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MPs to explore misogyny in Higher Education

5 September 2022

MPs are to question academics and experts on the attitudes towards women and girls in higher educational settings as part of the Women and Equalities Committee's ongoing work Preventing Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG).

In this session, a sub-Committee of MPs specifically investigating Attitudes towards women and girls in educational settings will meet in the second of three evidence sessions on the topic.

The sub-Committee will use the session to focus on the experiences of women and girls within universities and other higher education institutions, including staff-to-student sexual misconduct, 'lad culture' and spiking. The witnesses will also be questioned on the intersectional nature of violence, and how characteristics such as race, sexuality and disability may impact on students' experiences.

The session will also explore the effectiveness of reporting and intervention policies, both at an individual university level and pilots for nationwide projects such as the Equally Safe in Higher Education Project in Scotland.   

Witnesses

Wednesday 7 September

 

At 2.15pm 

  • Professor Cara Aitchison, Chair of Universities UK advisory group on addressing staff-to-student sexual misconduct
  • Ammaarah Faisal, Student Ambassador and Head of Research for Higher Education, Our Streets Now
  • John Edmonds, co-author of Unsafe Spaces: Ending Sexual Abuse in Universities

 At 3.00pm (approx.) 

  • Dr Rachel Fenton, Associate Professor in Law, University of Exeter
  • Dr Melanie McCarry, Senior Lecturer at School of Social Work & Social Policy, University of Strathclyde
  • Richie Benson, Universities Project Lead, Beyond Equality  

Please note that this evidence session was originally scheduled for Wednesday, 20 July.  

These evidence sessions are part of a larger body of work exploring Preventing VAWG. To find out more about this inquiry, including the recently launched inquiries into misogyny in music and the impact of pornography on violence towards women and girls, visit the Committee's webpage.  

Read the transcript from the first of the Sub-Committee's evidence sessions, which focused on early years, primary, and secondary schools, here.

Further information

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