Universities Australia has pledged to run a new national safety survey on sexual harm on university campuses next year — three years after the survey was first run.
The 2021 National Student Safety Survey (NSSS) copped backlash for being run during the pandemic lockdowns when most students were not on campus.
That survey had found one in 20 students had been sexually assaulted since starting university, and that on average, 275 students were sexually assaulted in university settings each week. One in six reported being sexually harassed.
On Wednesday afternoon following a caucus meeting, Universities Australia chairman Professor David Lloyd said the peak body was “committed to revisiting and advancing an appropriately redesigned survey, to be rolled out in 2024.”
In a statement released on the peak body’s site, Prof Lloyd described the meeting as a “fulsome and constructive discussion on the issue of sexual harm in Australian universities.”
“Members are unanimous in our acceptance that while much is being done in this domain, much more is required of us collectively,” he said.
“Our members are committed to continuing to run tailored and individual campus-based activities in 2024, similar to initiatives such as the existing ‘Respect at Uni Week’ delivered by Victorian universities.”
“There was agreement across the membership that individual universities have strong understandings of their own unique demographics, campuses and students, which is why they are best placed to continue building on the extensive work undertaken to date.”
“We recognise that one-size-fits-all intervention strategies do not translate to broad benefit in this most difficult of domains. We are committed to revisiting and advancing an appropriately redesigned survey, to be rolled out in 2024.”
According to Prof Lloyd, the survey will be “guided by contemporary best practice and research, to establish a solid baseline against which we can measure the effectiveness of our actions and interventions.”
Earlier on Wednesday, Education Minister Jason Clare criticised universities for not doing enough to tackle the issue of violence on campus.
“The actions universities have taken to address sexual assault and harassment on campuses to date have not been good enough,” he said.
“We have the research. We have the evidence. We have to act. It is clear that university governing bodies must do more.”
Deputy Liberal leader Sussan Ley said that universities should be required to publish data in relation to complaints of student safety, including sexual assaults.
“Without data, progress is uncertain and evidence-based policies to combat this serious issue are much harder to formulate,” she told the press.
“More research into campus sexual assault and the effectiveness of different prevention strategies is essential if we are to ensure all students are safe on campus.”
The NSSS was funded in 2017 by Universities Australia, the peak body representing Australia’s university sector, and was supposed to be repeated every three years, as per its recommendations.
Universities Australia has been criticised by student safety advocates for recently dropping a $1.5m campaign on consent, and for its inaction to alleged sexual violence at institutions.
Lloyd’s announcement on Wednesday coincided with the federal government’s appointment of Patty Kinnersly as lead advisor to a working body that will review sexual assault on campus as well as provide advice on how universities can develop safer campuses for students and staff.
Kinnersly, the chief of the violence against women prevention organisation, Our Watch will lead the working group as the expert advisor to help the government find ways to bolster university governance.
Prof Lloyd welcomed Kinnersly’s appointment, saying his organisation is “committed to working with Patty Kinnersly in her capacity as the expert adviser to the working group advising the government on ways to strengthen university governance.”
“We have a significant issue in our institutions which we have to step up on and be accountable for and we cannot do enough to actually engage to deliver better outcomes for our students,” he said.
“This will help with the development of a suite of evidence-based actions in the near term for our members to access and individually implement.”
Kinnersly’s group will start work next week.
Shadow minister for education, Sarah Henderson welcomed Kinnersly’s appointment, describing the CEO as a “leader in her field” who could help guide future reforms in the sector.
“Universities need to take much stronger action to combat sexual assault and harassment on their campuses,” she said on Wednesday. “All university students deserve to be safe in lecture theatres, on campus grounds and in residential colleges.”
The issue of sexual assault on campus formed part of the Universities Accord interim report, which looked at reformations in the higher education sector. It described the current approaches to reducing the incidence of sexual assault and harassment on campus as “inadequate.” The final report will be returned to the government later this year.
Today, the Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research released a trial transcript analysis that revealed complainants are often fighting against archaic myths and stereotypes about how they should react as victims of a “real rape”.
The report analysed the experiences of complainants in the NSW District Court using transcripts from 75 trials across six years.
“Many of the myths and stereotypes that research suggests are still operative in trials relate to how closely the rape approximates … a ‘real rape’, where the act is perpetrated by a stranger; is committed in a public place; results in injuries or involves a weapon,” the study found.
“This is in spite of the fact that most rapes do not occur under these circumstances.”
“Complainants who were intoxicated at the time of the alleged offences faced additional scrutiny, including suggestions of “drunken consent” and unreliability based on impaired recall.”
The study concluded that “greater improvement in the experience of complainants will require change to entrenched trial practices and narratives that are out of step with the spirit of the statutory reforms.”
Stop the cycle of violence. If you are concerned about your behaviour, or about someone using violence, call Men’s Referral Service on 1300 766 491.
If you or someone you know is in need of help due to sexual assault or family and domestic violence contact 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732
In an emergency call 000. Lifeline (13 11 14) and, for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, 13YARN (13 92 76)