universities pledge update
On February 7th the English Parliament voted through an amendment to the Higher Education (Free Speech) Bill, which requires Universities and their constituent colleges that are registered to receive public funding to stop using non-disclosure agreements to cover up sexual misconduct, harassment and bullying.
The Bill will continue its progress through Parliament and should be in force by 2024. So, in the meantime it remains important that if your university is not signed up to the pledge you write to them to encourage them to do so you are protected until the law is in force.
If you attend a Canadian university, Ontario passed legislation in December 2022 banning universities in that province from using NDAs in cases of faculty/ student sexual misconduct (see Strengthening Post-Secondary Institutions Act Schedules 1 and 2). We are currently working with universities in other provinces, especially where NDA legislation is being tabled (Manitoba, Nova Scotia and British Columbia), to encourage them to take the Pledge.
The Pledge
“(W)e [our vice-chancellor and higher education provider] commit to not using Non-Disclosure Agreements to silence people who come forward to raise complaints of sexual harassment, abuse or misconduct, or other forms of harassment and bullying.”
Signing the pledge means that the provider undertakes to never use a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) in a case involving sexual harassment, discrimination, other forms of misconduct and/or bullying. It is intended to ensure that victims can speak about what has happened to them to whoever would be appropriate; and that any harmful behaviour is not hidden, thereby allowing opportunities for repeat offences and further victims.
We recognise that NDAs may be appropriate where there has been access to commercially sensitive information, and where it would be reasonable for an organisation to take steps to ensure that such information remains undisclosed. This pledge is not designed to encompass such cases.
If you represent an English provider of higher education, and you want to sign the pledge on behalf of your institution, please contact Samantha Boyce at the Department for Education: samantha.boyce@education.gov.uk
Devolved Nations
The Pledge has also been endorsed by the independent Department for Education in Northern Ireland, with all 5 Universities signed up. We are in the process of obtaining endorsement from our devolved partners in Scotland and Wales. If you attend a Welsh or Scottish university, please write to your Vice Chancellor urgently (see template) to encourage them to sign the pledge as currently none are signed up.
How the Pledge Began
On January 18 2022, Michele Donelan, Minister for Further and Higher Education in England, announced that universities must stop using NDAs for complaints about sexual harassment, bullying and other forms of misconduct. In her words, “I am determined to see this shabby practice stamped out on our campuses.”
The first step was a voluntary pledge which Minister Donelan and Can’t Buy My Silence are asking universities to sign on to:
“Backed by the Minister for Higher and Further Education, former Equalities Select Committee Chair Maria Miller MP and campaign group #CantBuyMySilence, we [our vice-chancellor and higher education provider] commit to not using Non-Disclosure Agreements to silence people who come forward to raise complaints of sexual harassment, abuse or misconduct, or other forms of harassment and bullying.”
Signing the pledge means that the provider undertakes to never use a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) in a case involving sexual harassment, discrimination, other forms of misconduct and/or bullying. It is intended to ensure that victims can speak about what has happened to them to whoever would be appropriate; and that any harmful behaviour is not hidden, thereby allowing opportunities for repeat offences and further victims.
We recognise that NDAs may be appropriate where there has been access to commercially sensitive information, and where it would be reasonable for an organisation to take steps to ensure that such information remains undisclosed. This pledge is not designed to encompass such cases.
Please check to see if your university has signed the pledge (See list below) and if not, please consider sending them this letter urging them to do so!
PLEDGE LIST
The following Universities have signed onto the Pledge to stop using NDAs for complaints about sexual harassment, bullying and other forms of misconduct.
REPORTING A BREACH OF THE PLEDGE - ENGLAND
We will have a process in place for reporting breaches in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland soon
English universities
Buckinghamshire New University
Edge Hill University
University of Exeter
Goldsmiths, University of London
Keele University
Newcastle University
Northumbria University
The Open University
University of Plymouth
University of Reading
UCL (University College London)
University of Warwick
University of the West of England (UWE Bristol)
University of York
Aston University
University of Bristol
Canterbury Christ Church University
Durham University
London South Bank University
Manchester Metropolitan University
University of Southampton
University of Sheffield
University of East Anglia
Middlesex University
University of Nottingham
University of Birmingham
University of Leeds
University of Lancaster
Bath Spa University
De Montfort University
Leeds Trinity University
University of Manchester
University of Chichester
Solent University
London Metropolitan University
Loughborough University
University of Kent
University of Winchester
Hartpury University and Hartpury College
Sheffield Hallam University
University of Liverpool
University of Leicester
Arts University Plymouth
Royal Holloway, University of London
University of Greenwich
Teesside University
University of Hertfordshire
University of Worcester
AECC University College
Royal Northern College of Music
Royal Academy of Music
NCG
University of Westminster
Harper Adams University
The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama
University of Bolton
University of Salford
SOAS University of London
BIMM Institute
University of Brighton
University of Gloucestershire
Brunel University London
Huddersfield University
University of West London
University of Sussex
University of Bath
University for the Creative Arts
University of Essex
Oxford Brookes University
Staffordshire University
University of the Arts London
King’s College London
Arts University Bournemouth
London School of Economics and Political Science
Liverpool Hope University
The National Film and Television School
Royal College of Art
University Centre Peterborough
Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance
University of Chester
Bishop Grosseteste University
Liverpool John Moores University
Queen Mary University of London
University of Hull
Plymouth Marjon University
oxbridge Colleges
Lady Margaret Hall Oxford
Keble College (University of Oxford)
Linacre College (University of Oxford)
Fitzwilliam College (University of Cambridge’)
Universities outside England
Cardiff Metropolitan University in Wales
Queen’s University in Northern Ireland
Ulster University in Northern Ireland
Stranmillis University College in Northern Ireland
St Mary’s University College in Northern Ireland
Open University in Northern Ireland
This list is updated on a weekly basis to include higher education providers that have most recently signed up to the pledge.
We reserve the right to remove the name of a pledge signatory from the list where there is evidence that the pledge has been breached. Where and when a satisfactory resolution of the breach, or alleged breach, has been resolved the name of the provider would be reinstated on the list of signatories.
GUIDELINES FOR IMPLEMENTATION
Guidelines for Implementation of the Pledge have been drafted with the team at the Department of Education, which originally co-sponsored the Pledge with CBMS. These are important for the practical implementation of the new law/ pledge, and we encourage you to share them with your own university.
student resources
We have been working with the NUS and campaigning group Not on my Campus to produce information to help you navigate your way through any form of confidentiality restrictions presented to you by your university or college.
