This document discusses online abuse and safeguarding in higher education. It notes that while student welfare is emphasized as important, there is a lack of national policy around universities' duty of care online. A FOI request found that many university policies did not mention online issues and few had staff trained on online abuse. Preliminary findings showed inconsistencies in how universities addressed reports of online harassment. The document advocates for a more comprehensive, university-wide approach including specialized staff training, policy re-evaluation, and awareness raising to better support students experiencing online abuse.

1. Online abuse and safeguarding
in higher education
Prof Emma Bond and Prof Andy Phippen

2. bbc.co.uk/news/uk-48366835

3. 3 mirror.co.uk/news/politics/outrage-tory-uni-society-picture-13350145

4. Duty of care?
• Much used, little understood
• Not statutory requirement for safeguarding?
• Calls from HE minister that student welfare is “non-negotiable”
• Emerging case law?
• Thresholds still high, but negligent institutions may be found wanting
• Policies at least start to demonstrate a level of due diligence and forethought
4 Online abuse and safeguarding in higher education

5. Digital natives?
5 Online abuse and safeguarding in higher education

6. 6 Online abuse and safeguarding in higher education
Online
safety
Digital
civility
Digital
wellbeing

7. 7 Online abuse and safeguarding in higher education

8. 8 Online abuse and safeguarding in higher education

9. Student experience of risks one year before university
and during time studying at university (n = 320)
9 Online abuse and safeguarding in higher education
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
Before university (Year 1: happened in last year, n = 130)
During university (Year 2,3,4: happened in last year, n = 135)

10. ‘Recently there has been some hate speech
around me online during some student union
elections, I’m not allowed to say the name,
said some things hateful about me
specifically to throw off the campaign…’
Jake, 23 years old

11. ‘It could be anytime in the day and I would
get a message to go ‘I like your purple
shoes today’
Claire, 22 years old

12. Microsystems
Mesosystems
Macrosystem
Exosystem
Attitudes and ideologies e.g.
Human rights, social and
cultural norms
Mass media, industry, legal
system, governmental policy,
national agencies – OfS; UUK;
Wider community – IWF;
Revenge Porn Helpline;
MCF; Constabulary, UKSIC;
CIFAS;
University – training,
student services,
personal tutors, course
administrators,
awareness raising,
posters, social media,
workshops
Peers, friends,
family
Student
Resilience FactorsRisk Factors

13. Key issues
• Unhelpful assumptions – “Digital natives”
• Inconsistency of knowledge - lack of national policy around
“online” education or duty of care
• Acceptable abuse – online discourse across the student body,
blurred lines between offensive and hate speech
• Role of stakeholders – many students have voiced concerns
about the response of their institution when concerns were
raised, highlighting a lack of consistency of response or even
taking concerns seriously
13 Online abuse and safeguarding in higher education

14. FOI to all institutions
June – November 2019

15. Phase 1 questions
1. Your University polic(ies) addressing how the institution tackles online abuse (including image
based abuse and online harassment) or hate speech online in the student body
2. The name of the member of your university executive team directly responsible for student
safeguarding
3. The name of the member of your university governing body/board directly responsible for
student safeguarding
4. Details of how students can report incidents of online abuse (including image based abuse
and online harassment) or hate speech online in your institution
5. The number of student disciplinaries where online abuse (including image based abuse and
online harassment) or hate speech online was a factor per year for each academic year from
2015-16 to 2017-18
6. Number of reports made to the police where online abuse (including image based abuse and
online harassment) or hate speech online was a factor per year for each academic year from
2015-16 to 2017-18
15 Online abuse and safeguarding in higher education

16. Preliminary findings
“We have been asked to clarify your definition of ‘student safeguarding’
as the University would normally use the term ‘safeguarding’ concerns
raised about individuals under the age of 18”
16 Online abuse and safeguarding in higher education

17. Preliminary findings
• 110 of the 130 HEIs had a named person responsible for safeguarding
• But only 43 had a named member of their university governing
body/board directly responsible for student safeguarding
• Of the 266 policies submitted, 60% had no mention of “online”
• Little evidence of training related to online abuse
17 Online abuse and safeguarding in higher education

18. Preliminary findings
“The University is not obligated to hold these designated roles. As we are
a Higher Education Institution this places us in a different position to
school/college institutions and we are not required to designate specific
person(s) to be directly responsible for safeguarding”.
18 Online abuse and safeguarding in higher education

19. Policies used by Universities to adress online
harrassment and hate crime
19 Online abuse and safeguarding in higher education
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
StudentDicipine/Codeof
conduct/Regulations/Registry
/Charter
BullyingandHarrassment
guidleines/policy
ITregs/AUP
Safeguardingpolicy
Studentcomplaints
Mentalhealthandwellbeing
Reportandsupport
Useofsociamedai
Codeofpracticeonfreedomof
speech
Dignity/resepctatstudy
Acceptablebehaviour
Sexualviolenceandmisconduct
Fitnesstopractice
Hatecrime
Inclusion/equalityanddiversity
Safegardingchildren
Domesticabusepolicy
Policyonrelationshipsstafand
students
Preventduty
Exenuatingcirumstances

20. What works?
20 Online abuse and safeguarding in higher education
University
wide
approach
Specialist
staff
training
Re-
evaluation
of online
safety
policies
Advisory
groups
Awareness
raising
Data
monitoring

21. Available to download here
21 Online abuse and safeguarding in higher education

22. Thank you
customerservices@jisc.ac.uk
jisc.ac.uk
Prof Emma Bond and Prof Andy Phippen
e.bond@uos.ac.uk
andy.phippen@plymouth.ac.uk