Higher Education and Home Office: Sexual Offences

There is no place for sexual misconduct of any kind in higher education (HE) or anywhere else. The department expects university leaders to take positive action to tackle this blight wherever it grows on their campuses. To support universities to stamp out sexual misconduct, the Office for Students has introduced new requirements for preventing, addressing and investigating incidents. These take effect in August 2025. Departmental officials are working with sector bodies to ensure HE providers are prepared to implement the new measures that will establish, amongst other things, regulatory requirements for preventative training, reporting mechanisms and providing support to students. All HE providers will need to show they have the capability and resource capacity to implement the new requirements. More details of this condition can be found here: https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/for-providers/student-protection-and-support/harassment-and-sexual-misconduct/prevent-and-address-harassment-and-sexual-misconduct/.