers' generation, analysis and interpretation of performance data. Inspectors will be interested in the conclusions drawn and actions taken from any internal assessment information, but they will not examine or verify that information first hand.

Balancing intent, implementation and impact to reach a quality of education judgement

250. Inspectors will not grade intent, implementation and impact separately. Instead, inspectors will reach a single graded judgement for the quality of education and training, drawing on all the evidence they have gathered and using their professional judgement.

Grade descriptors for quality of education

251. For the quality of education provided to be judged outstanding, it must meet the following criteria.

Outstanding (1)

In addition, the following apply.
Intent

The provider's curriculum intent is strong. Throughout the provider and its subcontractors, teachers have a firm and common understanding of the intended curriculum and what it means for their practice.
Implementation Impact
252. To judge whether the quality of education is good, requires improvement or is inadequate, inspectors will use a 'best fit' approach, relying on the professional judgement of the inspection team.

253. Note: Some sections of the criteria appear in [square brackets] below. This is to mark that they are transitional only, because we recognise that not all providers will have had the opportunity to complete the process of taking up or constructing their curriculum fully. We intend to review whether these transitional arrangements are still needed in time for September 2022.

Good (2)
Intent Implementation
Any remote education is well integrated into the programme of education/training, and is well designed to support the wider implementation of the provider's curriculum.
Impact

Learners develop detailed knowledge across the curriculum and, as a result, achieve well across all areas of their study. Learners make substantial and sustained progress from their identified and recorded starting points in each of their courses and, where applicable, across the curriculum. Where appropriate and available, impact is reflected in results from national examinations, which meet government expectations, or in the qualifications or apprenticeship standards obtained (see paragraphs 153 to 155).

Learners are ready for the next stage of education, employment or training. They have gained qualifications or have met the standards to go on to destinations that meet their interests and aspirations and the goal of their course of study. Learners with SEND/high needs have greater independence in making decisions about their lives.

Requires improvement (3)

The quality of education is not yet good.

Inadequate (4)

The quality of education is likely to be inadequate if any one of the following applies (unless they apply solely due to the impact of COVID-19):

Behaviour and attitudes

254. This judgement considers how leaders and staff create a safe, disciplined and positive environment within the provider and the impact this has on the behaviour and attitudes of learners.

255. The judgement focuses on the factors that research and inspection evidence indicate contribute most strongly to learners' positive behaviour and attitudes, thereby giving them the greatest possible opportunity to achieve positive outcomes. These factors are:

A calm and orderly environment in the provider, classroom, workshop and workplace, as this is essential for learners to be able to learn.

The setting of clear expectations for behaviour across all aspects of provider life, including at work.

A strong focus on attendance at and punctuality to learning and work settings to minimise disruption, and so that learners gain valuable employability skills.

Learner motivation and positive attitudes to learning are important predictors of attainment.

A positive and respectful provider culture in which staff know and care about learners.

Learners with particular needs

256. The provider may be working with learners with particular needs to improve their behaviour or their attendance. When this is the case, 'behaviour and conduct that reflect the provider's high expectations and their consistent, fair implementation' are likely to indicate improvement in the attendance, punctuality and conduct of these learners. In the case of some groups of learners, COVID-19 may have affected their transition to further education. This may demonstrate itself in attitudes to learning or work that are not yet in keeping with the provider's high expectations.

257. Some learners, or groups of learners, who have particular needs may have weak attendance or display challenging behaviour. When this is the case, inspectors will evaluate the impact of the provider's high expectations, the consistent, fair implementation of policies, the support given by the provider to the learners, and the impact on the marked and sustained improvement of the attendance and behaviour of these learners.

Sources of evidence specific to behaviour and attitudes

258. Inspectors will use evidence gathered during the inspection as well as evidence of trends in learners' behaviour and attitudes over time. Inspectors will use first-hand evidence from visits to learning sessions and training workshops, including visits to learners at work or on work placements. Inspectors will also gather evidence from interviews with learners, staff, employers and other partners, for which documents such as attendance registers may also be used.

259. Inspectors' judgements about learners' behaviour and attitudes are concerned with their attitudes to learning and, where appropriate, to work, and the development of the skills relevant to their learning programme. Inspectors' judgements also take account of learners' ability to demonstrate appropriate behaviour for the learning and work environments. Inspectors will consider the main purpose of the type of provision when they prioritise the impact that each of the criteria has on learners' behaviour and attitudes.

260. The learner and staff surveys used in inspection contain questions about safeguarding, how respondents feel about the provider and how well supported and respected they feel in the provider.

261. Inspectors will carry out other evidence-gathering activities that include, but are not limited to:

Grade descriptors for behaviour and attitudes

262. For the behaviour and attitudes of a provider to be judged outstanding, it must meet the following criteria:

Outstanding (1)

In addition, the following apply.

263. To judge whether behaviour and attitudes are good, requires improvement or are inadequate, inspectors will use a 'best fit' approach, relying on the professional judgement of the inspection team.

Requires improvement (3)

Inadequate (4)

Behaviour and attitudes are likely to be inadequate if any one of the following applies.

Learners' lack of engagement, motivation or enthusiasm inhibits their progress and development.

A significant minority of learners show a lack of respect and self-discipline. Learners ignore or rebut requests to moderate their conduct and are not ready to move on to their next stage or the world of work.

Learners' attendance is consistently low and shows little sign of sustained improvement.

Incidents of bullying, harassment or prejudiced and discriminatory behaviour, both direct and indirect, are frequent.

Learners have little confidence in the provider's ability to tackle bullying, harassment or discrimination successfully.

Learners are not safe, or do not feel safe, at the provider or at work or subcontractor settings.

Personal development

264. The curriculum should support learners to develop their knowledge and skills beyond the purely academic, technical or vocational. This judgement evaluates the provider's intent to provide for the personal development of learners, and the quality of the way in which it does this.

265. As the provider is working with learners, those learners are also being influenced by other factors in their home environment, their community and elsewhere. Providers can teach and train learners how to build their confidence and resilience, for example, but they cannot determine how well young people and adult learners draw on this. Similarly, providers cannot make their learners active, engaged citizens, but they can help them understand how to engage with society and provide them with plentiful opportunities to do so. Providers can take effective action to prepare learners for many aspects of life, but the impact of this work may not be seen until many years later. In this judgement, therefore, inspectors will seek to evaluate the quality and intent of what a provider offers and will look to see what learners know but will not attempt to measure the impact of the provider's work on the lives of individual learners. Where the usual opportunities have been disrupted by the pandemic, the provider has found alternative approaches to providing a rich range of personal development opportunities.

266. The judgement focuses on the most significant dimensions of the personal development of learners that our education system has agreed, either by consensus or statute, are the most significant:

267. These aspects of personal development will be considered in an age-appropriate way within the context of the provider and its learners.

Sources of evidence specific to personal development

268. To inform this judgement, inspectors will use evidence gathered during the inspection and evidence of trends in learners' personal development over time. Inspectors will use first-hand evidence from visits to learning sessions and training workshops, including visits to learners at work or on work placements. Inspectors will gather evidence from interviews with learners, staff, employers and other partners. Evidence will also include information provided through learner, employer and parent questionnaires. Inspectors will use a range of evidence to evaluate personal development, including:

Grade descriptors for personal development

269. For personal development to be judged outstanding, it must meet the following criteria.

Outstanding (1)

In addition, the following apply.

270. To judge whether personal development is good, requires improvement or is inadequate, inspectors will use a 'best fit' approach, relying on the professional judgement of the inspection team.

Requires improvement (3)

Personal development is not yet good.

Inadequate (4)

Personal development is likely to be inadequate if any one of the following applies.

A significant minority of learners do not understand how and why to live healthy, positive lives.

Leaders and those responsible for governance, through their words, actions or influence, directly and/or indirectly, undermine or fail to promote equality of opportunity.

Leaders and those responsible for governance do not protect learners from radicalisation and extremist views when learners are vulnerable to these. Policy and practice are poor, which means that learners are at risk.

Leadership and management

271. Inspectors will look at the work of principals, chief executives, senior leaders, deans, heads of apprenticeships, subject leaders and others with leadership and management roles when reaching this judgement.[footnote 65]

272. This judgement is about how leaders, managers and those responsible for governance ensure that the education and training delivered by the provider have a positive impact on all learners, including those with SEND and those who have high needs. It focuses on the areas in which inspection evidence and research show that leaders and managers can have the strongest impact on the quality of education and training provided. Important factors include:

Governance

273. Inspectors will seek evidence of the impact of those responsible for governance. They will determine whether they provide confident, strategic leadership and create strong accountability for, and oversight and assurance of, educational performance to ensure continuous and sustainable improvement.

274. Inspectors should consider whether those responsible for governance:

275. Inspectors will satisfy themselves that those responsible for governance understand their responsibilities and are ensuring that these are carried out appropriately within the provider. They are not expected to review a list of duties with inspectors.

College groups and governance arrangements

276. Many providers cooperate as groups, with an overall board and chief executive officer, or similar arrangement. These assume some or all of the responsibilities formerly shouldered by the individual college's/provider's governing body. In these providers, inspectors will seek evidence of the impact of the overall board and its staff as well as the college's/provider's local board, committee or governing body, to which there are relevant delegated responsibilities.

Safeguarding

277. All providers should have a culture of safeguarding. This means they should have effective arrangements to:

identify children and learners who may need early help, and who are at risk of harm or have been harmed. This can include, but is not limited to, neglect, abuse (including by their peers), grooming or exploitation

secure the help that children and learners need and, if required, refer concerns in a timely way to those who have the expertise to help

ensure safe recruitment and manage ongoing compliance and allegations about adults who may be a risk to children and vulnerable adults

278. Inspectors will always take into account how well providers help and protect young people and learners so that they are kept safe, including when learning remotely.[footnote 67] Inspectors evaluate the safeguarding culture that has been established by the provider. Although inspectors will not provide a separate numerical grade for this, they will always make a written judgement in the leadership and management section of the inspection report about whether the arrangements for safeguarding young people and learners are effective.

279. If safeguarding is ineffective, this is likely to lead to a judgement of inadequate leadership and management. The following are examples of what ineffective safeguarding might include:

280. However, there may be circumstances when it is appropriate to judge a provider as requires improvement, rather than inadequate, when there are minor weaknesses in safeguarding arrangements that are easy to put right. We will assess safeguarding arrangements in an age-appropriate way, taking account of the age and vulnerability of the learners involved.

281. 'Inspecting safeguarding in early years, education and skills settings' sets out the approach inspectors should take to inspecting safeguarding in providers covered by the EIF. This should be read alongside the framework and this handbook.

282. In addition, inspectors should be familiar with relevant, including statutory, guidance on safeguarding:

283. Inspectors will consider to how leaders and managers adapted approaches to safeguarding during the pandemic to make sure that:

Inspectors will discuss how safeguarding arrangements have changed over time due to the pandemic, and how leaders and managers have made sure that they remain effective.

Sexual harassment and violence and online sexual abuse between learners who are children or young people

284. As part of assessing safeguarding, inspectors will consider how colleges and providers[footnote 68] that have learners who are children[footnote 69] handle concerns about harmful sexual behaviour towards or between learners who are children and young people (including sexual harassment and violence and online sexual abuse). This includes considering whether the college or provider has followed the relevant DfE guidance about peer-on-peer abuse between children, and whether:[footnote 70]

the provider has appropriate provider-wide policies and procedures in place that make it clear that all harmful sexual behaviour is unacceptable and that assume that sexual harassment and online sexual abuse are happening in the provision, even when there are no specific reports

all staff are clear as to the provider's relevant policy and procedures, and this is supported by relevant training

all learners are supported to report concerns about sexual harassment and violence and online sexual abuse

concerns are taken seriously and dealt with swiftly and appropriately, and learners are confident that this is case

comprehensive records of concerns are kept

the provider has taken into account the findings and recommendations of Ofsted's review of sexual abuse in schools and colleges

285. Inspectors will also look at how providers work to prevent sexual harassment and violence and online sexual abuse between learners using a whole-provider approach that includes an effective behaviour policy, pastoral support and a carefully planned curriculum with respect to relationship and sex education. Inspectors will expect providers to be alert to factors that increase the vulnerability or potential vulnerability of learners, such as mental ill health, domestic abuse, children with additional needs, and learners from groups at greater risk of harm (including vulnerable adults). Inspectors will also seek to understand how any barriers that could prevent a learner from making a disclosure, for example communication needs, are identified and addressed.

286. As set out in 'Inspecting safeguarding in early years, education and skills settings' inspectors will expect, among other things, providers to:

understand how to handle reports of harmful sexual behaviour

between learners, both on and outside college or provider premises, in line with the DfE's guidance on sexual violence and sexual harassment, and train their staff accordingly

have good awareness of the signs that a child/young person who is a learner is being neglected or abused, as described in 'What to do if you're worried a child is being abused'

be confident about what to do if a learner reports that they have experienced sexual harassment, online sexual abuse or sexual violence involving another learner

ensure that learners are taught about safeguarding risks, including online risks

287. Inspectors will not investigate concerns of sexual harassment and violence and online sexual abuse themselves, but will ensure that allegations are reported to the appropriate authority as appropriate, where that has not already happened.

288. Where providers do not have effective policies and processes in place, it is likely that safeguarding will be considered ineffective. This is likely to impact on the leadership and management judgement. We will assess these arrangements in an age-appropriate way, taking account of the age and vulnerability of the learners involved. Inspectors may also, depending on the circumstances, take this evidence into account when considering the behaviour and attitude and personal development judgements (particularly in respect of learners feeling safe and pastoral support respectively).

Sources of evidence specific to leadership and management

289. Inspectors will gather a range of evidence from meetings with leaders, managers and governors and first-hand evidence of their work across the provider, including in subcontracted provision.

290. Inspectors will use documentary evidence that the provider supplies to evaluate the impact of the work of leaders, managers and governors, both currently and over time. They will use this in conjunction with first-hand evidence. This includes, but is not limited to:

Grade descriptors for leadership and management

291. For the leadership and management of a provider to be judged outstanding, it must meet the following criteria.

Outstanding (1)

In addition, the following apply.

292. To judge whether leadership and management are good, requires improvement or inadequate, inspectors will use a 'best fit' approach, relying on the professional judgement of the inspection team.

Requires improvement (3)

Inadequate (4)

Leadership and management are likely to be inadequate if any one of the following applies:

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This guidance applies from 1 September 2021. 1. This handbook describes the main activities that inspectors carry out when they inspect further education and skills providers in England under part 8 of the Education and Inspections Act 2006. It sets out the evaluation criteria that inspectors use to make their judgements and on which they report.

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Review of sexual abuse in schools and colleges

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Ofsted was asked by the government to carry out a rapid review of sexual abuse in schools and colleges. This report summarises our findings and recommendations.

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UK-based, umbrella women's organisation dedicated to addressing violence against Black and Minoritised women and girls i.e. women which are defined in policy terms as Black and 'Minority Ethnic' (BME).

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EVAW, Imkaan and WRC are hosting a London Mayoral Hustings as an opportunity to discuss candidates' policies on tackling VAWG in London.

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AVA Safe and Equal: A Guide on Young People and Meaningful Participation for the Violence Against Women and Girls Sector

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AVA Safe and Equal: A Guide on Young People and Meaningful Participation for the Violence Against Women and Girls Sector

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icha

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We're hiring an Administrative and Training Support Officer

Are you passionate about eradicating violence against women and girls? AVA (Against Violence and Abuse) is a leading UK charity committed to ending gender based violence and abuse. We work with survivors to champion evidence based change. We have particular expertise around multiple disadvantage and children and young people. Our groundbreaking work includes "Complicated Matters", the Commission report "Breaking Down the Barriers" and the online resource "Ask AVA". All of our projects involve meaningful roles for women with lived experience. Our portfolio of activities encompasses groundbreaking project and research work, face to face and online learning and survivor focussed consulting and evaluation work. We take a trauma and gender informed approach to all of our work.

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We're hiring an Administrative and Training Support Officer Are you passionate about eradicating violence against women and girls? AVA (Against Violence and Abuse) is a leading UK charity committed to ending gender based violence and abuse. We work with survivors to champion evidence based change.

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Women and Girls Network (London service) 

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Women and Girls Network (London service) 

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Free service run by women, for women in London who have been affected by all forms of violence and abuse

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Empowerment and healing for women moving on from violence

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Women’s charity working in a number of ways to provide women with the legal advice and information they need to understand and use the law and their legal rights.

They also work to improve the law for women and increase women’s access to justice.

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Rights of Women - Helping Women Through The Law

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Works with perpetrators, male victims and young people using violence and abuse

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Leading the development of safe, effective work with perpetrators, male victims and young people using violence and abuse

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Headteacher groped mum in school office and bought her a pair of knickers - The Sun

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Headteacher groped mum in school office and bought her a pair of knickers - The Sun

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A HEADTEACHER faces being banned from the classroom after groping a mum at school and buying her a pair of knickers.

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This is an extraordinary opportunity to talk to boys about consent and respect

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ne of the things I'm really interested in, as a headteacher, is how cultures are created - and how culture can be changed. We have been talking to our boys about sexism, sexual harassment and consent for years. We've tried to raise their awareness about everyday sexism and things that can seem quite small on their own - but which cumulatively add up to a culture.

There is a collective sense of anger about Sarah Everard's death, so there is an extraordinary opportunity right now to talk to boys about consent and respectful behaviour between men and women. But it's terrible that it's been born out of a national tragedy, followed by some very upsetting and disturbing testimonies from anonymous young women.

What interests me is how fundamentally decent boys, who want to do the right thing, get into situations where they don't. One reason is alcohol and the other is porn. Both have an effect on boys and girls in terms of what they think is expected of them, and what appropriate sexual behaviour is.

In school, we have to strike a really difficult balance. If you teach a child about these issues too late, they say, "well, we've already made that mistake". But if you do it too soon, parents say, "I don't want my child hearing about this yet". Parents do have the option to withdraw children from relationships lessons until the age of 15 if they feel that the content is inappropriate. This may include families who are very religious. We have to work with parents to explain our rationale for what we communicate.

One way we have tried to address all these issues in school is to talk about respect, consent and boundaries repeatedly to each year group. But we can give these classes until we're blue in the face. The majority of what we deal with pastorally is actually happening outside school hours. So I write to parents about it. I speak out about these matters in the national media, partly to get my parents' attention.

Our most common problem is boys saying things that they think are funny, which aren't. It's important to get across to boys how hurtful these comments can be. And we want girls to tell us about what is happening to them. If something happens outside school and no one tells us, we don't have a chance of addressing it.

It broke my heart to see an anonymous post about my school on Everyone's Invited claiming the school had turned a blind eye to an incident. We did not do that, but it made us realise that pupils don't appreciate how much we do confidentially, for obvious reasons.

It saddens me when people talk about teenage boys as though they're hardened criminals. I believe strongly in the redemptive aspects of education. There's a really pivotal role for fathers in particular here - to show allyship, to be role models and to say to their boys: "This is violence and sexual harassment towards women, and it is not OK."

I've been a headteacher for eight years now and colleagues who have recently retired tell me it's definitely a more difficult job than it used to be a decade or two ago.

It's not only the very incendiary issue of female safety, but we are also operating in a complex legal framework. One of the challenges we face is the tension between school as a safe space and school as an intellectually challenging space.

We are here to broaden their horizons and open their minds, but some parents and pupils who hold very strong views will use cancel culture to try to prevent people and topics they don't want to hear about being aired. And this can be done on the grounds that they are offended.

We saw that last week when a teacher in West Yorkshire displayed the Charlie Hebdo cartoons of the prophet Muhammad in class. We live in a culture where satire is an acceptable form of political debate. But to some people, it's not. Getting that balance between challenge and respect right is difficult for headteachers, when we are also trying to induct pupils in liberal debate and the value of free speech.
As told to Donna Ferguson

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This is an extraordinary opportunity to talk to boys about consent and respect | Helen Pike

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ne of the things I'm really interested in, as a headteacher, is how cultures are created - and how culture can be changed. We have been talking to our boys about sexism, sexual harassment and consent for years.

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I May Destroy You: How Ita O'Brien choreographed TV's most talked-about sex

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I May Destroy You creator Michaela Coel has dedicated her best actress Bafta to the woman who choreographed the sex on the show - describing her work as "essential".

Ita O'Brien was intimacy co-ordinator for the 12-part drama, in which Coel plays a woman trying to remember and come to terms with a sexual assault.

Her work allows actors to "make work about exploitation, loss of respect, about abuse of power, without being exploited or abused in the process," Coel said.

"I know what it's like to shoot without an intimacy director - the messy, embarrassing feeling for the crew, the internal devastation for the actor," she told the audience at the Bafta TV Awards.

Ita spoke to Radio 1 Newsbeat last year about her work on I May Destroy You and other shows including Normal People and Sex Education.

Here's what she told us - with some minor plot spoilers.

I May Destroy You

Some scenes in I May Destroy You are tough to watch, featuring sexual assault and stealthing - when a man removes a condom during sex despite being asked to wear one.

The show focuses on consent, and what happens when it's taken away, and much of the sex is exploitative and abusive.

"Michaela had an absolutely clear idea of what she wanted," says Ita.

"When you have challenging subject matter, what's really important is to make sure the physical nature of the scene is clear and secure."

Once that is in place, the cast members can concentrate on releasing their emotions during the scene, she says.

With a background in dance and acting, Ita became a movement coach in 2007, which then led to her developing a set of intimacy guidelines used by all her clients in the TV and film industry.

"As the intimacy co-ordinator, I bring a professional structure and a risk assessment to the content," she says.

In a Bafta Q&A, Michaela Coel said Ita brought an "energy that came on set and let us get into our bodies so that we didn't feel weird".

She said having her on set gave everyone "confidence", adding: "Not only is the mental and physical well-being of the cast important, it enables us to get there safely and get what we need for the scene."

Someone else was brought in alongside Ita to help any members of the cast and crew who might need emotional or psychological support after filming the scenes.

"It's not just for the actors," says Ita.

"It's for the entire crew because when you have a challenging subject matter, you don't know who's going to be triggered by that.

"You need to take care across the board."

Normal People

In episode two of Normal People, Marianne and Connell have sex for the first time.

The 10-minute scene in Connell's bedroom is full of close-ups of both characters at a crucial point in their relationship.

We're watching Marianne lose her virginity and there's nowhere for the actors - or the audience - to hide.

It was a scene that was praised by viewers for its depiction of consent.

"From the very beginning, I asked Paul Mescal (Connell) and Daisy Edgar Jones (Marianne) what they were OK with in terms of simulated sexual content, nudity and touch."

She wanted to know "what their yes areas were".

"With all my projects, I'm serving the writers' and the directors' vision, so when we get to set I'm watching the conversations between the actors and the director about what's needed."

Ita says one of the biggest shifts in the industry is allowing as much time and space as needed to rehearse intimate scenes.

It's planned out in detail, with the actors involved knowing exactly what will happen and what they're supposed to be doing.

"That means that when you put it in front of the camera, you're going to get the best thing possible."

Sex Education

Ita compares intimacy on screen to a "body dance" and says her role is just like "a choreographer with a dance or a stunt co-ordinator with a fight."

"Just as if you're doing a tango, you've got two bodies moving together in rhythm.

"Or in the case of Sex Education, the important thing is that they weren't in rhythm."

It brings to mind a scene from the show's season two, as Otis (Asa Butterfield) tries - and fails - to impress Ola (Patricia "Trish" Allison) with his "clock technique".

"Comedy comes from truth," says Ita. "The more truthful something is, the more comedic it is.

"This was the second season so by this point Asa and Trish knew their characters inside out.

"I was on set in fits of giggles, trying to stifle my laughter because what Asa brought to that scene was stunning.

"But that could only happen because everyone had an agreement of touch.

"They're not touching anywhere near the genital areas. We're finding the safe place that looks right and then the movement of the arms sells it completely."

Listen to Newsbeat live at 12:45 and 17:45 weekdays - or listen back here.

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I May Destroy You: How Ita O'Brien choreographed TV's most talked-about sex

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I May Destroy You creator Michaela Coel has dedicated her best actress Bafta to the woman who choreographed the sex on the show - describing her work as "essential". Ita O'Brien was intimacy co-ordinator for the 12-part drama, in which Coel plays a woman trying to remember and come to terms with a sexual assault.

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Police ‘failing to protect’ thousands of girls at risk of sexual abuse - The Times and The Sunday Times

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Police 'failing to protect' thousands of girls at risk of sexual abuse - The Times and The Sunday Times

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Police and social services have been accused of failing thousands of girls as young as 11 who have been reported missing repeatedly while at risk of sexual abuse. One child in West Yorkshire has disappeared 197 times in three years despite being known to the authorities as a potential victim of sexual exploitation, an investigation has found.

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Hundreds of women gather for 'night walk' to reclaim the city's outdoor spaces - Manchester Evening News

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Hundreds of women gather for 'night walk' to reclaim the city's outdoor spaces - Manchester Evening News

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Over one hundred women came together to highlight fears over being outside in our city at night

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‘I’m broken and my only sin was being a woman’ – Gabrielle Goliath’s survivors

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he event that shaped Gabrielle Goliath's life as an artist happened when she was nine years old: a schoolfriend was killed in an act of domestic violence, the details of which have never been clear. "It would have been an accident," she says, from her home in Johannesburg, 30 years on. "But, you know, when these things happen within a family, no one outside of those four walls knows exactly what went on." She commemorated her friend in a 2010 photographic work,Berenice 10-28, which invited 19 young black women - so-called "surrogates" - to sit for a portrait, each representing one of the 19 years that Berenice had missed.

The work that brings the South African artist to Edinburgh is another powerful act of remembrance, this time focused on the survivors of assault. This Song Is For ... is the centrepiece, and emotional core, of The Normal, the reopening show at the university's Talbot Rice Gallery. It bends the idea of the dedication song into a reflection on the worldwide problem of sexual violence against women and those who don't conform to gender norms, through the testimonies of five individuals.

One by one, the survivors' stories are spotlit on a side wall, while on two large screens musicians perform a well-known song that she - or in one case, he - has nominated, screened in a colour wash of their choosing. Each track runs between 16 and 20 minutes, trapped by a mysterious glitch in the inescapable now of a single recurring phrase, which becomes increasingly intense and effortful until the song is released, in its final seconds, into the "rhapsody" of its full version.

"The 19th of April 2014 was a holy Saturday for others and not so holy for me," writes Sinesipho Lakani, who was kidnapped and raped in the back of a taxi in her first three months at university. "My life has never been the same. I'm broken, and my sin, my only sin was being a woman." Lakani has chosen Beyoncé's Save the Hero, which is performed by the up-and-coming South African jazz trio The Wretched, in a bruised violet colourscape. As if struggling to articulate a pain that is beyond language, the song is stuck at "A simple word, a ges[ture] ... "

'You have to think about violence through that global, transnational lens' ... Gabrielle Goliath. Photograph: Courtesy of Goodman Gallery

The exhibition aims to spotlight issues brought into new focus by the pandemic, with pre-existing and newly commissioned works ranging widely across social and environmental concerns. This Song Is For ... was made in 2019, just months before the UN would declare that violence against women had become "a shadow pandemic", with four billion people around the world confined to their homes.

Goliath, a thoughtful and softly spoken woman with close-cropped hair and owlish glasses, bridles at such catastrophist language, because it denies a long and devastating history. "The phenomenon of racist, gendered and sexualised violence predates the pandemic," she says. "We need to understand the legacies that are not just stuck in the past. We need to take into account a history that commodified bodies and continues to render many individuals still precarious today - and that demands an accounting of racial slavery, colonialism and apartheid, and the ways in which bodies continue, even now, to be differentially valued."

Goliath's profile has been rising fast , with shows imminent in France, Australia, Sweden, Scotland and, she hopes, India at the end of the year. She works at a deliberately slow pace, carefully gathering material for artworks which interconnect with each other, accumulating power over years. Elegy, a live performance piece ongoing since 2015, creates a mourning ritual for murdered women by inviting opera singers to step up and hold a single note for as long as they can. A video version, capturing a sequence of seven singers, is due to show this year in Rouen and Melbourne.

For all her conscientiousness, and the scholarly language of someone who also teaches critical theory at a university, Goliath is no stranger to confrontation. She once forced gallery-goers into physical contact with homelessness by placing a blanketed body in the entrance to an exhibition. A later audio piece, Roulette - which she describes as a "sonic assault" - is an audio piece experienced through headphones, involving a six-hour silence, punctuated by a single, ear-splitting gunshot. It reflects the shocking statistic that, in South Africa at the point when she was researching the 2012 work, every six hours a woman was killed by a current or former partner. Rouletteis currently showing (without headphones) at the Musée d'Art Moderne de Paris, with the gunshot sounding once every three hours - an 2020 update on the rate of femicide in the country.

But once again Goliath warns against oversimplifying. "It's really important for me to be attentive to how certain kinds of concerns and issues are relegated to certain parts of the world." Roulette is about to open in Sweden, where - she says, delicately - "one might presume that this sort of thing doesn't happen, but it does. It's spoken of in different ways, but unfortunately, devastatingly, violence is rife, not only across geographical lines, but lines of difference too. So you have to think about it through that global, transnational lens."

Elegy, Goliath's performance piece concerning murdered women, in which opera singers hold a single note for as long as they can. Photograph: Courtesy the artist

Though This Song Is For ... is not so obviously confrontational, its sense of being trapped in a tune that never changes - the difficulty of which can be heard in the singers' straining voices and seen in the twitching of their facial muscles - has been known to trigger unbearable memories in survivors of abuse. Host galleries are advised to train their attendants up to spot the signs.

There are 11 music videos in the complete cycle, but the challenge of keeping socially distanced visitors moving has led to only five being shown in Edinburgh, one each weekday, with all five reprised on Saturdays. Their mournful repetitions echo through the grand 19th-century gallery, as you wend your way through works on the plunder of the ocean floor, the symbolism of crocodiles in a plastic-polluted world, or the chemistry of Scottish honey in a bumper lockdown year for wildflowers.

Such juxtapositions delight Goliath. "These things get siloed, you know," she says. "We think of gender-based violence or ecological crisis, but for me, they are deeply entangled. They have birthed from the same kind of foundational narrative of nationalised, hierarchised, economised, sexualised, racist violence."

The Normal is at Talbot Rice Gallery, Edinburgh, from 18 May to 29 August.

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'I'm broken and my only sin was being a woman' - Gabrielle Goliath's survivors

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he event that shaped Gabrielle Goliath's life as an artist happened when she was nine years old: a schoolfriend was killed in an act of domestic violence, the details of which have never been clear. "It would have been an accident," she says, from her home in Johannesburg, 30 years on.

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"Whilst working for Hampshire Constabulary I was beaten , strangled out , held against my will and raped twice for two hours , all because I left a controlling relationship. The court case that followed was far worse than the rape itself ! I truly expected to be treated with respect and dignity , to my horror I was so very very wrong . I now have secondary trauma from the court case , In the three days at court I was verbally torn apart by my rapists barrister and the judge . I was called a liar on numerous occasions , I was also given promises by the judge that never came to light whilst stood in the box . I wasn’t prepared for such hostility , brutality and trauma all over again .. Not once did my own barrister intervene on my behalf , considering before going in he told me how the system is falling apart. It was also extremely clear to me that the judge had his own predacious about the rape case from the very beginning. In court none of my victim privacy rights were agreed to and when I challenged this I was told to be quiet by the judge . After the rape I had no support from Hampshire Constabulary for 3 months . I had to call their HR department myself to seek some professional support . After all this time the Police support I eventually received wasn’t adequate as Police counsellors don’t take on rape victims due to the length and depth of the case ! I had to go outside for help . Also in my time as a serving officer a sergeant bullied me because I refused his advances whilst on duty with him . I complained about his bullying to my inspector at the time , sadly the ranks closed together and I was moved . Apparently I should have been grateful for the move and be quiet yet again !, It was my failing to believe that I would of been supported from the very people who are meant to protect me at such a horrendous time . As a Constabulary they have failed me massively and have acted extremely unprofessional. It would seem trying to complain to the Constabulary since is futile as I’m being ignored. I also tried complaining about my court case as it was clearly an unfair hearing , it was made so difficult I gave up . It’s one of the most hardest thing to do when it’s about your most personal inner and terrifying experience. Vulnerability is the justice systems power . This sort of crime has evolved but the justice system hasn't . The predators are protected to do it again , and it would seem in or out of the system! The justice system is a complete show of incompetence and hypocrisy . The one hundred plus females who have died from mens hands in the last twelve months is a reflection of this. It’s only by the grace of god I’m still here today to write this . The justice system has become the enabler for such crimes to continue. Hampshire Constabulary will have to talk to me one day it shouldn’t be this hard !"

https://www.everyonesinvited.uk/read-testimonies-page-41

- Hampshire Constabulary

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"It was common knowledge that boys in our friendship group during sixth form had “locked” albums on their phones, that contained the nudes of various girls in the year group or wider school that is they would share among themselves. Certain boys even bragged about sharing their current girlfriend’s pictures with their friends."

- Charters Sixth Form

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"he was my boyfriend at the time and my first relationship so it took me ages to realise that this was actually assault and not what relationships were meant to be like. he used to beg me to have sex with him and i would say no and then eventually give in. after the sex he would make me feel guilty for saying no to him because he was my boyfriend and i was meant to love him. i feel like i want to talk to my friends about this even though it was a long time ago. but the one friend i told about it didn’t want to hear it and pretty much disregarded it even when i told her i used to wake up to him doing sexual things with me completely nonconsensual."

https://www.everyonesinvited.uk/read-testimonies-page-42
- Godalming College

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What happened next? Responses to the findings? 

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What happened next? Responses to the findings? 

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AoC group set up in 2019 to lead on taking the work forward?

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AoC group set up in 2019 to lead on taking the work forward?

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Warwick University students stage sit-in over sexual abuse

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Students staging a sit-in protest at Warwick University have spent more than two weeks living in a tent in the middle of campus to highlight what they describe as a "huge culture of fear" around sexual abuse and the university's failure to support victims.

Three years after the university's "rape chat" scandal, in which a number of male students exchanged violent sexual comments about female students, the protesters say women still do not feel safe on campus or confident reporting incidents to staff.

"The university say they have been trying to improve things over the past few years but students are still here protesting the exact same thing, with the exact same demands," said Cai Kennedy, a first-year theatre student who helped launch the sit-in with a rally attended by about 350 students.

"We were very wary about the fact the uni hasn't listened in the past, which is why I proposed the sit-in because we wanted to do something they can't ignore."

The protesters, a group named Protect Warwick Women, have presented the university with a list of demands, including sexual violence and consent training for staff and security, more signposting to 24/7 safe spaces on campus, the permanent banning of abusers from campus and increased funding for wellbeing services.

Posters on campus. The protesters say the university has failed to listen to complaints in the past. Photograph: Andrew Fox/The Guardian

They also want the option of immediate pastoral care in the event of a sexual assault, as opposed to a security response, as they say students are deterred from coming forward for fear of punishment if they have been involved in a breach of Covid rules, for instance.

The university said it "welcomed the ideas put forward" and "there are many areas where we are in broad agreement and where improvements are already in progress or implemented". However, the students have vowed to continue the sit-in until they receive written confirmation their demands will be implemented.

In recent weeks, thousands of students have shared testimonies of sexual harassment and assault at UK schools and universities since the death of Sarah Everard in March triggered a national conversation about women's safety.

This week a member of Oxford University's women's boat club said she had been failed by the institution's handling of her rape allegation, and universities across the country are coming under increasing pressure to take more action to tackle sexual abuse on campus.

"There's a huge culture of fear here and women feel they need to have their guard up all the time. We want to show students at other universities that by provoking conversations, you can change the culture, and you can push institutions to make policy changes," said Brin Arnold, a first-year computer science student at Warwick.

One first-year student at the sit-in, who asked to remain anonymous, said she was coerced into a sexual act by another student a few months into her time at Warwick, but did not feel confident reporting it to the university.

"I didn't feel that the university, given the way they have acted with other situations, would be on my side," said the student, adding the incident left her too scared to leave her accommodation. "We have an obligation, not just to the student population but to ourselves, to make sure the university does become a safer place."

In January the university faced criticism for its decision to allow a student who groped a woman on campus to continue attending the university to complete his studies. "By allowing these men to get away with a slap on the wrist they're not only cultivating a rape culture but they're also discouraging women from coming forward," said Kennedy.

Georgina Calvert-Lee, a senior counsel at the law firm McAllister Olivarius, represented two of the victims of the rape chat scandal in their discrimination case against the university for the way it handled its investigation, and has been involved in similar cases.

"It's not just Warwick: these are issues we see across the board in many universities. The whole sector is struggling to find ways to improve processes," she said. "The people in charge don't seem to realise the long-term damage this can cause."

She said university procedures often placed complainants at a disadvantage compared with the accused, and some institutions used confidentiality agreements to prevent victims from talking about their experiences afterwards. "That just seems to me totally wrong and it's most likely a breach of their duty of care to the students."

A University of Warwick spokesperson said: "Our policy on sexual misconduct is clear - it will not be tolerated. Individuals who are found to have broken our values, either by the police or by our own comprehensive disciplinary processes, will face sanctions - which include expulsion or withdrawal from the university."

They said the university was working with the Student Advisory Group on Sexual Misconduct to implement improvements and would introduce active bystander support training for all new students from the next academic year, while staff were already attending training on the impact of sexual misconduct.

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Warwick University students stage sit-in over sexual abuse

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Students staging a sit-in protest at Warwick University have spent more than two weeks living in a tent in the middle of campus to highlight what they describe as a "huge culture of fear" around sexual abuse and the university's failure to support victims. Three years after the university's "rape chat" scandal, in which a number of male students exchanged violent sexual comments about female students, the protesters say women still do not feel safe on campus or confident reporting incidents to staff.

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There are a shedload of rights and wrongs here but some of these officers appear to be out of control. Coppers manhandling women reclaim the night protesters. Someone has lost perspective.

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There are a shedload of rights and wrongs here but some of these officers appear to be out of control. Coppers manhandling women reclaim the night protesters. Someone has lost perspective.

https://t.co/AWzwbV8Wzb

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There are a shedload of rights and wrongs here but some of these officers appear to be out of control. Coppers manhandling women reclaim the night protesters. Someone has lost perspective.pic.twitter.com/AWzwbV8Wzb
— Mike Cameron 🖋 (@mikercameron) March 13, 2021

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There are a shedload of rights and wrongs here but some of these officers appear to be out of control. Coppers manhandling women reclaim the night protesters. Someone has lost perspective.

https://t.co/AWzwbV8Wzb

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.original_text
There are a shedload of rights and wrongs here but some of these officers appear to be out of control. Coppers manhandling women reclaim the night protesters. Someone has lost perspective.

https://t.co/AWzwbV8Wzb

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There are a shedload of rights and wrongs here but some of these officers appear to be out of control. Coppers manhandling women reclaim the night protesters. Someone has lost perspective.

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New book explains the reason why women are blamed for everything | Pressat

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New book explains the reason why women are blamed for everything | Pressat

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Why Women are Blamed for Everything: Exploring victim blaming of women subjected to violence and trauma

Author: Dr Jessica Taylor (PhD, FRSA)
Summary
She asked for it. She was flirting. She was drinking. She was wearing a revealing dress. She was too confident. She walked home alone. She stayed in that relationship. She was naïve. She didn't report soon enough. She didn't fight back. She wanted it. She lied about it. She comes from a bad area. She was vulnerable. She should have known. She should have seen it coming. She should have protected herself.

Victim blaming of women is prevalent and normalised in society. What causes us to blame women who have been abused, raped, trafficked, assaulted or harassed by men? Why are we uncomfortable with placing the blame on perpetrators for their crimes against women?

Based on years of doctoral research and ten years of practice with women and girls, Dr Jessica Taylor explores the many reasons we blame women for male violence committed against them. Written in her unique style and backed up by decades of evidence, this book exposes the powerful forces in society and individual psychology which compel us to blame women subjected to male violence.

"I called it 'Why women are blamed for everything' because in all of the work and research I have done, I have seen women handed the blame for everything from being harassed in the street to being trafficked and sold for sex. Anything that can be used against them, is used against them. Even if they couldn't consent."

The book contains a shocking overview of just how prevalent victim blaming is in our society with new data and research from Dr Taylor's work. Eighteen chapters explore the psychological theories, evidence and real stories of victim blaming of women and girls.

"I decided to include chapters that presented the significant evidence base for the victim blaming of women and girls subjected to rape, abuse and violence. In the book, I write about the ways the criminal justice system, our mental health services and even our primary schools encourage and uphold the victim blaming culture."

Dr Taylor has included her most recent findings from her own psychological research which included interviews with women who had been blamed for being raped, and the professionals who supported them. The book also includes a chapter which publishes her findings from an attitude study with UK adults.

"I asked adults in the UK to read scenarios of sexual violence committed by men towards women and then asked them to assign blame to the woman and to the man. The study was completely anonymous which meant everyone could answer honestly."

"The results were depressing but important. I was surprised by how many adult men and women thought it was normal to have sex with a woman whilst she was asleep. In that scenario, 20% of the respondents said that if a man has sex with a sleeping woman, it is her own fault. I also noted that there was very little empathy for homeless women who were being sexually exploited or raped for somewhere to live - 46% of men and women blamed the women in those scenarios. This is particularly worrying during COVID19 as we have seen reports of landlords demanding sex instead of rent, which is illegal."

"The findings from my new book have significant implications for our criminal justice system. If so many people hold these woman blaming views, how can we possibly argue that the criminal justice process is a fact-finding process? How can we trust the outcomes of investigations and jury decisions?"

The book is the first of it's kind. It brings together psychological theory, statistics, real stories, case studies and interview data from women who have been blamed for being raped and abused. It has been written to be as accessible as possible so that everyone can read it - even if they have no prior knowledge of psychology or social sciences.
Author
Dr Jessica Taylor is the founder of VictimFocus, an international research, teaching and consultancy organisation with the sole aim of challenging the victim blaming and pathologisation of women and girls subjected to violence and abuse. She is a feminist psychologist with a PhD in forensic psychology. Jessica is a Senior Lecturer in Forensic and Criminal Psychology. She has written 5 books and several chapters, articles and resources on the topics of CSE, rape, victim blaming, pathologisation of women, women bringing up babies from rape and global misogyny. She developed a free online course for survivors of sexual violence which has been accessed by over 20,000 people in the first 8 months. Her VictimFocus blog has over 1 million readers per year.

Book release date: 27 th April 2020

All press enquiries and reviews are welcome: jessica@victimfocus.org.uk

Press release distributed by Pressat on behalf of Dr Jessica Taylor, on Wednesday 15 April, 2020. For more information subscribe and follow https://pressat.co.uk/

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New book explains the reason why women are blamed for everything

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Why Women are Blamed for Everything: Exploring victim blaming of women subjected to violence and trauma Author: Dr Jessica Taylor (PhD, FRSA) Summary She asked for it. She was flirting. She was drinking. She was wearing a revealing dress. She was too confident. She walked home alone. She stayed in that relationship.

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Exclusive: I have felt unsafe on the streets as a woman, says Met officer | Evening Standard

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Exclusive: I have felt unsafe on the streets as a woman, says Met officer | Evening Standard

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Scotland Yard chief today told how she has felt unsafe walking the streets alone as more action was pledged to help women in the wake of Sarah Everard 's killing.

Assistant Commissioner Louisa Rolfe said recent debate around women's safety in the capital made the force more determined to listen to survivors of rape, sexual abuse and domestic violence.

Asked if she empathised with women, including the Duchess of Cambridge, who recalled concerns walking in London at night, Ms Rolfe told the Standard: "Yes, as a woman.

"All of us have held our keys in our hands and walked a little bit quicker when we've walked home in the dark. The last thing I'm ever going to do is minimise people's fears by saying anything crass like these offences are very rare.

"No matter how rare, and the data suggests London is incredibly safe, the concerns are valid and real. The last thing we want women to do is have to change their behaviour because of fear."

Police data suggest the majority of sexual offences happen from midday to 8pm, so it's a myth they occur in dark streets, she added. Ms Rolfe said the Met had "taken stock" in recent weeks and asked itself: "Is there more we can do?"

She said action being taken included:

Around 650 officers working in neighbourhoods helping to make public spaces safer.

A partnership with retailers, pubs and clubs designed to create an "intolerance" of violence against women.

Since November the force's Predatory Offenders Unit has hunted down and arrested 1,000 suspects.

In the last four months, the Met has taken out 100 stalking protection orders against the most serious offenders.

Stalking incidents reported to Scotland Yard soared more than 300 per cent between April 2020 and February this year, with perpetrators targeting victims online.

The Suzy Lamplugh Trust said victims felt like "sitting ducks" as they were targeted during lockdown by perpetrators with more time on their hands. Ms Rolfe, the national police lead for domestic abuse, said she was also concerned about significant delays in the justice system as a result of Covid.

Figures show there is a backlog of 57,000 crown court cases.

The Met has recruited 12 additional victim care officers for 5,000 witnesses in London who have been identified as either vulnerable or at risk of intimidation due to the delay.

Ms Rolfe said: "We've got real commitment from the CPS and court service that cases like domestic abuse and sexual offences are at the top of the list and being prioritised."

Her detectives were "focused on pursuing prosecutions", even though they recognised the trauma it put on victims.

But she added: "Too many defence strategies involve undermining the credibility of a victim, often trying to convince a jury that what would be seen as a manifestation of trauma presents as an unreliable victim. That really distresses us and is something we've worked incredibly hard to address."

Wayne Couzens, 48, has been charged with Ms Everard's kidnap and murder. A provisional date has been set for his trial at the Old Bailey for October 25.

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Exclusive: I have felt unsafe on the streets as a woman, says leading Met officer

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Scotland Yard chief today told how she has felt unsafe walking the streets alone as more action was pledged to help women in the wake of Sarah Everard 's killing. Assistant Commissioner Louisa Rolfe said recent debate around women's safety in the capital made the force more determined to listen to survivors of rape, sexual abuse and domestic violence.

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 @ManduReid on @tova_leigh's podcast, Til Death Do Us Pod.

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 @ManduReid on @tova_leigh's podcast, Til Death Do Us Pod.

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Till Death Do Us Pod S5 Ep 02 - Vote! Chatting to Mandu Reid, leader of Women's Equality Party

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Labour proposes new offences for violence against women and girls

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Labour would create a slew of new offences concerning violence against women and girls, including prohibiting street harassment, making misogyny a hate crime and banning sex-for-rent.

The proposals also include introducing criminal sanctions for tech executives who do not act fast enough to remove misogynistic abuse on their platforms, building on previous proposals from the party to tackle online hate speech.

The party has published its own version of a government green paper to highlight what it says are inadequacies in the police, crime, sentencing and courts bill and in the Queen's speech.

Jess Phillips, the shadow domestic violence and safeguarding minister, said: "The violence that women and girls face is endemic, and no matter how much the government want to paint a picture of it being a rare crime, the figures tell a different story."

The proposals include tougher sentences for rape, stalking and domestic murder as well as introducing whole-life tariffs for those who rape, abduct and murder a stranger. The minimum tariff introduced for rape would be seven years.

The green paper also proposes removing barriers to legal aid - including to refugees and migrants who may have no recourse to public funds - in cases of domestic violence.

Other proposals include custodial sentences for those who name victims of rape and sexual assault; teacher training to identify and support child victims of domestic abuse; repealing the rape clause for social security claims; and ending the five-week wait for universal credit.

The shadow justice secretary, David Lammy, said it was time to act on the record low conviction rates for sexual violence. "The Conservatives are failing to protect women and girls from violent criminals, which should be one of the first duties of any government," he said.

Labour has said the government should be held to specific targets to measure progress on male violence, domestic abuse and sexual violence. It proposes a national rollout of the system operating in Wales, where there are 10 national indicators of progress by which the government can be held to account, with a report on its performance for each indicator published each year.

Labour would also create a specific ministerial position with oversight for rape and sexual violence survivors, which would involve the Ministry of Justice, the Home Office, the attorney general's office, and public health departments.

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Labour proposes new offences for violence against women and girls

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Labour would create a slew of new offences concerning violence against women and girls, including prohibiting street harassment, making misogyny a hate crime and banning sex-for-rent. The proposals also include introducing criminal sanctions for tech executives who do not act fast enough to remove misogynistic abuse on their platforms, building on previous proposals from the party to tackle online hate speech.

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Rape victims in England and Wales to give video evidence to boost convictions

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Rape victims in England and Wales will be able to provide their evidence on video prior to a trial to help improve conviction rates, it is understood.

The plans form part of a review, led by the justice secretary, Robert Buckland, and the home secretary, Priti Patel, aiming to reduce stress on survivors.

The government review to be unveiled next month is considering a plan for rape survivors to pre-record their evidence, including cross-examination, to spare them the trauma of appearing in person in court.

The plans will also call on judges to bar the public from the courtroom more often and ensure police return mobile phones to victims within 24 hours.

In September 2019, the the annual Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) report from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) showed there were only 1,925 convictions for rape or an alternative lesser offence during the 2018-19 financial year, down from 2,635 in the previous 12 months - a drop of 26.9%.

The figure fell a further 25% in summer 2020 when the CPS revealed 1,439 alleged rapists were convicted of rape or lesser offences in 2019-20.

The number of completed prosecutions also reached a record low, with 2,102 in 2019-20, compared with 3,034 in 2018-19, a fall of about 31%.

Critics including the End Violence Against Women Coalition (Evaw) have accused the CPS of moving away from a "merits-based approach" to deciding which cases of alleged rape and other serious sexual assault should be prosecuted.

The court of appeal ruled in March that the CPS had not changed its policy on prosecuting alleged rapes, with Evaw calling the decision "another establishment betrayal of victims of violence against women and girls".

Next month's government review will be published after MPs heard prosecutors dealing with rapes and serious sexual offences have 80% more cases than they did before the coronavirus pandemic.

CPS lawyers are handling on average about 27 such cases, compared with 15 prior to the outbreak, the Commons justice committee was told in March.

In the UK, Rape Crisis offers support for rape and sexual abuse on 0808 802 9999 in England and Wales, 0808 801 0302 in Scotland, or 0800 0246 991 in Northern Ireland. In the US, Rainn offers support on 800-656-4673. In Australia, support is available at 1800Respect (1800 737 732). Other international helplines can be found at ibiblio.org/rcip/internl.html

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Rape victims in England and Wales to give video evidence to boost convictions

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Rape victims in England and Wales will be able to provide their evidence on video prior to a trial to help improve conviction rates, it is understood. The plans form part of a review, led by the justice secretary, Robert Buckland, and the home secretary, Priti Patel, aiming to reduce stress on survivors.

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Boris Johnson Ignoring 'Epidemic Of Misogyny', Says Labour - HuffPost UK

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Boris Johnson Ignoring 'Epidemic Of Misogyny', Says Labour - HuffPost UK

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Labour has published its own strategy to end violence against women and girls.

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Adverse Childhood Experiences: The Invisible Backpack

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Further Education News

The FE News Channel gives you the latest education news and updates on emerging education strategies and the #FutureofEducation and the #FutureofWork.

Providing trustworthy and positive Further Education news and views since 2003, we are a digital news channel with a mixture of written word articles, podcasts and videos. Our specialisation is providing you with a mixture of the latest education news, our stance is always positive, sector building and sharing different perspectives and views from thought leaders, to provide you with a think tank of new ideas and solutions to bring the education sector together and come up with new innovative solutions and ideas.

FE News publish exclusive peer to peer thought leadership articles from our feature writers, as well as user generated content across our network of over 3000 Newsrooms, offering multiple sources of the latest education news across the Education and Employability sectors.

FE News also broadcast live events, podcasts with leading experts and thought leaders, webinars, video interviews and Further Education news bulletins so you receive the latest developments in Skills News and across the Apprenticeship, Further Education and Employability sectors.

Every week FE News has over 200 articles and new pieces of content per week. We are a news channel providing the latest Further Education News, giving insight from multiple sources on the latest education policy developments, latest strategies, through to our thought leaders who provide blue sky thinking strategy, best practice and innovation to help look into the future developments for education and the future of work.

In Jan 2021, FE News had over 173,000 unique visitors according to Google Analytics and over 200 new pieces of news content every week, from thought leadership articles, to the latest education news via written word, podcasts, video to press releases from across the sector, putting us in the top 2,000 websites in the UK.

We thought it would be helpful to explain how we tier our latest education news content and how you can get involved and understand how you can read the latest daily Further Education news and how we structure our FE Week of content:

Main Features

Our main features are exclusive and are thought leadership articles and blue sky thinking with experts writing peer to peer news articles about the future of education and the future of work. The focus is solution led thought leadership, sharing best practice, innovation and emerging strategy. These are often articles about the future of education and the future of work, they often then create future education news articles. We limit our main features to a maximum of 20 per week, as they are often about new concepts and new thought processes. Our main features are also exclusive articles responding to the latest education news, maybe an insight from an expert into a policy announcement or response to an education think tank report or a white paper.

FE Voices

FE Voices was originally set up as a section on FE News to give a voice back to the sector. As we now have over 3,000 newsrooms and contributors, FE Voices are usually thought leadership articles, they don't necessarily have to be exclusive, but usually are, they are slightly shorter than Main Features. FE Voices can include more mixed media with the Further Education News articles, such as embedded podcasts and videos. Our sector response articles asking for different comments and opinions to education policy announcements or responding to a report of white paper are usually held in the FE Voices section. If we have a live podcast in an evening or a radio show such as SkillsWorldLive radio show, the next morning we place the FE podcast recording in the FE Voices section.

Sector News

In sector news we have a blend of content from Press Releases, education resources, reports, education research, white papers from a range of contributors. We have a lot of positive education news articles from colleges, awarding organisations and Apprenticeship Training Providers, press releases from DfE to Think Tanks giving the overview of a report, through to helpful resources to help you with delivering education strategies to your learners and students.

Podcasts

We have a range of education podcasts on FE News, from hour long full production FE podcasts such as SkillsWorldLive in conjunction with the Federation of Awarding Bodies, to weekly podcasts from experts and thought leaders, providing advice and guidance to leaders. FE News also record podcasts at conferences and events, giving you one on one podcasts with education and skills experts on the latest strategies and developments.

We have over 150 education podcasts on FE News, ranging from EdTech podcasts with experts discussing Education 4.0 and how technology is complimenting and transforming education, to podcasts with experts discussing education research, the future of work, how to develop skills systems for jobs of the future to interviews with the Apprenticeship and Skills Minister.

We record our own exclusive FE News podcasts, work in conjunction with sector partners such as FAB to create weekly podcasts and daily education podcasts, through to working with sector leaders creating exclusive education news podcasts.

Education Video Interviews

FE News have over 700 FE Video interviews and have been recording education video interviews with experts for over 12 years. These are usually vox pop video interviews with experts across education and work, discussing blue sky thinking ideas and views about the future of education and work.

Events

FE News has a free events calendar to check out the latest conferences, webinars and events to keep up to date with the latest education news and strategies.

FE Newsrooms

The FE Newsroom is home to your content if you are a FE News contributor. It also help the audience develop relationship with either you as an individual or your organisation as they can click through and 'box set' consume all of your previous thought leadership articles, latest education news press releases, videos and education podcasts.

Do you want to contribute, share your ideas or vision or share a press release?

If you want to write a thought leadership article, share your ideas and vision for the future of education or the future of work, write a press release sharing the latest education news or contribute to a podcast, first of all you need to set up a FE Newsroom login (which is free): once the team have approved your newsroom (all content, newsrooms are all approved by a member of the FE News team- no robots are used in this process!), you can then start adding content (again all articles, videos and podcasts are all approved by the FE News editorial team before they go live on FE News). As all newsrooms and content are approved by the FE News team, there will be a slight delay on the team being able to review and approve content.

RSS Feed Selection Page

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providing a safe-space for effective teaching and learning after trauma

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Adverse Childhood Experiences: The Invisible Backpack

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TraumaInformed - Prior to the pandemic, the number of black children that were impacted by adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) was staggering at sixty-one percent in the United States. Over the past year with quarantining and social distancing, there has been a spike in suicide rates, drug overdoses, child abuse, and...

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If you've ever been harassed while running, you're not alone. Read the results of our survey - Women's Health

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If you've ever been harassed while running, you're not alone. Read the results of our survey - Women's Health UK

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Female runners are being routinely sexually harassed on the streets of the UK. Here's what that harassment looks - and feels - like, why we're on a mission to stamp it out, plus what you can do to help Choosing a busy route, only going out in daylight, forgoing shorts in favour of leggings on even the sunniest of Saturdays.

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Violence against women ‘a pandemic’, warns UN envoy

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A decade after the launch of the Istanbul convention, the landmark human rights treaty to stop gender-based violence, women are facing a global assault on their rights and safety, according to campaigners.

This week marked 10 yearssince the first 13 countries signed up to the convention, seen as a turning point in efforts to address violence against women.

Yet despite 46 countries signing the treaty, the world has become gripped by a pandemic of violence against women, exacerbated and exposed by Covid-19, according to a UN envoy.

"The Covid pandemic revealed what was happening before," said Dubravka Šimonović, UN special rapporteur on violence against women. She said across the world there had been a stark increase in calls to domestic violence helplines, reports of women missing or killed, and a lack of safe places for those fleeing abuse.

"We have a pandemic of violence against women that was not addressed properly in a huge number of states," she said.

The rise in violence against women and girls has been mirrored by a political backlash against the convention - the first international legally binding framework to prevent domestic violence, protect survivors and promote equality.

In March, to widespread domestic and international condemnation, Turkey, the birthplace of the convention, announced it would be pulling out of the treaty from July.

Turkey's withdrawal from the convention capped years of escalating anti-feminist, anti-women and anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric by its politicians, including the president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

Erdoğan has publicly and repeatedly stated that he does not believe in equality between men and women and his government has increasingly linked women's safety to remaining at home with their families and having more children.

"We lost a safety net," said Elif Ege, of the women's refuge organisation Mor Çati in Istanbul. "The Istanbul convention was not implemented properly at all over the years ... but it doesn't mean it was completely ineffective; it was a significant tool in the hands of feminist organisations."

In Ukraine there has been strong opposition to the signing and ratification of the convention from religious groups who perceive it to be a threat to "family values".

Women protest outside the National Palace in Mexico City on International Women's Day with placards showing names of victims of femicide. Ten women a day die in Mexico from gender-based violence. Photograph: Mahe Elipe/Reuters

Halyna Fedkovych and Marta Chumalo from Women's Perspectives, a Ukrainian women's rights organisation, said they had received twice as many calls for help and women faced increasing barriers to accessing justice. They point to a recent case in which a woman with a 15-month baby had been beaten by her husband. When social services arrived, they berated her and called her a bad mother because the floor was dirty.

Miroslava Bobáková, co-director of the Slovak-Czech Women's Fund, said in Slovakia, which has also signed the treaty, the convention is increasingly seen as "an essence of evil". The situation in the country is especially dire for single mothers, women living in poverty and those from the Roma community.

In Mexico, 10 women are killed on the basis of gender every day. In Peru between March and July 2020, there were 11,000 instances of violence against women, according to the ministry of women, with almost 30% of those attacked under the age of 18.

In Egypt, which has never signed the Istanbul convention, there have been increasing attempts to silence feminist activists for violating so-called family values.

"Not having a public sphere to discuss things brings violence," said Mozn Hassan, of the women's rights organisation Nazra. Both Hassan and her organisation face repeated harassment by the state.

Yet campaigners and women's rights groups have insisted that the Istanbul convention remains a powerful weapon in the fight to end gender-based violence.

"Despite the pushbacks we do see improvements," said Šimonović. "Even before the ratification, the 34 states who signed [the convention] have had to implement new laws to protect women."

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Violence against women 'a pandemic', warns UN envoy

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A decade after the launch of the Istanbul convention, the landmark human rights treaty to stop gender-based violence, women are facing a global assault on their rights and safety, according to campaigners. This week marked 10 yearssince the first 13 countries signed up to the convention, seen as a turning point in efforts to address violence against women.

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‘It was so terrifying’: one woman’s experience of ‘tech abuse’ | Domestic violence | The Guardian

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‘It was so terrifying’: one woman’s experience of ‘tech abuse’ | Domestic violence | The Guardian

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Amy Aldworth went on a date with a banker she met through an app and she thought it had gone well after both agreed to meet again.

But before the second date happened, she received an unusual message from the man, whom she has asked the Guardian not to name, insinuating she had given him a sexually transmitted disease.

Confident she had recently been tested, she attempted to reassure him and thought that would be the end of it. But the messages kept coming - and the tone became more aggressive and confrontational.

Amy, 26, who lives in London and works in an NHS pharmacy department, said: "It escalated to him not feeling very well to him knowing I've given him HIV. 'I have the symptoms of HIV, you need to get tested.' I was getting these for weeks."

The messages perturbed Amy to the point she decided to get an emergency test.

"I was so petrified, I knew I didn't have it but I thought he might be one of those guys who deliberately gives it to girls," she said.

"I had to get an emergency appointment at a clinic. The nurse sat with me and it came back negative."

The man did not accept the result of the tests and, over nine weeks, he bombarded Amy, her mother, her grandmother and her friends with messages implying she had infected him with a sexually transmitted disease.

He used Facebook, Instagram, text messages and the dating app through which they first met to contact Amy and her friends and family.

"What disease do you have and WHY did you get someone to take the test on your behalf. Tell me the fucking truth," one message read.

Amy did not use her surname on social media, and was surprised the man was able to find her so easily online.

She was also fearful the online harassment would move into the "real world" and he would appear outside her house or place of work.

"That's why it was so terrifying. I didn't know where he was, it was all happening online; I couldn't guarantee that if I walked out of my door he wouldn't be there tracking me," she said.

"I wouldn't walk to and from work without meeting my colleagues. I didn't want to go out and shop."

Amy said that prior to the harassment, she had periods where she suffered from depression and this episode acted as a fresh trigger.

"I felt like the world was eating me up," she said. "My doctors were really good, as soon as it happened, they changed my medication, it wasn't having the same effect as before.

"I had to go on very short course of strong anxiety medication, I couldn't leave the house without having a panic attack. I also had a six-week course of CBT [cognitive behavioural therapy]."

With support from a family member within the police service, Amy pursued a prosecution, providing about 90 pieces of photographic evidence of different messages sent by the man.

He ultimately pleaded guilty to two counts of harassment, in relation to both Amy and her mother, and was sentenced to a 12-month community order and subjected to a restraining order.

Amy was signposted to the charity Refuge, which drew her attention to the phenomenon of "tech abuse" - domestic abuse facilitated in part by technology.

She worked with the charity to develop a new website aimed at helping women improve their tech security and raise awareness over the signs of tech abuse.

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'It was so terrifying': one woman's experience of 'tech abuse'

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Amy Aldworth went on a date with a banker she met through an app and she thought it had gone well after both agreed to meet again. But before the second date happened, she received an unusual message from the man, whom she has asked the Guardian not to name, insinuating she had given him a sexually transmitted disease.

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ETF: 'It doesn't have to be this way' resource

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ETF: 'It doesn't have to be this way' resource

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NB

SEND focus

Not being kept up to date.

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t first the girl is animated and fast-talking, gesturing with her hands as she speaks to the camera. She's wearing a tie-dye shirt that hangs cavernously around her thin frame; her long blond hair is stick straight. She speaks with the unrestrained enthusiasm of a kid. Later, I learn that she is 18. When the man approaches her, just out of frame, at first she thinks he just wants to take one of the empty chairs that is at her table and drag it away somewhere else; she's in the courtyard of the motel where she's staying with her mom, and she's sitting at one of the outdoor tables alone. But he doesn't want to take the chair, he wants to sit down in it. The man never enters the frame, but we can tell he is older, and he must be much bigger than she is: the girl, still seated, cranes her face to look up at him. The calm confidence behind her large glasses snuffs out; her shoulders tense up, rising toward her ears. He's trying to sleep with her. Off camera, the man can be heard commenting on the girl's visible discomfort. "I see your hesitancy," he says. On the screen, the caption the girl eventually added to the video reveals that she has given him a fake name. Eventually, she reveals to him that she is taping. "I'm just doing a live and talking to some people," she says, and glances towards her phone. That's when he finally leaves her alone: not when he notices that she's uncomfortable, but when he realizes that he is being watched.

The video (in two parts), posted to TikTok by the teenage user @maassassin_, immediately goes viral. Women, young and old, saw in the exchange a microcosm of their own experiences of being young girls, and of being approached, harassed, groomed or merely leered at by older men in ways that scared them at the time, and which they only later learned to put into context. The video blasted into the public consciousness on the heels of two high-profile cases of sexual misconduct by adult men towards teenage girls: first that of the Florida congressman Matt Gaetz, who allegedly paid a 17-year-old for sex, and second that of Blake Bailey, the Philip Roth biographer who is accused of paying untoward attention towards his middle school students, and of sexually assaulting some of those students, as well as another woman, after they became adults. Gaetz and Bailey both deny wrongdoing.

The incidents have prompted a miniature reckoning, with women reflecting on how much of their teenage years were spent navigating the sexual attentions of men many years their senior - and what it means when teenage girls' experiences of male mentorship, early romance, and their own emerging adulthood is filtered so heavily through the lens of male desire and power imbalance.

Those early experiences of male sexual aggression are maybe one of the most reliable rites of passage for female children

Male attention creeps in at the edges of a young girl's consciousness before she quite knows what it means. For my own part, I have a vivid memory of my mother dragging me out of a corner store after a man had been following me up and down the aisles; I was maybe 12. Before that, a different man once approached me in a bookstore, where I was hunched over a book about a girl wizard, and asked if I wanted to take a walk with him. I was nine. Neither of these men had been confused about my age: once I had been accompanied by my mother, the other time I was sitting in the children's section of a bookstore. Like the girl in the TikTok video, my youth wasn't a deterrent to their sexual attention, but rather part of its appeal: it signaled ignorance, naivety and insecurity, the kinds of things that men like in women because they make us easier to control. By my teens, comments and approaches from grown men had become a regular condition of being in public. Now, in my 30s, I have long since aged out of the demographic whose appeal to these men is extreme youth, but I still can't always leave my house on a sunny day without a male stranger informing me that I have a big ass.

Those early experiences of male sexual aggression are maybe one of the most reliable rites of passage for female children. It's more common than any of the other rituals that signal impending adulthood, more universal than the bat mitzvahs, or quinceañeras, or sweet sixteen parties, or proms. By the time a girl reaches any of these milestones, she has likely already developed a skill set for navigating the unwanted attention of adult men, and started to learn the delicate balance of signaling their own lack of interest, or of curtailing men's interest, without escalating. Sometimes mothers will speak to their daughters about these incidents and how to defuse them, but more often girls are told to understand the approaches as flattering, or left to navigate them with little more than their own instincts and the commiseration of their similarly young and confused friends.

The message that all of this sends to young girls is that womanhood is a state that consists largely of receiving unsolicited male attention, much of it benign but much of it threatening, exploitative or hostile, and that their ownership over their own bodies, their ability to peacefully occupy public space, and their right to be perceived as the children that they are can all be abridged by the whims of a man's desire. When the Florida politician Joel Greenberg discovered that one of the women he and Congressman Matt Gaetz were allegedly paying for sex was not a woman but a girl at 17 years old, Greenberg, according to reporting by the Daily Beast, told the girl that she was at fault. "She apologized and recognized that by lying about her age, she endangered many people," Greenberg wrote. This, too, is one of the surest signs that a girl is becoming a woman: suddenly, she finds herself being held responsible for men's actions.

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For too many girls, teenage years are a time of unwanted attention from older men | Moira Donegan

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t first the girl is animated and fast-talking, gesturing with her hands as she speaks to the camera. She's wearing a tie-dye shirt that hangs cavernously around her thin frame; her long blond hair is stick straight. She speaks with the unrestrained enthusiasm of a kid. Later, I learn that she is 18.

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Now the conversation has started it must continue: Eradicating sexual harassment in schools and colleges

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#EveryonesInvited: Now the conversation has started it must continue if society is to work together to eradicate sexual harassment in schools and colleges

Concerns of the existence of a rape culture in schools, colleges and universities have dominated the headlines. This media onslaught was stimulated by publication of thousands anonymous online testimonies, in which young people (mostly female) have detailed their accounts of their sexual harassment, abuse and assault that they suffered whilst at school or college. It has led to alarm that schools have in the past (and are still) failing to safeguard young people, in particular girls and young women in their care.

The testimonies are published on the website, " Everyone's Invited ", which is an online movement aimed at 'exposing and eradicating rape culture'.

The movement follows on from where the #MeToo Campaign left off and has gathered momentum in the weeks following the kidnap and murder of Sarah Everard that sparked vigils across England leading to increased conversations around female safety.

Some of the named establishments have responded by saying they will take any allegations made ' very seriously' and will investigate ' fully any specific allegations'. Too little too late for those who suffered sexual harassment because the culture was left embedded and unchallenged.

The website in particular raises the concern that some behaviours like 'upskirting' or the nonconsensual sharing of intimate photos have been normalized in some schools and universities with the movement providing resources for those concerned to write to those establishments, asking them to address the rape cultures they are tolerating.

The Met Police have confirmed they are reviewing the content of the published testimonies and have begun the process of contacting those schools, colleges and universities it can identify. It is understood that the police have directly received a number of reports of specific offences which it is investigating, with 'Everyone's Invited' providing on their website, information on how to report a crime.

There have been calls for an independent inquiry into the safeguarding of children within schools. An imminent statement from the Government is anticipated.

Schools and colleges have a statutory duty to safeguard and promote the welfare of the children at their school or college and are required to have regard to guidance issued by the Secretary of State.

The starting point is the ' Keeping Children safe in Education statutory guidance ' for schools and colleges that was updated by the Department for Education in January 2021. Schools and colleges in England have regard to it when carrying out their duties to safeguard and promote the welfare of children.

It is to be read in conjunction with the departmental advice on 'sexual violence and sexual harassment between children in schools and colleges', last published in May 2018.
The latter contains some shocking statistics that are borne out by the recent revelations from the testimonies on 'Everyone's Invited':

The Women and Equalities committee (WEC) found a number of large scale surveys find girls consistently reporting high levels of sexual harassment and sexual violence in schools and colleges.

Girlguiding's Girls' Attitudes Survey 2017 found 64% of girls aged 13-21 had experienced sexual violence or sexual harassment at school or college in the past year. This included 39% having their bra strap pulled by a boy and 27% having their skirts pulled up within the last week.

Over a third (37%) of female students and 6% of male students at mixed-sex schools have personally experienced some form of sexual harassment at school.

Almost a quarter (24%) of female students and 4% of male students at mixed-sex schools have been subjected to unwanted physical touching of a sexual nature while at school.

Girls (14%) were significantly more likely than boys (7%) to report that their partner had pressured them to share nude images of themselves in the last year.

Girls are significantly more likely to be victimised with unwanted sexual messages and images from their peers online, with 31% of female respondents aged 13-17 years saying they had experienced this in the last year compared to 11% of male respondents.

The May 2018 guidance is due to be updated in September 2021. The recent revelations arising from the Everyone's Invited site may bring that proposed date for publication forward. The schools that have been identified in the testimonies will now come under enormous scrutiny to ensure that they have not engendering a rape culture through failing to take appropriate action against those who have been suspected of inappropriate and in some instances criminal behavior.

Whether as a result of being unable to address inappropriate sexual behavior or worse, showing an unwillingness to do so, a failure to investigate or take a complaint seriously (whatever the reason) could land the school in troubled waters, not just from a reputation viewpoint. There will likely be increased calls for Ofsted or the Independent Schools Inspectorate to carry out unannounced ad hoc inspections at schools that could result, in a worst case scenario for the school, in closure.

Those responsible for safeguarding in schools (whether state or private) would do well by (re)-reading paragraph five of the May 2018 statutory guidance which highlights what schools and colleges should be aware of the importance of:

making clear that sexual violence and sexual harassment is not acceptable, will never be tolerated and is not an inevitable part of growing up;

not tolerating or dismissing sexual violence or sexual harassment as "banter", "part of growing up", "just having a laugh" or "boys being boys";

challenging behaviour (potentially criminal in nature), such as grabbing bottoms, breasts and genitalia and flicking bras and lifting up skirts. Dismissing or tolerating such behaviours risks normalising them; and

understanding that all of the above can be driven by wider societal factors beyond the school and college, such as everyday sexist stereotypes and everyday sexist language.

Educating young people and their parents should be at the heart of any reform to eradicate the 'rape culture' said to be rife in many of our schools and colleges. With the introduction of compulsory Relationship and Sex Education ("RSE") classes from September 2020, now is a perfect opportunity for open and frank conversations to be had with children to address the challenging topics and sensitive issues raised as a result of the Everyone's Invited testimonies. Rather than addressing the ' birds and the bees' the classes should include a discussion regarding:

healthy and respectful relationships;

what respectful behaviour looks like;

consent;

gender roles, stereotyping, equality;

body confidence and self-esteem;

prejudiced behaviour;

that sexual violence and sexual harassment is always wrong; and

addressing cultures of sexual harassment

The senior Met police officer in charge of the investigation into the rape culture within schools, Detective Superintendent Mel Laremore, has offered to send her officers into schools to teach boys about the law regarding consent. This offer extends to private schools, not just state schools that are part of the Safer Schools Partnership.

Whilst the Met police have reacted strongly to the testimonies of abuse in our schools, it must be careful to ensure that its response does not offer victims false hope or, indeed stigmatise those under suspicion who may never be charged with a criminal offence.

The Met police simply will not have the resources to investigate over 6,000 allegations and will likely seek to follow up on the more serious offences said to have been committed. In addition, some victims, although content and brave to share their experiences on 'Everyone's Invited' may not wish for the matter to be followed up and investigated by the police.

That does not appear to have been the purpose behind the creation of the website, rather the collective responsibility of the community of victims that have come forward ' lies in improving and healing the wounds we have uncovered' and urges its community to '[build] on the mistakes of the past and [work] towards reconciliation and creating a new future '.

Those that do become suspects in police investigations (where there is reasonable suspicion that an offence has been committed) will be interviewed under caution and could spend many months under investigation whilst the police continue to gather evidence and seek advice and guidance from the Crown Prosecution Service. During this time, suspects may not be allowed to return to school and their safety and wellbeing will also need to be managed by the school system.

A difficult time lies ahead for all involved, but the conversation has started and must continue if society is to work together to eradicate what is said to have become the norm.
Edward Grange, Partner at Corker Binning and Jessica Maguire, Legal Assistant at Corker Binning

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Now the conversation has started it must continue: Eradicating sexual harassment in schools and colleges

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EveryonesInvited: Now the conversation has started it must continue if society is to work together to eradicate sexual harassment in schools and colleges Concerns of the existence of a rape culture in schools, colleges and universities have dominated the headlines. This media onslaught was stimulated by publication of thousands anonymous...

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Under-18 marriages 'thriving' in UK and should be banned, say charities

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"Unacceptably, the onus is on the child to secure their own protection under forced marriage law by speaking out against their own family and community, which can have dangerous consequences and understandably many children are too terrified to do," the letter reads.

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Under-18 marriages 'thriving' in UK and should be banned, say charities

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"Unacceptably, the onus is on the child to secure their own protection under forced marriage law by speaking out against their own family and community, which can have dangerous consequences and understandably many children are too terrified to do," the letter reads.

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Prevent and address harassment and sexual misconduct in HE

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In order for students to succeed they need to feel safe, healthy and part of a tolerant, inclusive academic community.

Our universities are places in which diversity - of people, opinions, and beliefs - can and does thrive. But we know that some students still feel unsafe and unsupported during their time in higher education. Too often, students suffer prejudice, discrimination, harassment and violence on account of their race, sexual orientation, gender identity, faith or disability, or are victims of hate crime.

What's the issue

More and more evidence has come to light in the last few years about harassment and sexual misconduct in higher education.

For example:

Published 09 January 2020
Last updated 19 April 2021+ show all updates

Statement of expectations published

Updated to reflect closure on consultation

Consultation paused

Deadline extended to 5 June 2020

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Prevent and address harassment and sexual misconduct

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In order for students to succeed they need to feel safe, healthy and part of a tolerant, inclusive academic community. Our universities are places in which diversity - of people, opinions, and beliefs - can and does thrive. But we know that some students still feel unsafe and unsupported during their time in higher education.

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Ofsted review 2021- schools and colleges

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Ofsted review 2021- schools and colleges

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ToR for Ofsted review of sexual abuse.

Published 7 April 2021

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The government has asked Ofsted to undertake an immediate review of safeguarding policies in state and independent schools and colleges in relation to sexual abuse. The review will look at whether schools and colleges have appropriate processes in place to allow pupils to report sexual abuse concerns freely, knowing these will be taken seriously and dealt with swiftly and appropriately.

It will establish whether there is sufficient guidance for schools and colleges on how they should deal with sexual harassment and violence allegations, and whether they understand and implement guidance well. It will also seek to identify whether current inspection regimes in both state and private schools are strong enough to address concerns and promote the welfare of children.

Ofsted will work with representatives from social care, police, victim support groups, school and college leaders and the Independent Schools Council. The review will conclude by the end of May 2021 and will seek to establish where safeguarding arrangements and processes are good and have worked well and where improvements are needed.

The review will answer the following key questions:

Safeguarding and curriculum

Is the existing safeguarding framework and guidance for inspectors strong enough to properly assess how schools and colleges safeguard and promote the welfare of children?

How can schools and colleges be supported further to successfully deliver the new RSHE (relationships, sex and health education) curriculum, including in teaching about sexual abuse, cyber-bullying and pornography as well as healthy relationships and consent?

Multi-agency safeguarding arrangements

How well are safeguarding guidance and processes understood and working between schools, colleges and local multi-agency partners?

Does working between schools, colleges and local safeguarding partners, including local authority children's social care, the police, health services and other support, need to be strengthened?

Victims' voice and reporting

How does the current system of safeguarding in schools and colleges listen to the voices of children when reporting sexual abuse whether occurring within or outside school?

What prevents children from reporting sexual abuse?

Do victims receive timely and appropriate support from the right place?

Have inspections by ISI (the Independent Schools Inspectorate) and Ofsted been robust enough in relation to the issues raised?

In order to answer these questions, the review will take the following approach:

Ofsted will review a sample of the recently reported evidence of sexual violence and abuse involving pupils.

Ofsted will visit a sample of schools and colleges where cases have been highlighted, with ISI where appropriate, to look at how well safeguarding is working and to discuss the wider issues raised by the evidence.

The review will not report on individual schools or cases, but present a picture of good and poor practice across the country.

The review will include consideration of:

the range, nature, location and severity of allegations and incidents, together with context

the extent of schools'/colleges' (and other agencies' and adults') knowledge of specific incidents and more general problems

schools' safeguarding responses to known incidents and wider social and cultural problems, including:

immediate response to specific incidents, including referrals to safeguarding partners and victim support (and liaison with other schools/colleges, where those involved attend different schools/colleges from abusers)

school/college use of sanctions, and

any factors that have limited any immediate or subsequent response

schools' safeguarding knowledge, culture and effectiveness, including their willingness to function as part of the wider safeguarding system with other partners

the adequacy of school RSE (relationships and sex education)/RSHE/PSHE (personal, social, health and economic) curriculum and teaching

the extent to which recent inspections explored relevant cases and issues

The review will be informed by discussions with members of a reference group that will include victims' representatives, other inspectorates, representatives from health, social care and the police, school and college representatives and relevant experts.

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Ofsted review into sexual abuse in schools: terms of reference

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The government has asked Ofsted to undertake an immediate review of safeguarding policies in state and independent schools and colleges in relation to sexual abuse. The review will look at whether schools and colleges have appropriate processes in place to allow pupils to report sexual abuse concerns freely, knowing these will be taken seriously and dealt with swiftly and appropriately.

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Billie Eilish: Sexual misconduct is everywhere

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Billie Eilish: Sexual misconduct is everywhere

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The singer-songwriter discusses sexual impropriety and body image as she unveils new look in Vogue.

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Billie Eilish: Your Power review – chilling ballad seeps under your skin

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o say that Billie Eilish's forthcoming second album is eagerly-awaited is an understatement. It wasn't just that 2019's triple-Grammy winning When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? was incredibly popular, although it was. Eilish was already a phenomenon among tweenage girls, but its commercial success - it went platinum or multi-platinum in 17 countries - catapulted her into a different sphere of fame, where everyone from Tyler, the Creator to Pete Townshend expressed their approval, Rolling Stone magazine ranked it among the greatest albums of all time and the producers of the James Bond franchise commissioned Eilish to sing the theme to No Time To Die.

What invites quite so much anticipation, though, is that its success clearly impacted on the music industry: you don't have to look too far in 2021 to find Eilish acolytes, hastily signed in an attempt to mimic her success. The question of what the 19-year-old and her brother and co-collaborator Finneas do next - on an album that was apparently hastened by the Covid pandemic and the cancellation of Eilish's world tour - is an intriguing one.

Its presumably ironic title, Happier Than Ever - its recently released cover art features Eilish in tears - suggests the darkly sarcastic mood of When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? will predominate again. But Your Power is a noticeably different song from anything on its predecessor. The themes of When We All Fall Asleep offered teenage angst skilfully whipped up into gothic melodrama: jealousy and heartbreak, self-loathing, worrying about drugs. Your Power's subject matter deals with the considerably darker topic of sexual abuse, coercion and control: an older man, who the lyrics suggest is either a musician or actor - "Will you only feel bad if it turns out they kill your contract?" - preying on a young woman, a situation that's "ruined her in a year". To complicate matters further, the song's protagonist seems to have been subject to his attentions as well: "I thought that I was special, you made me feel like it was my fault."

The music dials down the electronic horror-movie soundtrack approach of Eilish's previous album in favour of something more understated. On the surface, there's nothing to it but an acoustic guitar and Eilish's reverb-drenched voice: the obvious comparison would be Mazzy Star, already a significant influence on latterday pop thanks to Lana Del Rey 's regular repurposing of their sound. Underneath, subtle production touches deepen the track.

Its power lies in Eilish's vocal, which remains gentle and drowsy throughout, no matter how strident the lyrics become in their condemnation: "You were the devil... / how dare you and how could you?" There's something weirdly matter-of-fact about the song's refrain: "Try not to abuse your power," she sings, as if reminding someone to take their house keys with them. Maybe the matter-of-factness is the point - the song's subject shouldn't have to be told this - but the disjunction between the lyrics and the way they are sung gives the song a chilling air, at odds with the prettiness of its tune and the gentle dreaminess of its sound.

It works in a way that the umpteen hectoring message songs that have cropped up in pop over the last few years don't, getting under your skin rather than in your face.

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Billie Eilish: Your Power review - chilling ballad seeps under your skin

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o say that Billie Eilish's forthcoming second album is eagerly-awaited is an understatement. It wasn't just that 2019's triple-Grammy winning When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? was incredibly popular, although it was.

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Billie Eilish - Your Power (Official Music Video)

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Billie Eilish says all her age group have suffered sexual misbehaviour

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Billie Eilish has spoken about the prevalence of sexual exploitation of minors in an interview, saying "it's everywhere".

Speaking about her new single, Your Power, which addresses an abusive relationship between a minor and an older person, the 19-year-old singer said all her peers had experienced some sort of sexual impropriety.

In an interview in the June issue of British Vogue, she said: "[The song is] really not about one person. You might think, 'it's because she's in the music industry', no dude. It's everywhere," she says. "I don't know one girl or woman who hasn't had a weird experience or a really bad experience. And men too - young boys are taken advantage of constantly."

She adds: "It doesn't matter who you are, what your life is, your situation, who you surround yourself with, how strong you are, how smart you are. You can always be taken advantage of. That's a big problem in the world of domestic abuse or statutory rape - girls that were very confident and strong-willed finding themselves in situations where they're like, 'oh my god, I'm the victim here?' And it's so embarrassing and humiliating and demoralising to be in that position of thinking you know so much and then you realise, I'm being abused right now."

Billy Eilish on the cover of Vogue's June issue. Photograph: Craig McDean/Vogue/Conde Nast

In the interview Eilish also spoke about body positivity. The singer, who is known for her baggy clothes and covered-up style, appears on the cover wearing a custom Gucci corset and skirt with an Agent Provocateur bra, accessorised with latex gloves. The shoot, which was Eilish's idea, was inspired by classic pinups like Betty Brosmer and the photographs of Elmer Batters, which featured models in stockings.

"Showing your body and showing your skin - or not - should not take away any respect from you," she said. "It's all about what makes you feel good. If you want to get surgery, go get surgery. If you want to wear a dress that somebody thinks that you look too big wearing, fuck it. If you feel like you look good, you look good."

On Instagram, the singer wrote: "I love these pictures and I loved doing this shoot. Do whatever you want whenever you want."

In a 2019 advert for Calvin Klein, Eilish explained her signature baggy clothing style. "I never want the world to know everything about me," she said, "I mean that's why I wear big, baggy clothes. Nobody can have an opinion because they haven't seen what's underneath, you know? Nobody can be like, 'oh she's slim-thick, she's got a flat ass, she's got a fat ass,' No one can say any of that because they don't know."

The headline of this article was amended on 3 May 2021 to better reflect the text of the story.

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Billie Eilish: abuse of minors is 'everywhere'

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Billie Eilish has spoken about the prevalence of sexual exploitation of minors in an interview, saying "it's everywhere". Speaking about her new single, Your Power, which addresses an abusive relationship between a minor and an older person, the 19-year-old singer said all her peers had experienced some sort of sexual impropriety.

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The woman painting the female victims of violence

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Illustrator and political cartoonist Henny Beaumont is painting portraits of women who died in violent circumstances in the last year.

She came up with the idea after hearing Labour's shadow domestic violence minister Jess Phillips MP read out the names of 118 women and girls killed in the UK since 2020's International Women's Day, where a man has been charged or convicted as the primary perpetrator.

Between 2009 and 2018, 1,425 women were killed by men in the UK, according to the Femicide Census. Beaumont hopes the portraits push focus away from the women's deaths and act as a lasting memorial, something their families can treasure.
Video produced by Paul Murphy-Kasp & Sonja Jessup
If you've been affected by any issues in this story, you can find support at BBC Action Line.
This video has been optimised for mobile viewing on the BBC News app. The BBC News app is available from the Apple App Store for iPhone and Google Play Store for Android.

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The woman painting the female victims of violence

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Illustrator and political cartoonist Henny Beaumont is painting portraits of women who died in violent circumstances in the last year. She came up with the idea after hearing Labour's shadow domestic violence minister Jess Phillips MP read out the names of 118 women and girls killed in the UK since 2020's International Women's Day, where a man has been charged or convicted as the primary perpetrator.

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My 13-year-old daughter was catcalled in the street after school. Here’s what I’m going to do about it - The Independent

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My 13-year-old daughter was catcalled in the street after school. Here's what I'm going to do about it - The Independent

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My daughter felt 'dirty' and 'worried' after being inappropriately heckled in the street - we need to make sure we educate everyone that this behaviour is not OK and needs to be called out at every opportunity

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Join Dr Jessica Taylor and Jaimi Shrive for the online launch and discussion of findings from our new study: 'I thought it was just a part of life' Understanding the Scale of Violence Committed in the UK Against Women Since Birth.

The first 500 tickets for the launch discussion are free, after which they are available for a donation of any amount.

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Women's Experiences of Violence and Abuse - VictimFocus Study

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Join Dr Jessica Taylor and Jaimi Shrive for the online launch and discussion of findings from our new study: 'I thought it was just a part of life' Understanding the Scale of Violence Committed in the UK Against Women Since Birth.

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We urge you to read through every story, all of which can be found here:

https://www.everyonesinvited.uk/survivor-testimonies
Yours sincerely,

“X”

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"The following letter concerns the perpetuation of rape culture in (a movement committed to exposing rape culture) began sharing her personal experience of rape culture online. Immediately, she received a number of messages not only from those who felt that her experiences strongly resonated with their own, but also those who detailed their own stories of sexism, abuse and assault. Within a week she received and shared over 300 anonymous responses, reaching almost 9,000 people on Instagram. These stories relate to the experiences of many who attended school revealing the urgent need to tackle this issue. On the 8th March 2021 re-invited their community to submit testimonies. They have since collected over 2000 Testimonies and reached 46.5k accounts on Instagram.

Rape culture exists when the prevailing social attitudes within a society or environment serve to normalise and trivialise sexual violence. On the 24th of June Soma Sara, founder of @everyonesinvited

In order to tackle sexual violence and safeguard the rights and well-being of all young people, we recommend the following:
@everyonesinvited
We urge you to read through every story, all of which can be found here:
https://www.everyonesinvited.uk/survivor-testimonies

Commit to an attentive approach towards the new Relationships and Sex Education curriculum (RSE) that is being introduced in September 2020. We recognise that the new RSE is much more comprehensive than the old curriculum, however, schools should ensure that the requirement to educate students on consent is emphasised.

The phrase 'Rape Culture' is not included within the RSE. It is vital that this phrase is defined, explained and taught to students.

Sex education should be a scheduled, compulsory lesson conducted on a weekly basis. These classes should take place through the duration of the student's time at the school.

These classes be auditorium style lectures where students are less inclined to ask questions or attend, but should be smaller in order to facilitate an open dialogue between students. Students must be encouraged to actively engage in these topics rather than passively consume them.

Students should be encouraged to perform extracurricular activities such as watching educational films and TV shows.

Develop and adopt a zero tolerance policy in consultation with staff and students.

This should outline a commitment to tackling behaviours that foster the prevalence of rape culture.

It should also outline disciplinary proceedings for misogyny, sexism, harassment, abuse and assault.

Appoint trained members of staff as guidance counsellors that students can approach with these issues. If students have been victim to sexual harassment, assault or abuse they should have immediate access to support and information. If students feel that they have been guilty of misogynistic attitudes in the past they should be allowed the opportunity for reform and growth through guidance and consultation.

Newly appointed trained staff should also be involved in the disciplinary proceedings of toxic behaviours that facilitate rape culture

Collaborate With Sex Ed Organisations
Create and nurture relationships with local sex ed organisations that offer workshops and support from trained volunteers.

Increase Female Representation

Increase female representation in staff in both academic and pastoral roles. It is vital that students have female figures of authority in their lives.

Increase transparency in staff gender balance. This information should be published for public viewing online.

We hope that you share our concerns on this issue and will commit to taking immediate action to bring about positive change.

Yours sincerely,

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Write to Your School - Everyone's Invited - Untitled

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"The following letter concerns the perpetuation of rape culture in (a movement committed to exposing rape culture) began sharing her personal experience of rape culture online. Immediately, she received a number of messages not only from those who felt that her experiences strongly resonated with their own, but also those who detailed their own stories of sexism, abuse and assault.

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Managing Peer-on-Peer Abuse in Your School

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Created by child protection experts with over 100 years' combined experience, MyConcern is a secure and robust reporting tool for the recording and management of all safeguarding concerns. Suitable for all education establishments and already used by thousands of schools and colleges in the UK and overseas, it enables you to spot trends and proactively prevent issues from escalating and efficiently manage incidents of peer-on-peer sexual abuse.

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‘Sexual predator’: actor Noel Clarke accused of groping, harassment and bullying by 20 women

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hen Noel Clarke appeared on stage at the Royal Albert Hall on 10 April to collect his Bafta, the typically self-assured actor looked a little on edge. Viewers might have concluded that Clarke was simply overwhelmed: he was clutching one of the most prestigious accolades bestowed by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, the prize for Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema.

Yet there were other reasons why Clarke - and Bafta - may have felt preoccupied.

Thirteen days before presenting Clarke with his award, a Guardian investigation can reveal, Bafta was informed about the existence of several allegations of verbal abuse, bullying and sexual harassment against Clarke.

Bafta does not dispute it received anonymous emails and reports of allegations via intermediaries, but said it was provided with no evidence that would allow it to investigate.

Clarke also became aware of the allegations, which he vehemently denies. As he stepped off the stage holding his gong, Clarke's reputation remained publicly unblemished; not just as an actor, producer, screenwriter and director, but one who could now claim to be one of British film and television's most lauded stars.

Yet Bafta's decision to venerate Clarke moved numerous women to break their silence. They allege Clarke is a serial abuser of women, using his power in the industry to prey on and harass female colleagues, and sometimes bully those who fall out of favour.

The Guardian has spoken to 20women, all of whom knew Clarke in a professional capacity. They variously accuse him of sexual harassment, unwanted touching or groping, sexually inappropriate behaviour and comments on set, professional misconduct, taking and sharing sexually explicit pictures and videos without consent, and bullying between 2004 and 2019.

Clarke said in a statement: "In a 20-year career, I have put inclusivity and diversity at the forefront of my work and never had a complaint made against me. If anyone who has worked with me has ever felt uncomfortable or disrespected, I sincerely apologise. I vehemently deny any sexual misconduct or wrongdoing and intend to defend myself against these false allegations."

Through his lawyers, Clarke categorically denied every allegation that the Guardian put to him, bar one, accepting he once made inappropriate comments about one woman, for which he later apologised, but denying the rest of her complaints. In a 29-page letter, his lawyers said he categorically denies all of the other allegations, from all 20 women, in some cases questioning their credibility. They deny their client is a serial sexual predator.

Bafta confirmed in a statement that, following its 29 March announcement that it planned to give Clarke the award, it received "anonymous emails and reports of allegations via intermediaries, but no evidence was provided".Lawyers for Bafta said the charity had no duty to investigate Clarke, but, in any case, it was never given any information to enable it to do so and at no stage was it in a position where it could even begin to consider investigating.

"We take this matter extremely seriously," Bafta added. "We encouraged the people who contacted us to report the matter to the appropriate authorities and also engaged an independent victim support expert to provide them with professional advice, and that support remains in place.

"We will continue to review this matter, and should any allegations be substantiated we will take appropriate action."

After this article was published, Bafta updated its statement. "In light of the Guardian's piece, which for Bafta provided for the first time detailed accounts outlining serious allegations regarding Noel Clarke's conduct, we have immediately suspended the award and Noel Clarke's membership of Bafta until further notice."

Prolific and influential film-maker

Clarke is one of the most prolific actors and film-makers in the UK. His trio of films Kidulthood (2006), Adulthood (2008) and Brotherhood(2016) were celebrated for their portrayal of inner-city life and grossed £8.6m.

Clarke writes, executive produces and stars alongside Ashley Walters in Bulletproof, one of Sky's biggest shows; series 4 is in pre-production. His company, Unstoppable Film & Television, has produced more than 10 films, in addition to Bulletproof and the Channel 5 drama The Drowning. He is on Bafta's influential film committee and is a mentor for ITV, bringing him into contact with young, aspiring screenwriters. Only this week, Clarke has been starring in ITV's new flagship prime time drama, Viewpoint, airing each evening from Monday to Friday.

Gina Powell worked for Clarke as a producer between September 2014 and March 2017, producing Brotherhood.She told the Guardian that Clarke would constantly harass her, on one occasion telling her that, when he hired her, he had planned "to fuck her and fire her" before deciding to keep her on. She also alleges that Clarke would brag about storing sexually explicit pictures and videos on his hard drive, including footage he told her he had secretly filmed during naked auditions.

Powell says Clarke once showed her a secretly recorded video of one such audition with Jahannah James, an actor in Brotherhood. Powell told four people about Clarke's alleged secret filming, all of whom confirmed the conversation to the Guardian. They include James, her friend, whom she told about the incident in the winter of 2017, in a pub in south London. The naked audition had taken place more than four years previously, for the film Legacy. Powell was able to describe the exact haircut James had at that time - her hair is usually long and blond, but after a "hair disaster" she had cropped it short and returned to her natural brown.

James recalls Clarke had talked her into auditioning for the role. She had been hesitant. She was only 23 and fresh out of drama school. But Clarke persuaded her, explaining that the naked audition wouldn't be filmed; an email from her agent confirmed this agreement. "I was told 100% it was not going to be on camera," James says. As she understood it, the naked audition was purely to check she could do the scene and wasn't going to "bottle it" on the day.

The audition was mortifying, James recalls, and afterwards she pulled out of the running for the role; she didn't want one of her first acting jobs to be nude. The Guardian spoke to two friends of Powell and James who were also present in the pub that day and recalled the emotional exchange. "I was so upset," James recalls. "Now, years later, I still cry when I talk about it."

Clarke denies ever covertly filming naked auditions or sharing such footage with Powell. A casting director who was present at James's audition said there was "absolutely no way" Clarke would have covertly filmed it, even without her knowledge. "He's always been a good guy," she said.

The Guardian also contacted others who worked with Clarke who either declined to comment or spoke positively of him. They include a makeup artist who said she had had "a really great working relationship with Noel" on the projects they had worked on together, and an actor who said suggestions of misconduct did not tally with her experiences of Clarke, whom she described as "generous and supportive".

Others said Clarke was supportive of fellow actors, but at times sought to exploit those relationships.

Clarke helped James get into drama school, when she was 22, and secured a discount on her fees. After she finished, in the summer of 2012, she says, Clarke joked about going upstairs to have sex in a hotel where they were meeting. She believes she and other alleged victims were "young and naive" when Clarke gave them professional opportunities and "that's why this has taken so long to come out".

Powell and James were initially reticent about making public accusations against a man they believe wields considerable power in their industry.

Despite this, Powell and James, and several of the women the Guardian spoke to, have agreed to go on the record with their real names, hoping that doing so will ensure they are believed. Others, including well-known actors, wish to remain anonymous - their pseudonyms are marked with an asterisk. The women work at almost every level of the film-making hierarchy and represent a range of races and ethnicities.

"I want people to know, because I hate the idea that he can secretly film young actresses - who have no idea that they're not supposed to be getting naked in auditions - and go on to get a Bafta," says James.

According to numerous accounts, Clarke showed colleagues sexually explicit photos and videos of women, or implied he had access to them. He is also accused of unsolicited sharing of sexually explicit images.

Through his lawyers, Clarke denied in the strongest possible terms that he ever sexually harassed or bullied Powell, or treated her in the way she alleges. They said Clarke does not have a hard drive containing naked photographs of women and denies covertly filming naked auditions, including one of James, or showing such footage to Powell. They described such allegations as false and defamatory.

The Norwegian film producer Synne Seltveit met Clarke in July 2015. She is friends with Powell from film school. Powell introduced her to Clarke at the private members' club Soho House in London, where Unstoppable held business meetings. Clarke and a friend had VIP tickets to a UFC mixed martial arts fight in Glasgow and invited Powell and Seltveit. At the afterparty, Seltveit says, Clarke smacked her buttocks. "I didn't like that," she says.

On 23 July 2015, Seltveit sent an email from her production company account, thanking him for the weekend and expressing an interest in working with him one day. Clarke replied, from his Unstoppable account. "Great meeting you," he said. "Would love to work with you one day." A second email arrived. "Also. Sent you some Snapchats. Have a look." When Seltveit checked Snapchat, Clarke had sent her a picture of a naked, erect penis.

Clarke denies he slapped Seltveit's backside and said he did not recall sending her an unsolicited picture of his penis. His lawyers said it was "highly unlikely" that Clarke would have shared such an image. Seltveit showed the Guardian a copy of the "dick pic", which was labelled as having been shared with her by Clarke.

Another woman to accuse Clarke of inappropriate sharing of images is Ieva Sabaliauskaite, a production assistant on Brotherhood. At the wrapparty on 21 December 2015, Sabaliauskaite was on the dancefloor, showing colleagues her abilities as a former gymnast, including doing the splits. The next day, Sabaliauskaite saw Clarke in the production office, surrounded by a group of people. "They were sniggering and looking at me," she says.

Sabaliauskaite says Clarke was showing them a photo he had taken of her in a compromising position, her underwear visible. Three other witnesses told the Guardian they recalled Clarke boasting about his photograph of Sabaliauskaite. Sabaliauskaite says she remembers the image of her knickers on Clarke's phone so clearly that she "could draw it". She recalls feeling mortified: "It's kind of a massive humiliation."

She instinctively lunged for Clarke's phone; the phone dropped, breaking the screen. "He was angry," she recalls. Sabaliauskaite says she took the phone containing the photo he had taken of her, a junior employee, to a repair shop to get it fixed. "It was the final act of humiliation," she says. Clarke's lawyers stressed the photograph was of Sabaliauskaite publicly doing the splits in the middle of the dancefloor and that it was not taken "up her skirt", adding that many people present at the party would confirm this. Clarke, they added, had later merely "joked" about showing the image to colleagues. They confirmed Clarke asked Sabaliauskaite to fix the screen, saying she was "a production runner and such a task was part of her job".

Allegations of unwanted sexual contact

Several women also allege that Clarke would at times subject them to unwanted physical contact, kissing them, groping them or subjecting them to unsolicited sexual behaviour. They include Powell, who has given the Guardian detailed accounts of events she alleges took place during a work trip with Clarke to Los Angeles in August 2015. On one occasion, she says, Clarke exposed himself in a car.She recalls telling him: "Noel, that's not right."

The next day, Powell says Clarke took her for lunch and scolded her. "He told me I made him feel like an old man." After lunch, Clarke and Powell headed to a business meeting. Alone in a lift, Powell says she was groped by her boss, who told her he had got "what he was owed". Powell recalls pushing him away: "I said: "'That's so not on.'"

Clarke's lawyers strongly denied Powell's account of the alleged incidents in LA. They accused her of being flirtatious and suggestive toward him.

Leila*, a crew member on a film that Clarke acted in and produced, told the Guardian of a similar incident involving being subjected to an unwanted sexual contact from Clarke, which she alleges took place in a storage room on set. "He is a bully as well as a sexual predator," she says. Clarke's lawyers said it was impossible for him to respond in any detail to the allegation because of the lack of details provided, but that he strongly denies the allegation.

Leila says she didn't feel she could report the incident to anyone on set, because Clarke was a producer, although she confided in her boyfriend about the incident in 2018. (The Guardian has spoken with Leila's boyfriend, who remembers their conversation.) "It affects how you see yourself professionally," Leila says. "It feels so frightening to think I'd been used by someone who could see that I was vulnerable."

In 2004, Mel* acted in Clarke's debut feature film, Kidulthood. She was a teenager when she auditioned and was intimidated by Clarke, who was a decade older than her. "He was an older man and he wrote the script," she explains. One day near the start of filming, she alleges, he "put his tongue in my mouth". After that, she says, the sexual harassment was constant. Mel says Clarke would grab her as she walked past on set, touch her waist and try to kiss her. She says she didn't feel she could say anything, as Kidulthoodwas Clarke's film. "It's upsetting for me to realise how fucking vulnerable and inexperienced I was at that age," says Mel. "I was too scared to say anything." Clarke strongly denies he sexually harassed or groped anyone on the set of Kidulthood.

When Clarke started putting together Adulthood, which was filmedin 2007, he asked Mel to appear in the sequel. "I read the script and there was quite a full-on sex scene with Noel," says Mel. Due to Clarke's history of sexually harassing her, Mel says, she didn't feel safe filming a sex scene with him. When she refused to do the scene, she says, Clarke threatened her career. "He said: 'You'll never work again.'" She describes Clarke as a "sexual predator", adding that he "is toxic and hiding in plain sight". Clarke denies such a characterisation andmaking any such threat.

In summer 2008, the assistantfilm director Anna Avramenko was an intern on the film Doghouse. Clarke was appearing in the film and approached her on set: "He started trying to kiss me on the lips, in front of everyone." She says she made it clear to Clarke that she did not want him to kiss her, turning her cheek and telling him she had a boyfriend. "He probably tried it like three to five times with me, maybe more," she says. Clarke strongly denies the allegations.

Clarke's alleged harassment involved women who worked in all kinds of roles: from intern to actor to art director or producer. Becky* worked as a crew member on a film Clarke made in 2011. One day, she alleges, Clarke pinned her against the wall of his dressing room. "I made a split-second decision that 'being one of the boys' was the best way to get out of the situation, so I laughed it off and wriggled free," she says. "But it made me very uncomfortable and it was not acceptable." Clarke's lawyers said it was impossible for him to respond in any detail to this allegation, given the lack of details provided, but that he strongly denies the allegation.

Allegations of sexual harassment

People who have worked with Clarke describe him as someone who will use his power as a director, writer and producer to target female co-stars and crew, sometimes - they allege - introducing himself to female colleagues by telling them he is a sex addict.Clarke's lawyers dispute the characterisation of their client as a powerful figure in the industry, saying he worked his way up in the industry and was never in a position of complete autonomy and authority.

The actor and screenwriter Jing Lusi, who has starred in Crazy Rich Asiansand Gangs of London, worked with Clarke on the film SAS: Red Notice, shot in Budapest in 2018. Clarke invited Lusi for dinner on 27 November 2018. During the meal, Clarke summoned the waiter for the cheque before Lusi had finished eating. She asked what the hurry was. According to Lusi, Clarke said that he wanted them to go to his place to have sex. She recalls laughing in disbelief. "He said he couldn't help it: 'It's how you make me feel, I just really want to,'" she says. "Really laying it on thick and grossly and quite explicitly."

According to Lusi's account, when she made it clear she would not have sex with Clarke, his demeanour changed. Lusi says: "After he realised that it was not going to happen, he then absolutely without any emotion [said]: 'All right, fine, don't tell anyone about this, yeah? 'Cause if you do, it will get back to me, I will find out.'"

The next morning, Clarke sent her an emoji of a person with their finger to their lips, which she took as an indication that she should not tell anyone about his inappropriate behaviour. But Lusi did tell friends and others how disturbed she was by the incident. A friend she contacted three days afterwards recalls: "She messaged me and said: 'Dude I've been #MeTooed at work by another actor and then sworn to secrecy and threatened.'"

"I told everyone at the time, because I didn't want Noel to think he could do that to me, or anyone else," says Lusi. "You can't just harass someone and silence them. I couldn't do something about being sexually harassed, but he couldn't stop me speaking out about it." Clarke strongly denies he either harassed or threatened Lusi into silence. His lawyers described events at the dinner as consensual flirting and said the emoji related to Clarke keeping silent about their dinner because Lusi "did not want people to know".

On 14 January 2019, Lusi bumped into Clarke's publicist, Emily Hargreaves of Multitude Media, at a screening of the TV series Pure at Bafta. Lusi recalls: "I said to Emily: 'You represent Noel. He sexually harassed me and threatened me.'" The next day, Lusi messaged Hargreaves, suggesting they go for a coffee. Hargreaves did not take up the offer. Lawyers for Multitude Media said Hargreaves "does not recollect" Lusi informing her of allegations about Clarke.

However, the lawyers said that, over the weekend Clarke was awarded the Bafta, Hargreaves was contacted by a client, an actor, who made direct allegations against Clarke. Hargreaves took appropriate action, they added, including steps to support her client. They said Hargreaves suspended representation of Clarke on 11 April, pending an investigation. She formally "terminated" her relationship with Clarke on Tuesday.

Several other actors who appeared alongside Clarke allege he repeatedly sexually harassed them during filming. So, too, do female colleagues in other roles. Chantal* worked with Clarke in the costume department of a project he was acting in and also producing. It is industry standard for actors to get dressed in trailers on set, but Clarke, she says, insisted on changing in his hotel room. "Because he was the producer it was not really questioned," says Chantal.

Every morning, Chantal had to bring Clarke's costume to his hotel. "I felt uneasy," she says. She would normally leave the room when talent was getting dressed, unless a costume was particularly difficult to get into; Clarke's was easy to put on, but he insisted she remain in the room as he changed. "He would say: 'You stay here,'" she says. "I never said: 'Oh no, I'm going to go.' Because he kept reminding me he was the producer. It would always be like: do you know who I am?"

As Clarke got changed, she says, he would leer at her. "He would say I had a really nice body and that, if he hadn't married his wife, I would have been ideal." Clarke would sit next to her on set, talking about how she looked "and how amazing I am", she says, "and how he could make my career. And then he would touch my knee."

Chantal called her mother, stressed and upset. "I know my daughter, and I know her voice, and I could feel she was really deeply concerned," her mother says of the phone call.

Clarke denies all of Chantal's allegations; his lawyers said he could not recall getting changed in a hotel room and asking someone to stay.

Sex scenes

Clarke often writes explicit sex scenes and stars in them himself. Critics have taken issue with the gratuitous female nudity in his films and TV shows, naked women often appearing as little more than set dressing. The opening scenes of 4.3.2.1feature an upskirt shot of a young woman; in Legacy, which Clarke produced, one of the female leads is fully nude for most of her time on screen.

Helen Atherton was an art director on Brotherhood and alleges that Clarke violated industry norms for the ethical filming of sex or nude scenes. Clarke's production teamhired strippers to perform some scenes, instead of professional actors who, Atherton says, would be aware of industry-standard protocols during shoots involving nudity.

When actors are unclothed, monitors should be kept on to a minimum - with just the director, producer, costume and makeup crew watching. During filming of at least one nude scene in Brotherhood, Atherton says, the actors did not feel protected.

"There were about 10 random people behind me, watching [on monitors]," says Atherton. "It appeared they turned up to watch the naked girls." Atherton felt the female performers were being disrespected. "The duty of care was not there for the girls," she says. Clarke was the film's writer, director, star and producer and was the person directing the scene.

Clarke denies mistreating female actors during sex scenes and insists the set was "closed", with a very limited number of people present.

In a shoot on 1 December 2015, a female extra was straddling a male actor on set. "The camera was right behind her," Atherton recalls. "She was completely naked. And I know for a fact we could never have used that shot, because you could see up her bum hole." The Guardian has spoken to other crew members on Brotherhood who have a similar recollection of the straddling scene. Atherton recalls another actor was asked to play with her naked breasts on camera. "I remember thinking at the time: surely they wouldn't be able to use half the stuff they were filming."

In disgust, Atherton texted her then partner. "Today they had two really unnecessary naked girls, one playing with her boobs and one straddles a bloke and bends over totally naked bum facing camera! It's porn basically! Neither added anything or were needed and they weren't in the script."

Clarke's lawyers said they did not dispute that such a scene had been shot, but said it was in the script and agreed in advance.Informed by the Guardian that there was no reference to a female performer straddling a male performer, or anything that could be interpreted as requiring that, Clarke's lawyers queried which version of the script was being referred to and said there was "a degree of improvisation" that performers and crew were all comfortable with.

They said any shot of an actor's anus caught on camera would "never have intended to be shown" and the set was "closed", with a very limited number of people present. They said the actor playing with her breasts had been improvising and rejected any comparison to pornography.

On set, Atherton says she recalls Clarke showing her naked photographs sent by women to his phone. She, too, accuses him of sexually harassing her on a daily basis during production. She says: "He would make constant comments about my bum and hewould come up to me with his arms stretched, with a little tilt of the head and a coy smile, you know, nodding down to my bum, and saying: 'Come on, come on, give me a hug then.'"

She says she complained to Clarke and her superiors and the misconduct stopped. Clarke's lawyers said he admitted to making comments about Atherton's backside "numerous times" and said he was "embarrassed by such behaviour" and apologised at the time.

In 2018, Kim*, an actor, worked on a production Clarke was starring in and producing. She also recounts behaviour on set she believes was highly inappropriate. During filming, Clarke would stand very close to her on set "and look my body up and down", says Kim. In between takes, Clarke asked Kim if she had ever had a threesome. "I would try and switch topics," says Kim. One day on set, Kim says, Clarke came up behind her and put his arms around her waist, before kissing her neck. "I had to laugh it off," she says. "I felt annoyed at myself." Clarke denies the allegations.

The characters played by Kim and Clarke were scripted to perform a sex scene. When Kim accepted the role, she had been told she would be able to wear underwear, including a bra, during the scene. But in the run-up to filming, she says, Clarke repeatedly pressed her to go topless. "He kept saying: 'It needs to be real.'"

Clarke called her on the phone to put pressure on her, she says. "Every time I saw his number come up, my heart would race and my palms would go sweaty," she recalls. She did not feel comfortable going nude in the sex scene and refused. During filming of the scene, between takes, she says Clarke would stroke her. "If felt like he was hiding in plain sight," she says.

She was distressed throughout the filming of the sex scene, but didn't feel she could say anything, because Clarke was a producer - and therefore her boss. "I had a horrible time," she says. "It was #MeToo shit." Another crew member recalled that "she wanted to wear pants and a bra" and that "Noel was angry about that and wanted her to be nude".

Clarke's lawyers stated the actor requested a change to the scene and said Clarke called her to discuss it. They denied Clarke pressing her to change the scene, which they said was done "the way she wanted it", and denied he stroked her in a sensual way between takes. However, they said Clarke discovered in December 2020 that the actor was "distressed" during the filming of the scene and called her to apologise for commenting on her body, a remark he said was intended to "make her feel better as he knew she was feeling insecure about the scene".

Alleged bullying

Clarke often projects the image of a considerate film-maker, with a strong moral code. He recently tweeted: "Be good, be kind, be respectful." The reality, according to the people the Guardian has spoken to, is that Clarke can be charming, thoughtful and fun - but also intimidating, domineering and scary. The word "bully" comes up repeatedly.

"It was one of my first jobs in film, and I was 23, and I didn't really know anything about the industry ... I let the bullying happen, because I didn't know any different," says Philippa Crabb, a producer and podcaster. "I was so young; I was scared to say something."

In November 2015, Crabb worked as a runner on Brotherhood. Clarke was the lead actor, producer, writer and director. Crabb's job was to drive him to and from work, meaning a lot of time alone with Clarke in the car.

It was just constant, inappropriate comments. He was always trying to steer the conversation towards sex

Philippa Crabb

"It was just constant, inappropriate comments," Crabb says. "He was always trying to steer the conversation towards sex." Clarke secured Crabb a small role. "He said to me: 'So I've got you this nurse's role, what are you going to do for me?' And I was like: 'I am going to act really well in the part.' And he was like: 'No, obviously. But what are you going to do for me?' I didn't know what to say." She adds: "It felt like he took advantage of the fact that he was in a powerful position."

Crabb began to dread their car journeys. One morning, she was 10 minutes late to collect Clarke. Powell was in the back seat. "He literally screamed at us in the car," recalls Crabb. "I was completely in shock. I've never had someone scream at me before." She says she was fearful of Clarke and learned to placate him when he was yelling at her. "He's a scary person," she says. Powell said she could not recall the specifics of the car journey, other than that Clark "yelled" at the runner because she was late. Clarke denies bullying or sexually harassing Crabb, denies he is a scary person and denies shouting at her in the car.

During the filming of Brotherhood, Clarke also allegedly bullied and sexually harassed a young female script supervisor, Megan*.On set, she says Clarke would whisper sexually explicit things in her ear and sit too close to her.

Clarke would also openly bully her, she says. On one occasion, Megan was supervising a scene that was technically very difficult, because it had not been properly rehearsed. Clarke asked Megan where he had been standing in an earlier shot. "I didn't know, because it was chaos," says Megan. She was only 23. "He just started screaming abuse at me, saying: 'Why are you even here then?' It was awful," she says. "And I was just sat there like: OK, don't cry in front of everybody."

The bullying became so severe, she says, that one day she had a panic attack on set. "I remember thinking: it's too small in here, I'm going to have to be pinned in a corner with Noel for the next two hours. I had a huge panic attack; I went blue." An ambulance was called. After paramedics checked Megan over, Crabb drove Megan home. She remembers Megantelling her she had a panic attack because Clarke was being "horrible" to her. "She was really upset," Crabb recalls. Megan didn't return to the production, leaving an industry she loved to work in sales.

Clarke denies sexually harassing or bullying anyone during the production of Brotherhood. He accepts he had a "heated discussion" with Megan over the script, for which he apologised. His lawyers said Clarke confirmed Megan had a panic attack, "but not that it was as a result of anything he did or said".

Powell stopped working for Unstoppable in March 2017. When she parted with the company, she was involved in a dispute with Clarke over £3,000 she says he owed her. Clarke denies Powell was owed the money and his lawyers cited the financial dispute as the reason she was making "false allegations".

She started work at another film company in a development role, but would avoid walking anywhere near the branch of Soho House that Clarke uses for business meetings. The following year, in 2018, Powell says that the years of alleged abuse really hit her. Leaving Unstoppable, Powell says, "was like trying to get out of an abusive relationship".

The Guardian has spoken to Powell's therapist, who confirmed the producer had sought therapy because of the trauma of her experience while working at Unstoppable. Clarke's lawyers said he regrets if Powell feels that way about her work at his production company.

Crabb's experience on Brotherhood was so awful that she quit the industry, moved to Switzerland and worked in a ski resort. "I left the film industry for three years because of him," she says of Clarke. "I only came back a few years ago and started from the bottom again."

James Krishna Floyd, a 2013 Bafta Breakthrough Brit andastar of ITV's The Good Karma Hospital, has been in touch with a number of women who have made allegations against Clarke. He says the industry needs to improve its approach to safeguarding. "For the sake of survivors, our industry must change radically," Krishna Floyd says. "Every organisation with any power or duty of care should start implementing proper, efficient systems to prevent any alleged abuse from happening."

'They still have to prove it'

In recent weeks, after discovering that allegations of sexual misconduct against Clarke had surfaced and been reported to Bafta, and were being investigated by the Guardian, Clarke and his business partner, Jason Maza, contacted people who might know what was going on. At least five people who were contacted allege or say they witnessed sexual misconduct by Clarke. In at least two cases, the Guardian understands those contacted were left in tears.

One recipient of a call from Clarke was James, whom he called on 10 April - the day he received the award. When she returned his repeated calls on 14 April, he asked her who might be behind the allegations. "I just need to get to the bottom of it. But if I can eliminate you ... there's only two suspects left," he said.

He repeatedly asked her not to speak to a Guardian journalist. "I would just ask you if the good times meant anything. Do not speak to this woman [the Guardian journalist] ... Do not entertain it. Just fucking - just please do not, that's all."

Clarke said he had not done the things he was being accused of, adding: "If there's someone that was like a consensual that's changed their mind five years later, well, firstly, that's fucking ridiculous. Secondly, they still have to prove it. And I'm not trying to be that guy that's like: hahaha I'm guilty, prove it. I'm not trying to be that guy. But they still have to prove it."

Before hanging up, Clarke said he would apologise to any women he may have made sexually inappropriate remarks about. "If a bunch of people go: he commented on my bum, or he mentioned my tits, it's like- why do you need to take it this far?" said Clarke. "I'll just say sorry to you. Tell me and I'll be like: I'm so sorry. You're right, I said that, I was wrong."

Maza made similar calls, although Clarke's lawyers said they were not at the request of their client. Maza's lawyers described his calls as approaches to "friends in the industry" after hearing allegations were surfacing about Clarke that were "untrue".

On a call on 10 April to a woman with allegations about Clarke, Maza said he did not want to put pressure on her, but, if the Guardian's article did come out, "that's Unstoppable done, you know, that's me for the short term done".

In a separate phone call to an alleged victim, Maza stated: "I mean, we know Noel 100% has done things where he needs to put his hand up for and he has been inappropriate at times and whatever." Maza's lawyers suggested the remark was not a reference to the allegations women have now come forward with.

In another call, on 11 April, Maza offered a woman an in-person meeting with Clarke, who he said would apologise."If you want that sit down at any point with Noel," he said, "whether it's with lawyers there or me there, whatever you want, for him to apologise, I know he will, he will do that." Clarke, he said, had hired private investigators, adding "the money he's already spent is just insane".

Clarke's lawyer said any admissions made by Maza on the calls do not represent an admission by their client, or evidence the allegations were true. They added the private investigators were hired to find out who was behind anonymous emails making allegations against Clarke.

The following day, 12 April, Maza placed a fourth call, telling a woman that he and Clarke were under the impression the story had "now gone away". He sounded relieved. "Obviously, this article hasn't broken in the Guardian and it won't run in the Guardian now," he said, adding: "As far as we're concerned, the thing has now gone away as much as Noel can do in his power."
Additional reporting by Alex Mistlin

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'Sexual predator': actor Noel Clarke accused of groping, harassment and bullying by 20 women

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hen Noel Clarke appeared on stage at the Royal Albert Hall on 10 April to collect his Bafta, the typically self-assured actor looked a little on edge. Viewers might have concluded that Clarke was simply overwhelmed: he was clutching one of the most prestigious accolades bestowed by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, the prize for Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema.

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Prescribing financial help to my patients has had an incredible effect in our GP surgery - inews

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Prescribing financial help to my patients has had an incredible effect in our GP surgery - inews

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The difference it can make to patients, both mentally and physically, is so rewarding to see

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Students want sexual consent test in university - BBC News

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Students want sexual consent test in university - BBC News

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Most students back an assessment for students to show they "fully understand" consent, says survey.

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IWF's self-generated child sexual abuse prevention campaign launches in April 2021. Our data shows 11-13 year old girls are increasingly at risk of grooming and coercion at the hands of online predators.

In 2020, we confirmed 68,000 cases of self-generated imagery, a rise of 77% on 2019 and self-generated imagery accounts for nearly half (44%) the imagery we took action on last year. In 80% of these cases, the victims were 11- to 13-year-old girls.

Any child, no matter what their background, with unrestricted access to internet-connected devices, is at risk.

The hard-hitting campaign, backed by the UK Home Office and Microsoft, aims to empower girls, and warn their parents and carers about the risks posed by online predators targeting children. Our aim is to build resilience to the threat of self-generated sexual abuse of children, thereby reducing the number of incidences.

We want girls to have an increased awareness of how to respond safely to requests online for self-generated child sexual abuse material; and for parents/carers to have an increased awareness of self-generated child sexual abuse online and feel motivated and equipped to protect their children.

#HomeTruths

As part of the campaign, parents are encouraged to T.A.L.K to their children about the dangers.

Talk to your child about online sexual abuse. Start the conversation - and listen to their concerns.

Agree ground rules about the way you use technology as a family.

Learn about the platforms and apps your child loves. Take an interest in their online life.

Know how to use tools, apps and settings that can help to keep your child safe online.

Help us spread the word and close the door to online child sexual abusers. More info and resources available at talk.iwf.org.uk.

#GurlsOutLoud

We want to help girls recognise the actions that constitute self-generated sexual abuse as abuse and to be empowered to take control by rejecting these requests.

We've created a community for girls to feel supported and empowered and to share this with their friends.
We want them to remember these 3 simple steps to block out child sexual abuse: BLOCK. REPORT. TELL SOMEONE YOU TRUST.

We're here to help girls spot the signs of online sexual abuse, and how to react if it happens. Because child sexual abuse is never the child's fault.

Learn more about the movement at gurlsoutloud.com.

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Sexual abusers have never been so social. Self-generated child sexual abuse prevention campaign

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IWF's self-generated child sexual abuse prevention campaign launches in April 2021. Our data shows 11-13 year old girls are increasingly at risk of grooming and coercion at the hands of online predators. In 2020, we confirmed 68,000 cases of self-generated imagery, a rise of 77% on 2019 and self-generated imagery accounts for nearly half (44%) the imagery we took action on last year.

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Firms told to look out for domestic abuse signs

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Employers "have a duty" to support staff who suffer domestic abuse but few have adequate policies in place, the government says.

It said bosses were in a unique position to help but a "lack of awareness and stigma" held them back.

Calls to domestic abuse services have surged in the pandemic as couples spend more time at home.

Business Minister Paul Scully said employers could be a "bridge between a worker and the support they need".

"It was once taboo to talk about mental health, but now most workplaces have well-established policies in place. We want to see the same happen for domestic abuse, but more quickly and more effectively," he said in an open letter to employers.

Managers and colleagues are often the only other people outside the home that victims talk to each day and so "uniquely placed" to spot signs of abuse, he said.

These include becoming more withdrawn than usual, sudden drops in performance, mentions of controlling or coercive behaviour in partners, or physical signs such as bruising.

Sharing the problem

Employers did not have to become "specialists" in handling domestic abuse, Mr Scully said, but could do more to help, including:

Ensuring staff can spot the signs of a colleague facing domestic abuse so they can respond appropriately and sympathetically

Communicating that they are there to help, and promoting information about support services

Fostering a more open work environment where workers feel able to share problems

And offering practical support such as space and privacy to make calls and arrangements or access to financial help.

Firms already taking action include Vodafone, which offers specialist training to HR and line managers and support for victims including counselling and additional paid leave.

In August, law firm Linklaters strengthened its policies and now offers people who need to flee their home but can't stay with others three nights' accommodation in a hotel.

It also offers the option of paid leave, plus one-off payments of £5,000 to help victims trying to become financially independent.

Domestic violence charity Refuge said it saw an 80% increase in calls to its helpline during the first national lockdown, a trend the government believes has continued.

And in November, 43% of respondents to a survey by charity Surviving Economic Abuse showed an abuser had interfered with someone's ability to work or study from home during the crisis.

Examples included hiding phones or computers, removing wi-fi connections, and phoning an employer claiming a breach of lockdown rules, in an apparent effort to get them sacked.

Domestic abuse isn't a new problem, nor does today's call to businesses apply only during a pandemic.

But coronavirus has highlighted new and existing risks.

For many victims and survivors, work is a place of respite.

Being based at home, or on furlough, can reduce communication with team members, and prevent face-to-face chats with colleagues.

I've heard of employers finding simple yet effective ways of supporting staff during the pandemic.

For example, finding a plausible reason for an employee whose remote communications were being overlooked, to go into the office as a one-off, so they could talk freely and hand over an ID document for safe keeping.

Of course, not every business can afford to offer emergency accommodation or financial support to those in urgent need. But the focus of today's letter is on awareness, using free support and removing stigma.

The charity Surviving Economic Abuse wants the government to go further, and put paid leave for domestic abuse victims into law.

Elizabeth Filkin, who chairs the Employer's Initiative on Domestic Abuse, argues there are real benefits in supporting staff - including around productivity, loyalty and reputation.

'Quiet or tearful'

Employment lawyer Sarah Chilton, a partner at CM Murray, told the BBC that all employers have a duty to protect their staff's health and safety while working from home. That includes if they are being subjected to domestic abuse.

"Where an employee is required to work at home during, for example, the pandemic, the employer should take account of any risk to that person's physical and mental health and safety in the environment in which they work."

Angela Ogilvie, global director of HR at Linklaters, said training was vital to spot signs of abuse, especially now.

"Victims may avoid calls or videos for example. They may become quiet, anxious or tearful, secretive about their home life.

"And it's being conscious of how you start those conversations because they may be overheard, so you may have to switch your conversation to email or text."

Mr Scully said the government would consult on ways to help domestic abuse victims at work, for instance by making it easier to request flexible working.

The government's Domestic Abuse Bill also continues to make its way through parliament.

It will bring into law a statutory definition of domestic abuse that includes coercive or controlling behaviour as well as emotional and economic abuse.

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Firms told to look out for domestic abuse signs

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Employers "have a duty" to support staff who suffer domestic abuse but few have adequate policies in place, the government says. It said bosses were in a unique position to help but a "lack of awareness and stigma" held them back. Calls to domestic abuse services have surged in the pandemic as couples spend more time at home.

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Coronavirus: Domestic abuse an 'epidemic beneath a pandemic'

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A massive increase in appeals for help over the past year from those suffering domestic abuse has exposed the scale of the problem, say campaigners.

Refuge recorded an average of 13,162 calls and messages to its National Domestic Abuse helpline every month between April 2020 and February 2021.

That is up more than 60% on the average number of monthly contacts at the start of 2020, it says.

One campaigner described it as an epidemic beneath a pandemic.

Between January and March 2020, before the first lockdowns in the UK, the charity recorded an average of 8,176 calls and messages per month.

Between April 2020 and February 2021, it logged a total of more than 131,000 such contacts.

Refuge said 72% of these were from women who said they were experiencing violence and abuse, and nearly a fifth said their abuser had threatened to kill them.

It said many calls were from women who were being terrorised in their own homes, and who were afraid to seek treatment for their injuries in case they overburdened hospital staff.

Some were making plans to flee their homes, while others had no home to go to.

Lisa King, the charity's director of communications and external relations, said "home is not a safe place" for women and children experiencing domestic abuse.

"Lockdown measures, where women have been isolated and confined with their perpetrators, have compounded their exposure to violence and abuse," she added.

Refuge said the largest number of calls and contacts had come from women in their 30s.

Many 16- to 25-year-olds, as well as concerned family, friends and neighbours, reached out via the helpline's Live Chat facility - which enables people to communicate with helpline advisors online and, crucially, in silence.

In 2020, Refuge made nearly 4,500 referrals to refuges across the country, enabling women to flee abusive partners.

In January, when the prime minister announced the latest lockdown, he said that escaping domestic abuse was one of the reasons why people would be allowed to leave home.

When the first lockdown was lifted last year, there was an increase in women seeking emergency accommodation. Refuge is preparing for a repeat when the current lockdown ends.

But it also warns that leaving an abuser can be an extremely dangerous time.

Respect, a charity that runs an advice line for male victims of domestic abuse, says it saw a 70% increase in calls, emails and webchats in 2020 compared to 2019. And during the current lockdown, appeals for help have continued to rise.

The most recent figures from the Office for National Statistics show that in the period from March to June 2020 there was a 7% rise in domestic abuse offences recorded by the police in England and Wales.

The latest police figures show that in the four weeks to the middle of January, covering the first two weeks of the latest lockdown, there was a 4% fall in recorded incidents of domestic abuse.

But the National Police Chiefs' Council said not all such incidents would result in a crime being recorded and hidden abuse was not captured in this data.

Charities have always stressed that many victims do not report to the police.

The Home Office said the government had given more than £27m to domestic abuse organisations to help them deal with the effects of the pandemic.

A spokesperson added: "Our landmark Domestic Abuse Bill will bolster the response to domestic abuse on every level, strengthening protections for victims whilst also ensuring perpetrators feel the full force of the law."

Northern Ireland Domestic Abuse 24-hour helpline: 0808 802 1414

Men's Advice Line 0808 801 0327

Online webchats and text services are also available.

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Coronavirus: Domestic abuse an 'epidemic beneath a pandemic'

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A massive increase in appeals for help over the past year from those suffering domestic abuse has exposed the scale of the problem, say campaigners. Refuge recorded an average of 13,162 calls and messages to its National Domestic Abuse helpline every month between April 2020 and February 2021.

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Ex-MP Jared O’Mara sanctioned over sexual harassment complaint

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The former Labour MP Jared O'Mara has been sanctioned by the House of Commons for an "abuse of power" and the sexual harassment of a former staffer, sending her "inappropriate messages and approaches".

Parliament's standards watchdog revoked the former Sheffield Hallam MP's parliamentary pass, which he is entitled to hold as an ex-member. The complaint, made in July 2019, has taken almost two years to result in a sanction and is likely to prompt calls for the process to be made swifter for victims.

O'Mara was elected in 2017, defeating the former Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg, but faced a string of controversies during his time in parliament.

His former employee Jennifer Barnes made a formal complaint with the parliamentary commissioner for standards over O'Mara sending her inappropriate messages, which the commissioner found were in breach of the sexual misconduct policy.

The investigation said she had "felt and was subject to escalating behaviours that constitute sexual harassment" and said it was "abuse of power" by O'Mara.

The former MP, who has cerebral palsy and autism, did not appeal against the decision. The report by the panel found there were "aggravating features, in particular the lack of remorse or insight and the refusal to engage" by O'Mara.

The panel, which is independent, recommended that he be stripped of his pass, a sanction that was accepted by the House of Commons speaker, Lindsay Hoyle.

The panel's chair, Sir Stephen Irwin, said: "The panel makes its decisions guided by the principles of natural justice, fairness for all parties, transparency and proportionality. We understand the seriousness of, and the harm caused by, bullying, harassment and sexual misconduct. We are rigorously independent, impartial and objective, acting without any political input or influence."

Barnes told the Times she had felt intimidated by the messages from O'Mara, who was 17 years her senior. She said messages through various channels were often sent at night, including O'Mara telling her he was in love with her.

O'Mara was suspended from Labour in 2018 after abusive messages he had made on social media resurfaced. He was later reinstated but then resigned from the party saying he had been "made unfairly to feel like a criminal".

The then MP took significant leaves of absence from parliament, which he said was on the advice of doctors, and later announced his intention to quit the Commons, saying he was "not in any fit state to continue and nor would that be appropriate if I was".

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Ex-MP Jared O'Mara sanctioned over sexual harassment complaint

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The former Labour MP Jared O'Mara has been sanctioned by the House of Commons for an "abuse of power" and the sexual harassment of a former staffer, sending her "inappropriate messages and approaches". Parliament's standards watchdog revoked the former Sheffield Hallam MP's parliamentary pass, which he is entitled to hold as an ex-member.

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'Third of girls' harassed in school uniform

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'Third of girls' harassed in school uniform

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One in three girls in the UK has been sexually harassed in public when wearing school uniform, a new report has suggested. And two-thirds of girls say they have experienced unwanted sexual attention in public, it adds. The figures come from a report by children's charity Plan International UK, which said many girls feel street harassment is "all part of growing up".

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India mob attack: Nine arrested for beating up schoolgirls

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India mob attack: Nine arrested for beating up schoolgirls

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Some 34 girls were beaten by a mob in India after they resisted sexual harassment by local boys.

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The red carpet at the 75th Golden Globes was dominated by black outfits, as Hollywood actresses supported the Time's Up movement. But can taking a stand against sexual assault and harassment carry over to Bollywood? Actor Kalki Koechlin is one of those speaking out. Video by Pratiksha Ghildial, Janhavee Moole, Vishnu Vardhan and Neha Sharma.

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Why #MeToo isn't taking off in West Africa

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The #MeToo movement sparked a debate about abuse in 85 countries, but it's not taken off in West Africa.

The social media campaign which spoke out against sexual harassment generated about six million tweets since mid-October.

But in countries like Mali, very few women shared their stories of sexual abuse.

BBC Minute's Arwa Barkallah has been finding out why.
Video journ alist: Raïssa Ioussouf

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Why #MeToo isn't taking off in West Africa

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The #MeToo movement sparked a debate about abuse in 85 countries, but it's not taken off in West Africa. The social media campaign which spoke out against sexual harassment generated about six million tweets since mid-October. But in countries like Mali, very few women shared their stories of sexual abuse.

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UK universities face 'gagging order' criticism

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UK universities are being accused of using "gagging orders" to stop bullying, discrimination and sexual misconduct allegations becoming public.

Dozens of academics have told BBC News they were "harassed" out of their jobs and made to sign non-disclosure agreements after making complaints.

Figures obtained by the BBC show UK universities spent about £87m on pay-offs with NDAs since 2017.

Universities UK says using NDAs to keep victims quiet should not be tolerated.

Non-disclosure agreements were designed to stop staff sharing trade secrets if they changed jobs, but now lawyers say they are being misused to protect serial perpetrators of misconduct, and ministers say they want to tighten the rules.

The music professor

Anahid Kassabian, a former music professor at the University of Liverpool, said she felt like she was treated as a "burden" and "bullied out" of her 10-year job after being diagnosed with cancer.

She has broken her NDA in the hope that others who have been "through the same horrors" will realise they are "not alone" and will feel empowered to speak out.

"We all think we're isolated and alone, sobbing over past wrongs, when in fact there are many, many of us, and if we could speak to each other it would feel very different," she said.

Ms Kassabian, 59, who also has multiple sclerosis and fibromyalgia, believes her medical conditions had led to her ability to work being called into question, without the causes of the emotional stress she was under being adequately addressed.

But the BBC has seen documents that suggest the university felt it had done all it could to support Ms Kassabian, and it had a responsibility to support the teaching of students and work in the department as well as staff.

The University of Liverpool said: "We refute these allegations in the strongest possible terms. Ms Kassabian was not subject to discrimination or bullying and the university did not fail to make reasonable adjustments.

"Settlement agreements with a standard confidentiality clause are used for a range of cases including conduct, capability and redundancy. As we too are bound by confidentiality, we are unable to provide specifics in relation to her case."

'Followed to new job'

Another academic, Amy, not her real name, says bullying sparked her depression.

"It's crippling my career," she told the BBC.

Amy says she has been bullied for six years across two universities by the same man.

Her NDA, seen by the BBC, explicitly names the senior academic whom she calls a "serial bully".

It means she is legally required not to reveal details of the allegations or she risks being sued.

"He told me I'd never have a successful career," she said.

"He has done nothing but undermine my confidence; it's a complete abuse of power."

After she put in a complaint, Amy says she was advised to sign an NDA and leave.

"I ended up hundreds of miles away at a new university, only for him to follow me and continue his harassment. Because of the NDA I can't tell people what went on in the past. I can't tell them why he's doing this.

"Universities would rather pay off people to leave, than push out the person doing the bullying."

A source close to the settlement process, who has overseen a number of maternity and disability discrimination cases, said their university had a fund to get rid of staff with "significant health problems".

Claims of the misuse of NDAs by universities follow high-profile cases in the film and business worlds.

The astrophysicist

Emma Chapman, an award-winning astrophysicist, says she was sexually harassed by a man at University College London and received a £70,000 payout after a two-year legal challenge.

She refused to sign an NDA in favour of a confidentiality waiver, believed to be the first of its kind, allowing her to defend herself.

But Dr Chapman says the "trauma of the original incident is still there" with "nightmares of [her] house being set on fire".

Shortly after her tribunal, she received several untraceable voicemails of a person laughing down the phone in the middle of the night.

She reported it to the police, but there was no concrete evidence it was her harasser.

Now a campaigner to end sexual misconduct in higher education with The 1752 Group, Dr Chapman wants "to see this culture of silence banished and confidentiality waivers being given as standard, so that victims can protect their careers and universities are held to account".

UCL says it no longer uses NDAs for cases of bullying, harassment and sexual misconduct, but acknowledges that "historically" it has "not always got the balance right".

"We hope this sends a clear message that these behaviours will not be tolerated," it said.

"#MeToo has made clear that all institutions can, and must do better, in preventing and addressing these behaviours. UCL is no exception."

A widespread problem?

The BBC sent Freedom of Information requests to 136 UK universities, asking how much they had paid in settlements that included "gagging clauses".

Analysis of figures from 96 universities responding in full, reveal about £87m spent on about 4,000 settlements in the past two years.

Many universities said they were unable to disclose why the agreements were signed, so it is unclear how many relate to allegations of bullying, harassment or sexual misconduct.

Some universities attributed the bulk of their multi-million NDA spending to voluntary redundancy packages, but lawyers question whether, if such cases were truly voluntary, gagging clauses would be needed.

Georgina Calvert-Lee, a senior barrister at McAllister Olivarius, has told MPs that NDAs are "overused to promote systemic discrimination and harassment" at universities.

"The danger is that you may have one complaint put in, it's settled with an NDA, but then the university takes no action to prevent the misconduct happening again, and this exposes others to further misconduct by the same perpetrator," she said.

Ms Calvert-Lee said that universities have to provide independent legal advice to affected staff, but that this is usually only "enough time to talk through the agreement and not about the circumstances that have led to it".

Universities UK, which represents 136 institutions, said it was important to note that signing an NDA "does not prevent staff or students from reporting criminal acts to the police or regulatory bodies, or from making a disclosure under The Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998".

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UK universities face 'gagging order' criticism

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UK universities are being accused of using "gagging orders" to stop bullying, discrimination and sexual misconduct allegations becoming public. Dozens of academics have told BBC News they were "harassed" out of their jobs and made to sign non-disclosure agreements after making complaints.

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Universities 'failing' victims of sexual misconduct

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Dozens of students who reported sexual assaults to their university have said they were failed by complaints processes that left them traumatised.

A BBC investigation found universities received more than 700 allegations of sexual misconduct during the past academic year.

Students accused their universities of being paralysed by fear of reputational damage and not offering proper support.

Universities UK said institutions were making progress in handling complaints.

But students said they had to go through "traumatic" and lengthy complaints procedures, with one saying she "felt like the one on trial" and another calling it "a waste of time".

Freedom of Information responses obtained by File on 4 from 81 UK universities found more than 110 complaints of sexual assault and 80 allegations of rape were made last year.

In a number of cases students and universities also reported the alleged attacker to police.

However, there are no mandatory guidelines on how universities should investigate or record such complaints.

The result, campaigners and survivors say, is a "patchy" system that is failing students.

One student, who reported a violent rape to her university and police, was repeatedly forced to see her alleged attacker around campus because of a loophole in the university's safe-guarding procedure.

Women from multiple universities have also been dissuaded from coming forward on the grounds that the reporting process would be "traumatic".

One student said she was told by her university to spend the night in the library, after she told them she could not return to her accommodation out of fear of another attack.

Another described her experience as "like being 'gaslit' [a term for psychological abuse where victims are made to constantly doubt themselves and reality] on an institutional level".

Dani, 21, from the University of Cambridge, started having panic attacks after her supervisor sent her inappropriate and sexual messages.

On the verge of quitting her course, she tried to complain - but was passed around and given contradictory advice.

When she did manage to report it, she was warned eight times that she could face a harassment charge if she told anyone else about the allegations.

"Throughout the whole process I just felt like I was the one who was on trial," she told the BBC.

Before the disciplinary hearing, she asked to give evidence behind a screen - something commonplace in a court of law - but the university refused.

"I had to sit on the same side of the table just a couple of seats away from him, while I was cross-examined by his lawyer," she says.

Her complaint against him was upheld. But his punishment was to write a four sentence letter of apology and to follow a no-contact agreement that saw Dani - not her supervisor - barred from certain university buildings.

The man was allowed to remain at the university.

The University of Cambridge told the BBC it places the "utmost importance" on the welfare of its students and said improvements have, and will continue to be, made.

The person would "potentially be committing rape", lawyers say, because if you agree to having sex with a condom and remove it - without saying - then you no longer have consent.

After seeing a complaint on social media about the same student, Alice felt she had to come forward, despite hearing "so many horror stories" about her university's sexual misconduct reporting process.

Through social media, she spoke to eight women who had similar experiences with the same man.

A trail of emails, seen by the BBC, shows how she kept the university updated on what she found. But when Alice was waiting for a date for her preliminary hearing with the university, she was suddenly told her case was being dropped.

A rule change by the university's disciplinary committee meant her case no longer fitted its definition of "harassment".

Alice, who has now graduated, is "terrified" that the man remains on campus unchallenged - unless a current student decides to mount a fresh complaint under the new rules.

A University of Cambridge spokesman said: "We are doing everything we can to make sure students feel supported, and informed, regarding their choices". But the university said there is "always more we can do".

"It's a total waste of time," Alice says. "And it will ruin you."

Each institution is different, but normally the university appoints an investigator who takes witness statements.

Then a panel, made up of academic staff and sometimes a student representative, interviews the accused and the accuser before deciding whether the complaint should be upheld.

The process is supposed to be quick, but the BBC heard from one woman whose complaint of sexual assault took nine months to resolve - the entirety of her second year.

Some universities do not tell the accuser the outcome of their own complaint - viewing it as a matter between the institution and the accused.

BBC research found punishments for sexual misconduct ranged from expulsion to bans from university bars. Others were told to write letters of apology to victims.

At the University of Sussex, one sanction for sexual misconduct was a suspended £250 fine, only payable if the student got into trouble again before the end of that year.

Anna Bull from the 1752 group, which researches sexual misconduct in higher education, is calling for better regulation of complaints procedures.

"Universities have encouraged students to come forward and make complaints, but actually institutions are not necessarily safe to report to," she says.

Part of the problem, she says, is that universities police themselves - and while some manage this well, many do not.

Nicola Dandridge, chief executive of the Office for Students, England's independent regulator of higher education, told the BBC it would intervene in "serious examples of universities failing to address these issues seriously".

"But we will always be focused on making sure that our intervention is appropriate and in the best interest of students. It's not about punishing universities," she said.

Universities UK, which represents higher education institutions, urged universities to follow its voluntary guidelines.

Additional reporting by Larissa Kennelly

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Universities 'failing' victims of sexual misconduct

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Dozens of students who reported sexual assaults to their university have said they were failed by complaints processes that left them traumatised. A BBC investigation found universities received more than 700 allegations of sexual misconduct during the past academic year. Students accused their universities of being paralysed by fear of reputational damage and not offering proper support.

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University of Essex students protest over sex assault handling

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"This year, we're putting in place a whole range of actions this includes a new code of student conduct, compulsory consent training, a year-long programme of bystander training, additional patrols at night, increased CCTV coverage across all campuses and additional resources for our conduct team to ensure issues are dealt with as quickly as possible."

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University of Essex students protest over sex assault handling

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"This year, we're putting in place a whole range of actions this includes a new code of student conduct, compulsory consent training, a year-long programme of bystander training, additional patrols at night, increased CCTV coverage across all campuses and additional resources for our conduct team to ensure issues are dealt with as quickly as possible."

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Nusrat Jahan Rafi: Death penalty for 16 who set student on fire

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Nusrat Jahan Rafi: Death penalty for 16 who set student on fire

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A Bangladesh court has sentenced 16 people to death for the murder of a student set on fire after accusing her teacher of sexual harassment. Nusrat Jahan Rafi, 19, died in April in Feni, a small town some 160km (100 miles) outside the capital Dhaka.

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Maine student wins court battle over 'rapist in school' note

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Maine student wins court battle over 'rapist in school' note

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The notes, the judge wrote, were "neither frivolous nor fabricated, took place within the limited confines of the girls' bathroom, related to a matter of concern to the young women who might enter the bathroom and receive the message, and [were] not disruptive of school discipline".

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Cambridge sexual harassment researcher 'laughed at by men'

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She tweeted: "Even if you take out the subject matter, imagine being 21, just out of undergrad, shortlisted for your first research award and... a group of people decide its acceptable to publicly *laugh* at that research."

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Cambridge sexual harassment researcher 'laughed at by men'

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She tweeted: "Even if you take out the subject matter, imagine being 21, just out of undergrad, shortlisted for your first research award and... a group of people decide its acceptable to publicly *laugh* at that research."

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A feminist "revolution" against gender-based violence is happening in Spain, activists say. Women took to the streets in outrage last April over the trial of five men, who called themselves La manada (the wolf pack). They were accused of gang-raping a teenager, but were found guilty of a lesser offence and acquitted of rape.

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Are Europe's rape laws letting women down?

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Are Europe's rape laws letting women down?

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Women across Europe have taken to the streets over the past year to demand their governments do more to protect them from sexual violence. Their anger was fuelled by two high-profile Spanish cases, which have forced countries to question how they prosecute rape.

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Cambridge University don wrote erotic fiction about students

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In 2015, she was one of 10 students who complained that Dr Hutchinson had asked them during a seminar if they had "ever had any love bites" and, while discussing the subject of a dominatrix in a book, asked a female student: "Does that turn you on?".

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Cambridge University don wrote erotic fiction about students

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In 2015, she was one of 10 students who complained that Dr Hutchinson had asked them during a seminar if they had "ever had any love bites" and, while discussing the subject of a dominatrix in a book, asked a female student: "Does that turn you on?".

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University of Ghana lecturers suspended after 'sex-for-grades' exposé

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"It makes the whole investigation, a joke. Giving six months and four months to the lecturers as suspension without salary, it makes it look like they're even going on vacation, which doesn't make much sense. This is the reality on the ground and it needs to be tackled," one woman in Accra told the BBC.

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University of Ghana lecturers suspended after 'sex-for-grades' exposé

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"It makes the whole investigation, a joke. Giving six months and four months to the lecturers as suspension without salary, it makes it look like they're even going on vacation, which doesn't make much sense. This is the reality on the ground and it needs to be tackled," one woman in Accra told the BBC.

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New US campus sex assault plan gets pushback

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In announcing the policy, Betsey DeVos, the education secretary, said: "Too many students have lost access to their education because their school inadequately responded when a student filed a complaint of sexual harassment or sexual assault.

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New US campus sex assault plan gets pushback

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In announcing the policy, Betsey DeVos, the education secretary, said: "Too many students have lost access to their education because their school inadequately responded when a student filed a complaint of sexual harassment or sexual assault.

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Cardiff students 'felt silenced' after sex assault claims

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Two former students who alleged sexual assault and sexual misconduct by another student at a prestigious college say they felt "silenced".

Alyse McCamish and Sydney Feder, both 23, have issued legal action amid claims the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama did not investigate properly.

Ms McCamish claims it took six months for her allegation to be reported to the police.

The college said there was an "ongoing legal process".

It added that it "would not be right to comment on specific detail".

The Royal Welsh College, of which the Prince of Wales is president, is well known for its famous alumni, such as Sir Anthony Hopkins, Ruth Jones and Rob Brydon.

Ms McCamish, from Tennessee in the United States, moved to Wales when she was 19 after successfully auditioning for the college in Chicago, having been lured by the appeal of "such a beautiful country".

But she alleges that during freshers' week she was sexually assaulted by a fellow student, an allegation which he denied.

Ms McCamish, who is currently in the process of directing two films, says she eventually left the college early with a "diminished degree" because of her experience.

"It felt like they had such a lack of empathy for an arts school," she said.

"It made me lose a lot of faith in humanity. I lost a lot of faith in people who have power."

'Not a safe space'

Ms Feder, from Connecticut in the United States, moved to Wales at 18 and said she felt unsafe from the beginning.

"From day one I had a horrible feeling in the pit of my stomach that this was not a safe space," she said.

"In acting classes, people would kiss you without consent or grope you without consent and they would be encouraged by staff and congratulated for making that bold decision."

During her third year, Ms Feder says she was assaulted while alone in the female changing room during a rehearsal of a final-year show.

"I made a report to the college and it felt like screaming into the abyss. They interviewed me about it once. That was it. I was never spoken to again after I had made the report," she said.

'We need to tell someone'

Ms McCamish said she verbally complained to senior members of staff in June 2017 but the college did not notify the police of her complaint until January 2018.

"It took me a while to come forward. I was very determined for a while to not ever tell anybody in my head," she said.

"I reported it and then 'Me Too' happened. So I went back to college thinking this is perfect timing, they're going to take it seriously. But my experience was so the opposite of how sexual assault was being handled at the time."

In an email chain in January 2018 seen by the BBC, in which staff members discuss Ms McCamish's allegation, one senior staff member asks "it might pose the question why we didn't report it earlier?"

Ms McCamish was interviewed by the police in January 2018 but no further criminal action was taken.

"The police told me the allegation would be on his record and that was enough for me. I trusted the college would handle it," she added.

More students came forward

South Wales Police has confirmed no investigation is ongoing.

During an internal investigation by the college, Ms Feder and six other women came forward with allegations of misconduct against the same student.

John Watkins, of Bater Law, who represents the women, said the college failed to follow its own safeguarding policy.

He said these complaints were deemed to have been of "inappropriate touching" and not sexual misconduct, despite the university's student conduct regulations stipulating that "touching inappropriately without consent" is considered sexual misconduct.

He says the college decided to investigate Ms McCamish's case separately to the other women's allegations as it was considered to be "more serious".

The legal documents initiating proceedings have been sent to the civil court.

Student's denial

The student denied any allegation of sexual assault and said the incident alleged by Ms McCamish "simply didn't happen".

The college found on the balance of probabilities the allegations of inappropriate touching were proven, but there was insufficient evidence with regards to Ms McCamish's allegation of sexual assault.

He was suspended for two weeks and, in a letter to students, apologised to anyone who "felt unsafe and uncomfortable around me".

Ms Feder said she was never told of the decision relating to her allegation and she only found out about it when launching her legal action.

"When I found out I immediately cried. It was a few years too late," she said. "They'd decided I wasn't worth having that vindication at the time."

Ms McCamish has also criticised the college's handling of the aftermath of the investigation including an occasion in which a letter from the accused student was read out to their year group.

She said: "I just couldn't believe it. I never had a voice. I never got a letter read out on my behalf. It was like they'd just totally silenced me."

She also said in the week following her reporting of the alleged incident, she attended an improvisation class with the student.

She said the staff member to whom she had made the allegation allowed him to strip naked during an improvisation.

What does the college say?

In response to all the allegations, the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama said: "The safety and well-being of our students and staff is our first priority and we have formal mechanisms in place to safeguard and support all members of the college community.

"We treat every report of any incident as serious, using best practice in applying our policies and procedures. We also keep our policies under constant review, seeking expert external advice and input.

"We are, and always will be, committed to listening openly to any member of our community who wants to report an incident to us - whether recent or historic - and encourage people to talk to us about any concerns.

"This allegation is the subject of a sensitive and ongoing legal process. Because we respect that legal process it would not be right to comment further on specific details.

"However we can confirm that there have been factual inaccuracies carried in reports to date. The board of directors is fully informed of the current situation and is keeping across any developments."

Information and support

If you need support with any of the issues raised in this story, these organisations may be able to help.

The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.

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Cardiff students 'felt silenced' after sex assault claims

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Two former students who alleged sexual assault and sexual misconduct by another student at a prestigious college say they felt "silenced". Alyse McCamish and Sydney Feder, both 23, have issued legal action amid claims the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama did not investigate properly.

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Student 'felt silenced by De Montfort University' after alleged groping

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Dr Emma Chapman, from the 1752 Group, which campaigns on the issue of staff sexual misconduct within universities, said there was an issue with institutions not acknowledging the scale of the problem.

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Student 'felt silenced by De Montfort University' after alleged groping

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Dr Emma Chapman, from the 1752 Group, which campaigns on the issue of staff sexual misconduct within universities, said there was an issue with institutions not acknowledging the scale of the problem.

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Tackling sexual abuse not just for schools, say heads

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The problem of sexual violence and abuse is not just an issue for schools to tackle, say head teachers.

Social media companies, parents and the criminal justice system all have a role to play, says the school leaders' union, ASCL.

ASCL boss Geoff Barton says schools work very hard in this area and take these matters extremely seriously.

His comments come as the website Everyone's Invited records over 10,000 testimonies of abuse from youngsters.

The website was set up last year as a place where victims can post anonymous accounts of abuse they have suffered.

Many of the accounts describe allegations of sexual harassment and sexual violence carried out against young women by young men who are at school, college or university with them, or part of the same social groups.

'Abhorrent'

England's Education Secretary Gavin Williamson has described the allegations on the website as "shocking and abhorrent" and has pledged to take "appropriate action".

And children's charities are calling for the government to issue better guidance to schools and colleges to tackle the problem.

But school leaders warn that the problem of sexual violence is a societal issue and cannot solely be left to schools and teachers to address.

"Media reporting of these testimonies has focused on the role of schools," says Mr Barton.

"In fact, these testimonies involve young people, in schools and universities, in a wide variety of circumstances, often outside school premises in settings such as parties.

"This is not to minimise the vital responsibility of schools in tackling sexual violence and sexual harassment, and instilling good values in young people and respect for one another."

But this is "a wider issue than what happens in schools", he warns.

"Parents have a responsibility to talk to their children about how they behave towards others. Social media companies have a responsibility to take more care about how their platforms are used. The criminal justice system has a responsibility to show young people that it can be trusted to prosecute and bring to justice sexual offenders."

Mr Barton also urged young people who had reported sexual offences against them on Everyone's Invited to tell the police.

Schools 'not doing enough'

However, the Children's Society says schools are not doing enough and calls on ministers to educate school staff, parents, pupils and support services on how better to address abuse in schools.

Policy manager Iryna Pona said: "Young people consistently raise with us the issue of sexual harassment at school and that schools are often not doing enough to tackle it or support victims.

"Where young people are acting in sexually harmful ways it's vital that this behaviour is addressed early through specialist support to prevent it escalating into crimes.

"Yet all too often no action is taken by schools or social services until a serious offence, such as rape, is committed."

Barnardo's is calling for a review of the existing guidance for schools and colleges on how to address routine sexual harassment and abuse.

Chief executive Javed Khan said he was "deeply concerned" at recent reports, saying they were "just the tip of the iceberg".

"We know that at least a third of identified sexual abuse against under-18s is committed by other children and young people. We also know that much of this abuse goes unreported."

Influence of pornography

According to Chief Constable Simon Bailey, who oversees child protection for the National Police Chiefs' Council, the problem has been partly fuelled by "easy access to pornography".

"There's an erosion of an understanding of what normal sexual relationships look like," he said and urged parents and schools to speak to children about pornography, and tell them it's "not real".

His view is backed by Dr Elena Martellozzo, associate professor of criminology at Middlesex University, who says children as young as 11 are exposed to porn.

Dr Martellozzo told BBC Radio 4 that pornography was "very much accessible" on the internet.

"They can come across porn through pop-ups as much as actively seeking it or being shown it," she said.

"I would say it's harder to avoid online pornography than to seek it. This is not the start of a healthy sexual relationship."

The government had planned to introduce age checks to stop anyone under 18 accessing pornography, but the plans were eventually dropped over concerns about their effectiveness.

Margot James, who was digital minister when the plans were being drawn up, said that while the checks could never be completely effective, they were designed to "deter and reduce access to pornography among young people".

She said internet platforms should be regulated more broadly.

"There's a lot more we should be doing," she said.

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Tackling sexual abuse not just for schools, say heads

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The problem of sexual violence and abuse is not just an issue for schools to tackle, say head teachers. Social media companies, parents and the criminal justice system all have a role to play, says the school leaders' union, ASCL. ASCL boss Geoff Barton says schools work very hard in this area and take these matters extremely seriously.

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School abuse: 'Rape culture' warning as 8,000 report incidents

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More than 8,000 allegations have now been made by school pupils on a website gathering testimonies of sexual violence and abuse.

"Rape culture" was a problem for all schools, said Soma Sara, founder of the Everyone's Invited website.

Many of the perpetrators are claimed to be at the same school or in the same social groups.

Norfolk Chief Constable Simon Bailey blamed the "volume of pornographic material that's being consumed".

"There's an erosion of an understanding of what normal sexual relationships look like," said the National Police Chiefs' Council lead on child protection.

'Normalising' sexual violence

"We have a real problem here," he told BBC News, saying that a police helpline would be set up and promising to "investigate those allegations which are of a criminal nature".

The helpline will "ensure victims can access advice and support where needed", said the Prime Minister's official spokesman.

On Twitter, the Education Secretary for England, Gavin Williamson, said: "No school - whether an independent school or state school - should ever be an environment where young people feel unsafe, let alone somewhere that sexual abuse can take place."

"The allegations that I have heard in recent days are shocking and abhorrent."

Mr Williamson said "any victim of these sickening acts" should raise their concerns with someone they trust, such as a teacher, family member or the police. "We will take appropriate action," he wrote on Twitter.

Robert Halfon, chairman of the House of Commons education select committee, called for a "full independent inquiry to find out why so many female students have suffered from sexual abuse and harassment".

Highgate School, among the private schools caught up in the claims, says it is launching an "immediate external review of the sexual abuse and harassment allegations" and is "working on an anti-sexism plan".

Dulwich College's head teacher Joe Spence said: "The behaviour described is distressing and entirely unacceptable" and "we are meeting with victims to listen to their experiences and their concerns, and we will act on them".

The website Everyone's Invited was set up last year as a place where victims can post anonymous accounts of abuse they had suffered.

Many of the accounts describe allegations of sexual harassment and sexual violence carried out against young women by young men who are at school or college or university with them, or part of the same social groups.

'Universal problem'

"These are stories of rape culture - so where behaviour that's not normal is normalised," Ms Sara told the BBC.

"Sexual harassment, groping at a Christmas party, image-based abuse, revenge porn, non-consensual sharing of intimate photos - and just general sexism and misogyny," she said, describing the experiences being raised.

Ms Sara said "normalising and trivialising" such incidents could create a "gateway to more extreme criminal acts, such as rape and sexual assault".

The website initially drew attention to private schools, particularly in London, but the 22-year-old said that was a consequence of her own background - and that the range of testimonies, from state and private schools, showed this was a much wider issue.

"Rape culture is a universal problem - it's everywhere, in all schools, all universities and all of society," she told BBC News.

Anonymous testimonies listed on the site do not reveal the identity of the pupils or their attackers, but many schools are named. Many of the incidents recounted took place outside school or university premises.

Paul Whiteman, leader of the National Association of Head Teachers said school leaders had to "ask ourselves what more we can all do to prevent sexual harassment and violence" - but he said "this is a problem that reaches far beyond the school gates".

'Call out' behaviour

Chief Constable Bailey warned that pornography was distorting how some young people saw relationships - and that this had become a "driver" of the type of behaviour being reported online.

Ms Sara agreed with this, and said the most effective response would be for young people themselves to confront such attitudes.

"It's really important we encourage our children and teenagers to be empowered to stand up to their friends and call out this behaviour, because I think that's the most influential space."

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said: "There's got to be an inquiry and it has got to get going very fast, this is serious."

He also called for "cultural change in terms of behaviour in our schools and in our young people, but also in the respect that is shown particularly for women and girls".

The Department for Education said it was very concerned by the allegations posted on Everyone's Invited.

A spokeswoman said: "The vast majority of schools, colleges and universities take their safeguarding responsibilities very seriously, so it is particularly shocking when allegations of abuse are made in connection with a place of education, where everyone should feel secure and be protected.

"Working together, the Department for Education, the Home Office and the National Police Chiefs' Council are in contact with Everyone's Invited to provide support, protection and advice to those who are reporting abuse, including on contacting professionals or the police if they wish."

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School abuse: 'Rape culture' warning as 8,000 report incidents

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More than 8,000 allegations have now been made by school pupils on a website gathering testimonies of sexual violence and abuse. "Rape culture" was a problem for all schools, said Soma Sara, founder of the Everyone's Invited website. Many of the perpetrators are claimed to be at the same school or in the same social groups.

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Rape normal at private school, says dossier of 170 testimonies | News | The Times

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One of the country's leading private schools has been accused of upholding a "rape culture" after governors were sent a dossier containing 170 testimonies of sexual abuse and harassment.

Former pupils at Highgate School, whose alumni include Sir John Betjeman and Michael Mansfield QC, alleged that pastoral staff repeatedly failed to act on accusations and one pupil attempted suicide after being raped by a fellow classmate.

The school, which charges fees of £21,600 a year, asked a victim of sexual assault to sign a non-disclosure agreement, according to one pupil, and was allegedly told by a staff member to consider "how legal ramifications for his actions might hurt his feelings".

A pupil said she had been raped by one boy, sexually assaulted by two more

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Rape normal at private school, says dossier of 170 testimonies

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One of the country's leading private schools has been accused of upholding a "rape culture" after governors were sent a dossier containing 170 testimonies of sexual abuse and harassment. Former pupils at Highgate School, whose alumni include Sir John Betjeman and Michael Mansfield QC, alleged that pastoral staff repeatedly failed to act on accusations and one pupil attempted suicide after being raped by a fellow classmate.

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Police 'acted appropriately' at Sarah Everard vigil

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Police 'acted appropriately' at Sarah Everard vigil

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Police "acted appropriately" at vigil held in memory of Sarah Everard on Clapham Common, report finds.

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Sarah Everard vigil: Critics attacked policing 'without knowing facts' - Met chief

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Critics of the police handling of a Sarah Everard vigil in south London spoke out "without knowing the facts", the Met Police chief has said.

Dame Cressida Dick told the BBC that remarks during a "social media pile-on" had damaged confidence in policing.

The force was criticised after women were handcuffed and removed from crowds on Clapham Common, but a report has said police acted "appropriately".

The Duchess of Cambridge's visit to the vigil was legal, Dame Cressida added.

Ms Everard was last seen walking home nearby on 3 March. Her body was found a week later in woodland near Ashford, Kent - prompting a public debate over women's safety

Several hundred people gathered on Clapham Common on 13 March to pay tribute to the 33-year-old, despite Covid restrictions.

Dame Cressida said it was "clearly possible" under the law for those who lived locally to walk to the common and "lay flowers legally".

"You would have seen for six hours we did not enforce any laws, we showed some discretion and we allowed people to carry on," she said.

But the Met chief said she had warned City Hall and senior members of the government the event was likely to become an illegal mass gathering and could end with arrests.

"What I was saying consistently was this is likely to be illegal, if it is illegal and people do not disperse when they're asked to do so, we will use as much discretion as we can, we will encourage people, we will try to get them to disperse, but if they don't disperse we will end up arresting people," she said.

An official event had been planned by Reclaim These Streets - but the group called it off, saying police had failed to "constructively engage" on how it could be held in a Covid-secure way.

People turned up to Clapham Common despite the group asking them not to.

Referring to the Duchess of Cambridge's visit to the vigil, the Met chief said she was "in the course of her duties, she was working."

She added: "At that point people had a whole series of potential reasonable excuses for being away from home, we didn't all have them.

"I've picked out one that may apply to her but, let's be clear, there was a very calm vigil to which she attended where lots of people came."

When challenged on her previous remarks that she would have attended the vigil if it had been legal, Dame Cressida said: "What we knew is that it was quite clear that what ever the organisers wanted to arrange, the numbers were going to be overwhelming, there was not an ability, in the long run, to be able to keep this socially distanced... Covid safe or strictly legal."

The duchess's visit was not listed in the daily list of royal engagements - the Court Circular - so it was not an official engagement. Palace sources at the time said it was a private visit, which can constitute a royal duty, but it would still usually be listed in the Court Circular.

'Insufficient communication'

On Tuesday, Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) found that the force was "justified" in deciding that the risks of transmitting coronavirus "were too great to ignore" and officers "did their best to peacefully disperse the crowd".

However, it added that "there was insufficient communication between police commanders about changing events on the ground".

Images and footage from the vigil prompted widespread concern, but HMICFRS said calls for Met Police Commissioner Cressida Dick to resign - including from Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey - were "unwarranted".

The report added that "the chorus of those condemning" the force after the event showed "a distinct lack of respect for public servants facing... a sensitive and complex situation".

A spokesman for the Lib Dems has said: "We stand by our view that in the circumstances, the Met commissioner got the judgment on the vigil badly wrong."

'Stop and think'

Dame Cressida said: "I think there are two things that come out of this report about the immediate aftermath.

"The first is that people in public life, people in responsible positions, should stop and think before they judge, whoever they may be."

She added: "If they comment without knowing the facts, they may - and I would suggest on this occasion some people did - affect public confidence in their police service inappropriately.

"And, secondly, affect the officers' confidence about volunteering for the same duty in the next instance, if they are actually going to be criticised even when they've done a really good job."

Dame Cressida said the report suggested that if the force had been "slightly more conciliatory" in communications afterwards, "then that might have helped with what I think is, in modern-day parlance, a kind of social media pile-on".

PC Wayne Couzens, 48, has been charged with her murder and kidnap.

He has been remanded in custody to appear at the Old Bailey on 9 July ahead of a trial that is set to start on 25 October.

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Sarah Everard vigil: Critics attacked policing 'without knowing facts' - Met chief

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Critics of the police handling of a Sarah Everard vigil in south London spoke out "without knowing the facts", the Met Police chief has said. Dame Cressida Dick told the BBC that remarks during a "social media pile-on" had damaged confidence in policing.

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Everyone’s Invited: Children recount 'rape culture' experiences

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An online campaign inviting users to post anonymous testimonies of sexual assault and harassment has been growing in popularity.

The collection of more than 4,100 testimonies include accounts from girls aged as young as nine.

The youngsters have written personal accounts of "rape culture", identifying the school or university the alleged perpetrators attended.

Eton, St Paul's and Latymer Upper School are among those referenced.

But while these and other private schools commonly appear, there are also examples given of unnamed males from state schools and universities.

The testimonies have been published on Everyone's Invited website and its Instagram account.

Experiences recounted range from being drugged and raped at parties to explicit images being shared over messaging platforms.

'It exists everywhere'

"The testimonies expose rape culture and the scale of sexual violence amongst young people in the UK," Soma Sara, founder of Everyone's Invited, told the BBC.

"If we start pointing fingers at certain demographics or singling out individuals or institutions, we risk making these cases seem like anomalies... when really this problem is pervasive, it exists everywhere."

Everyone had a responsibility to take action to expose and eradicate this culture, she added.

"It is so important that teachers and parents are able to learn how to communicate with their children and talk about these issues," she said.

At least 35 people claim to have been raped in their testimony. In the accounts where a university or school is named, it is unclear when the incidents took place.

The high master of St Paul's said she had informed children's services of the Instagram account.

"The school completely condemns the actions described, and takes this matter extremely seriously," Sally-Anne Huang said in a letter to alumni. "[We] would always investigate fully matters of this nature brought to our attention."

No names or details had been provided so the cases had not been reported to the police, she added.

The issue of reporting is raised in some of the testimonies.

"I blamed myself and think a lot of people - especially men, would blame me for getting into the situation in the first place," one user wrote of not reporting her rape at the age of 17.

"I didn't feel that there was space to, or I was ashamed and I just felt so alone," another account said.

"I never said anything to someone of authority because I had no faith in an outcome," one account which cites Goldsmiths, University of London, said.

A spokesman for the university said it has a dedicated anonymous reporting and support website for victims of sexual violence, harassment or misconduct.

Goldsmiths Students' Union also runs anti-sexual violence training for students, and is currently running remote Consent Matters training to help educate students on consent and healthy relationships.

'Long way to go'

"Every case of sexual violence is one too many, and universities are committed to becoming safer places to live, work and study," said a spokesman for Universities UK, which represents UK universities.

"Universities are taking innovative actions to address some of the issues, but there is a long way to go in ending sexual misconduct for good in higher education."

A spokeswoman for Eton College said it took any specific allegations "extremely seriously" and would report to the relevant authorities "when necessary."

Eton College is speaking to the founder of the website and looking for ways to work with them in future.

Latymer Upper School, which is one of the most-mentioned schools, said it was "deeply disturbed" by the accounts on the website.

"We have a zero-tolerance approach to behaviours that foster the prevalence of misogyny, sexism, harassment, abuse and assault," a spokeswoman said, adding all reports of this kind were escalated to police when necessary.

"We take all such issues very seriously and have encouraged anyone affected to come and talk to us directly. We will be listening carefully to them and reflecting on what further steps we should take."

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Everyone's Invited: Children recount 'rape culture' experiences

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An online campaign inviting users to post anonymous testimonies of sexual assault and harassment has been growing in popularity. The collection of more than 4,100 testimonies include accounts from girls aged as young as nine. The youngsters have written personal accounts of "rape culture", identifying the school or university the alleged perpetrators attended.

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Highgate School pupils hold walkout after claims of 'rape culture'

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More than 5,600 accounts feature on the Everyone's Invited site and founder Soma Sara previously told the BBC they "expose rape culture and the scale of sexual violence amongst young people in the UK".

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Highgate School pupils hold walkout after claims of 'rape culture'

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More than 5,600 accounts feature on the Everyone's Invited site and founder Soma Sara previously told the BBC they "expose rape culture and the scale of sexual violence amongst young people in the UK".

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Everyone's Invited: Met investigates school abuse claims made on website

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The Met's lead for rape and sexual offences, Det Supt Mel Laremore, said: "It is deeply concerning to see the number of accounts published on this website, many of which appear to relate to previous or current experiences within educational settings in London and across the country.

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Everyone's Invited: Met investigates school abuse claims made on website

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The Met's lead for rape and sexual offences, Det Supt Mel Laremore, said: "It is deeply concerning to see the number of accounts published on this website, many of which appear to relate to previous or current experiences within educational settings in London and across the country.

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Outdated stereotyping is still damaging girls' and women's confidence - News from Parliament - UK Parliament

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Sexual harassment occurs when sexist stereotypes flourish

Commenting on Girlguiding's Girls' Attitudes Survey, Chair of the Women and Equalities Committee, Maria Miller MP, said:

"Outdated stereotyping is still damaging girls' and women's confidence and needs to be effectively tackled from an early age.

Furthermore, the high levels of sexual harassment that girls are still experiencing at school is of deep concern given the Government's undertaking to tackle this unacceptable behaviour following the Select Committee report a year ago.

These problems are linked: sexual harassment occurs when sexist stereotypes flourish. The Government has to show more urgency; there must be clear guidance for schools that leaves them in no doubt about their responsibilities to keep girls safe and tackle gender stereotypes, as well as support for those experiencing harassment and abuse.

We will be keeping a close eye on Government action on this issue over the coming months."

Background

The Girls' Attitudes Survey found that:

64% of girls aged 13-21 say they have experienced sexual harassment in the last year, compared with 59% in the 2014 survey

At the time of responding, 27% of girls aged 11- 21 said their skirts have been pulled up by boys at school or college in the past week alone.

The Women and Equalities Committee report, Sexual harassment and sexual violence in schools, published on 13th September 2016 found that:

Almost a third (29%) of 16-18 year old girls say they have experienced unwanted sexual touching at school;

Nearly three-quarters (71%) of all 16-18 year old boys and girls say they hear terms such as "slut" or "slag" used towards girls at schools on a regular basis;

59% of girls and young women aged 13-21 said in 2014 that they had faced some form of sexual harassment at school or college in the past year.

The report recommended that the Government must act to protect and empower a generation of children and young people. Key recommendations include:

The Government should introduce a statutory obligation for every school to take appropriate action to prevent and respond to sexual harassment and sexual violence. Schools will need support from Government to achieve this, including clear national guidance.

Ofsted and the Independent Schools Inspectorate must assess schools on how well they are recording, monitoring, preventing and responding to incidents of sexual harassment and sexual violence.

Every child at primary and secondary school must have access to high quality, age-appropriate relationships and sex education delivered by well-trained individuals through making Relations and Sex Education (RSE) a statutory subject; investing in teacher training; and investing in local third sector specialist support. The Children and Social Work Act 2017 made relationships education in Primary Schools and relationships and sex education in Secondary Schools compulsory and required the Secretary of State to publish guidance.

Further information

Image: Copyright Fixers

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Outdated stereotyping is still damaging girls' and women's confidence - News from Parliament

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Commenting on Girlguiding's Girls' Attitudes Survey, Chair of the Women and Equalities Committee, Maria Miller MP, said: "Outdated stereotyping is still damaging girls' and women's confidence and needs to be effectively tackled from an early age.

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Sexual harassment and sexual violence in schools inquiry - UK Parliament

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Sexual harassment and sexual violence in schools inquiry

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Women and Equalities Committee inquiry into sexual harassment and sexual violence in schools