Written submission from Plan International UK (SVS0066)

1. Introduction

About Plan International UK

1. Plan is an international development and child rights organisation that has been working for 78 years. We work in 50 countries worldwide. Recently our global girls’ rights campaign has called for girls to be free from violence and to get the education, skills and support they need. We are particularly focused on helping adolescent girls aged 10-19. For many girls, adolescence brings an increased threat of abuse or violence and a denial of rights and choices. Plan believes that girls’ rights are universal; it shouldn’t matter where you were born or where you live, you should be safe, free from abuse and have equal rights. This includes in the UK.

Executive Summary

2. It is important to understand the international context and national scale of sexual harassment and violence in schools for a gender-specific approach to be taken so that girls in particular can ‘learn without fear’.

3. Attitudes and behaviours which perpetuate violence against women and girls (VAWG) within the wider community can filter into school communities. ‘Lower level’ acts of sexual harassment should not be taken for granted, and can build up to more extreme acts of violence. Harassment and violence in school causes distress and low self-esteem for girls.

Plan supports:

4. The call for statutory PSHE (Personal, Social, Health & Economic) education and SRE (Sex and Relationships) guidance to be updated, to include gender-specific policies and guidance which challenge ‘lad culture’.

5. Better read-across from the VAWG (violence against women and girls) strategy to secure gender-specific guidance to be included for girls where this is not apparent in guidance on safeguarding, bullying or online safety.

6. A ‘whole school’ approach to address gender equality, stereotypes and sexual contact; these could include: language, teaching materials, careers advice and work experience, sports.

7. A review of the legal framework and guidance framed by girl’s rights in relation to sexting and online harassment. We would be keen to see a balance struck between sexual exploration and sexual exploitation, where child pornography legislation can be too heavy-handed to deal with images taken consensually between young people as part of sexual exploration.

2. Establishing the scale of the problem

An international perspective

8. While children’s vulnerabilities and experiences vary across and within countries, sexual harassment and sexual violence in schools is a global phenomenon. School-related gender-based violence is correlated with lower academic achievement and economic security, as well as greater long-term health risks. It perpetuates harmful gender norms and acts of gender-based violence across generations.

9. Our report Learn Without Fear (2013)[1] found that:
• In a school year, 246 million children worldwide will be affected by violence at school
• Globally an estimated 150 million girls and 73 million boys have experienced sexual violence, many within schools
• Nearly half of all sexual assaults are committed against girls younger than 16 years of age
• 62 million girls don’t go to school worldwide, with violence and harassment one of the main reasons

A national perspective

10. In 2015 we asked our Youth Advisory Panel (young people from across the UK who volunteer to campaign and advocate with Plan and advise us on our work) what issue they wanted to address. Violence and harassment in schools, both globally and in the UK was the issue they chose to work on.

11. Therefore, this year Plan commissioned ICM to poll over 2,000 women across Britain. Almost a fifth of British women aged 18 and over said they had experienced unwanted sexual contact in or around school as young girls, but the majority did not report it.

12. One in 5 (22%) reported some experience of sexual touching, groping, flashing, sexual assault or rape whilst they were in or around school. Almost half that number (10%) say the abuse occurred ‘sometimes’ or ‘frequently.’ Almost 3 in 5 (61%) of those who had experienced abuse said they never reported it.

13. The findings also revealed that almost 1 in 3 adults (32%) aged 18-24 years in Britain have experienced unwanted sexual contact in or around school, while 1 in 10 (11%) aged 65 plus report having the same experience. 

14. Additional findings from the report reveal that 65% of those surveyed who have witnessed unwanted sexual contact happening to others in school have also experienced it. While 68% of those who have experienced unwanted sexual contact in schools have also witnessed it happening to others.

15. Our understanding of the problem includes:
• Name calling, language, unwanted sexual touching, stealing or damaging belongings, sexual harassment and sexual assault in school
• Name calling, language, unwanted sexual touching, sexual harassment and sexual assault on the journey to and from school especially in school uniform
• Sexting, cyber-bullying and cyber harassment based on relationships from school

16. More common, everyday types of violence include verbal aggression and other kinds of disruptive behaviour which teachers say seriously impedes teaching and learning.[2] ‘Lower level’ acts can build up to extreme acts, and should not be taken for granted. We must not overlook the effect of cumulative violence and harassment, something UK law is only just beginning to come to terms with.

A gender-specific approach

17. When understanding gender based violence in and around schools it is important to note that attitudes and behaviours perpetuating violence against women and girls (VAWG) within the wider community can filter into school communities.

18. It has long been understood that VAWG is part of a 'broad context of power inequalities at the individual, group, national and global levels'. It can play out in the classrooms, the playground and within youth peer-groups, and it can include: pupils engaging in physically, sexually or emotionally harmful teen-relationships; pupils involved in online bullying or 'sexting' (one in four 11-18 year-olds has received a 'sext' by phone or email[3]); pupils coping with relationship abuse at home between parents/carers; and school responses to coercive practices such as female genital mutilation (FGM) or forced marriage.[4]
19. Plan’s major national campaign on this matter, Learn Without Fear, made the links between harassment of girls internationally and the situation in the UK. This was a very popular campaign with the UK public, both adults and young people. In its various forms the film was viewed well over 1,500,000 times and the campaign was so popular with young people it became one of the top five trending tweets in the UK during our Youth Action Festival in December 2015. 

20. “…. I'm a 14 year old girl in year 9, and I really like this video… because it describes my life 😂 In my school there's loads of boys who sexually harass girls. There's a few boys in my class who have done the same thing to the girl, to me. 'Accidently' hitting my bum, 'accidently' scraping my thigh. Teachers are completely oblivious and we don't say anything because, honestly, we're scared…” Girl, 14

How much sexual harassment currently occurs in primary and secondary schools?

21. In the UK, several groups have highlighted growing concerns over the issue of gender based violence in schools. The results of numerous surveys are very concerning, for example:
• Almost a third of 16-18-year-old girls say they’ve been subjected to unwanted sexual touching in UK schools[5]
• A poll of 788 16-18-year-olds around the UK conducted by YouGov also found that nearly three-quarters (71%) of all 16-18-year-olds (ie boys and girls) say they hear sexual name-calling with terms such as “slut” or “slag” used towards girls at schools on a daily basis or a few times a week[6]
• In 2015 it was announced that more than 5,500 alleged sex crimes in UK schools were reported to police in the last three years. At least a fifth of offences were carried out by children, so-called "peer-on-peer" abuse[7]
• A global survey including the UK found that 19% of women surveyed said that street harassment had led them to miss school or skip classes[8]

22. The Plan Youth Advisory Panel also felt it was important to highlight that girls tell us being harassed on the journey to and from school is a significant issue. School uniform also appears to play a factor in girls receiving unwanted attention: "…we get catcalled usually when we are going to school or going home”.

Who are the targets of harassment and who are the perpetrators?

23. Girls are the main targets with almost 60% of girls and young women aged 13 to 21 reporting sexual harassment at school or college.[9]

24. “We asked girls [in my girls group at school] about their experiences of violence and harassment. Girls from as young as 11 were talking about different instances of violence of harassment, from men shouting at them in the streets, trying to take photos up their skirts or simply staring them up and down as they walked by. They also spoke about how this behaviour is normalised in schools; when boys act inappropriately (one girl spoke of a boy who undid her bra strap whilst she was in class, another talking about how boys would see no problem with coming up and hugging them or touching their bums without consent) and it is not challenged, boys then grow into men and still believe that this appropriate”. Girl, 17 (interviewed by Plan)

How well is the problem being recorded and monitored?

25. We do not know enough about the extent of this issue without centrally held records at school or national level, where stronger gender analysis is needed, to read-across safeguarding, child protection, bullying and violent incidents; and where sexual harassment and violence can go unreported. Evidence tells us that gender can impact reporting. Some girls, for example may accept sexual harassment as part of being female, while boys may feel that telling a teacher about bullying undermines their masculinity.[10]

26. This year, Plan sent out Freedom of Information Act requests to 45 police forces in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland requesting information on rape and other types of sexual offences that took place in the location of schools. In particular, we requested information about:

• Type of offence
• Age of suspect/offender
• Gender of suspect/offender
• Gender of victim
• The outcome (charge, caution, etc.)
• Who the suspect/offender was, by which I mean teacher, school staff, pupil, parent or other.

27. Of these 45 Police forces, 6 declined to supply the information, with the most common reason being that the information requested was not held in a retrievable format, and that to locate and retrieve the information would require more time or labour that would exceed the cost limit stipulated by the act.

28. In addition to this, numerous police forces were only able to supply parts of the information requested, with some forces failing to provide any information other than the number of attacks recorded on school premises. In some instances, some police forces did provide an opportunity for such data to be recorded, but the data recorded was done so inconsistently. For example, in some circumstances police forces provided categories by which to identify the age, gender and occupation of both victim and suspect, but a high percentage of data in these categories was logged as ‘unknown’ or ‘data not recorded’.

3. Understanding the impact of sexual harassment in schools

What impact does sexual harassment and sexual violence in school have on girls and young women; boys and young men; and teachers?

29. From our global research we know that harassment and violence in school causes distress and low self-esteem for girls; globally it also prevents girls from attending school. In the UK we feel more evidence is needed and welcome this select committee inquiry, as we know from girls that it makes them unhappy and undermines their confidence.

30. We also believe that it is important to view the young person’s life in the round, their relationships and particularly social media cross between different spheres of family, social and school and therefore problems may develop and escalate outside school but play out in school and vice versa.

31. Overall the impact on girls can be a combination of factors:

• To be afraid to go to school or drop out altogether
• To struggle to concentrate in class, preventing progress, missing exams or lower grade qualifications
• To suffer physical pain and short or long-term psychological problems, or pregnancy through sexual violence
• To be ostracised by peers and lack the confidence to speak up

D.     What can be done to reduce levels of sexual harassment and sexual violence in schools?

What measures are currently in place to address this issue? How adequate are they?

32. Gender in bullying policies: Many school bullying policies talk about children and do not have a thorough gender analysis which is needed to meaningfully address sexual harassment and violence.

33. Teacher training, capacity and support: In talking to teachers we hear a strong drive to address sexual harassment and violence meaningfully with children. However, we have also heard that teachers struggle to take on training and to have the capacity to learn about this issue and tackle it effectively. Teachers need both effective information and tools and the time and capacity to put them into place.  Plan International UK is developing tools that highlight the global problem of sexual harassment and violence in and around schools connecting the international with the experience in the UK.

What evidence is there of schemes proven to reduce levels of sexual harassment in schools in the UK or elsewhere?

34. Data and evidence: We do not know enough about the extent of this issue and the impact. Such work in particular needs a strong gender analysis to look at the differing experiences and opinions of boys and girls.

35. However, Plan has been investigating the positive impacts of comprehensive sexuality education globally. Our research demonstrates that it is a key part of a quality education and ensuring gender equality.

• In Rwanda Plan supports teacher training for comprehensive sexuality education using innovative technologies (via ipads) to encourage participatory approaches. Use of an online manual and training videos have already increased teacher confidence in teaching CSE.
• In Zimbabwe, Plan is supporting the development of the Gender Equity Movement in Schools (GEMS) which is a school-based approach to foster more gender-equitable norms among adolescents.

Can schools tackle this problem individually or is national action needed to reduce levels of harassment?

36. More can be done by schools to tackle the issues, in particular support for teachers to prevent and manage incidents of sexual harassment and contact in schools. Support materials for schools and advice for individuals is mostly gender neutral, when there is a need for gender-specific guidance in PSHE and SRE and a whole-school approach from anti-bullying to gender equality and stereotyping.

• “…If it isn't challenged in schools, and it becomes common place there, then why wouldn't it be appropriate in a club, in the workplace etc”. Girl, 17 interviewed by Plan UK

• “As for teaching sexual harassment at school: they teach girls not to get harassed rather than teaching boys not to do it." Young person interviewed by Plan UK

37. National action is needed to support schools and ensure better read-across from the VAWG strategy in guidance and materials for safeguarding, child protection and anti-bullying. Where there needs also to be a review of legislation for online harassment and sexting (see below).

38. Nationally there needs to be a challenge to ‘lad culture’.  For example:

39. Plan’s Safer Cities programme works with girls to help them understand gender inequality and the negative impacts of gender based violence, it them works with them to assess their city based on where they do and do not feel safe. Girls analyse why their gender makes a difference to their sense of safety and the impact of violence and harassment. They then develop solutions for change and target decision makers. The analysis includes street based harassment and can address the journey to and from school. Plan is running the programme in Vietnam, Deli, Egypt and is being developed to run in Kinshasa and London.

40. Plan works with boys and young men in many of its global programmes and as members of its Youth Advisory Panel. Young men have also identified that they themselves want to be part of the solution and want the safe spaces and support to explore solutions and understand the problem. Champions of Change is building a long-term, sustainable social movement through the active involvement of young men in gender equality processes. This model is innovative in working with adolescent boys and girls using a peer-to-peer approach. Meaningfully engaging boys and young men and then girls and young women in separate groups and then together helps in reframing healthy definitions of masculinity and femininity and is critical in promoting the rights of girls and young women.

What role can OFSTED play in monitoring and enforcing action on reducing sexual harassment and sexual violence in schools?

41. We would encourage DfE and OFSTED to read-across from the Sexting within the strategy to end Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG), for gender-specific guidance to be included for girls where this is not apparent in guidance, Ofsted criteria or anti-bullying.

What action would be most effective in reducing levels of sexual harassment and sexual violence in schools?

42. Plan has worked with young people in the UK on the subject of violence and sexual harassment in schools for the past 20 months, including holding a major youth action festival led and designed by young people. The young people attending were asked throughout the day to consider their solutions to the problem. They ran workshops which looked at specific issues to consider possible solutions.

43. Recommendations from young people included:

• Improved sex and relationships education, especially focusing on consent

• Equality education in schools and have schools work to break down gender stereotypes about gender roles and behaviour

• Have clear messages from government to say harassment in schools is not acceptable and take violence and harassment of girls in school seriously

• Remove the acceptance of cat calling girls in all spaces

• Involve boys and young men in all of the education, campaigns and awareness raising to end violence and harassment of girls in school / Boys and young men are part of the solution

• Remember that other identity issues, like ethnicity, race and disability discrimination, can also affect the bullying and harassment that girls face

• More awareness raising campaigns on this issue to make it clear it is not OK

44. Therefore, Plan is calling for:

• High quality, statutory sex and relationships education to help young people understand about healthy relationships and consent
• A commitment to preventing violence against girls at all levels by making sure bullying policies address gender and violence against girls
• Schools to adopt a ‘whole school’ approach to address gender equality, stereotypes and sexual contact; these could include: language, teaching materials, careers advice and work experience, sports
• Support for teachers to prevent and manage incidents of sexual contact in schools
• Provisions are in place so that schools are a safe place where girls – and boys – can report their concerns

5. What can schools do to support students to deal better with the online elements of this problem?

How adequate are schools’ current responses to sexting and online sexual harassment?

45. On-line safety has not generally been framed through a gender analysis and gender-specific interventions are not a focus of the main agencies. Support materials for schools and advice for individuals is mostly gender-neutral. However, sexual harassment is shaped by the gender dynamics of the peer group in which, primarily, boys harass girls; and where girls are unable to openly speak about sexual activities and practices, while boys are at risk of peer exclusion if they do not brag about sexual experiences. There is also strong evidence that girls face much greater pressure or coercion to send sexts and much harsher judgements when those images are shared beyond the intended recipient[11].

46. Yet anti-bullying policies do not seem to address two key factors:
• Gender and the gendered nature of sexual harassment online and via digital
• The ubiquity of mobile technologies in which messages could be sent repeatedly, and in which non-response (ignoring it) could lead to very public ‘punishments’.

47. In addition: we are concerned that the police (and schools) should be careful of criminalising young people. We would be keen to see a balance struck between sexual exploration and sexual exploitation and abuse. We would call for young people to be referred to support services, and gender-specific interventions, rather than prosecuted.

What can schools do better to support their students to deal with sexual harassment and sexual violence online?

48. Sexting illustrates the tremendous pressure young people feel to act sexually - coercively, dominantly, or submissively, as an exhibition of gender status when the sexual objectification of girls is social (sometimes actual) currency disproportionately harms girls. The London School of Economics study (2012) found girls most adversely affected by sexting; and one in three UK teenagers has received ‘sexually suggestive’ messages.[12]

49. Non-consensual sharing of sexual images is part of a broader culture in which girls’ and women’s appearance and sexuality are constantly viewed and sexualised in the street, at work, and in school. Girls seem to be sexting because they are being pressured to share pictures and are socialised by ‘lad culture’ to believe that at it’s important to please boys and men, even if it hurts them.

50. To educate young people about sexting, PSHE/ SRE guidance, should recommend single sex groups as it can be closely related to sexual bullying, in order to free both boys and girls, separately, to discuss the issues they perceive and the pressures they face online or offline. The curriculum should make the links to sexual violence and sexism in popular culture to recognise (and challenge) sexting and cultural behaviour – ‘lad culture’

51. We would hope to see that those young people who do share images are referred for agency support and intervention. It will be essential that this include gender-specific interventions and agency support.

52. In addition: this is an ideal opportunity to review legislation which was not designed originally to deal with such issues as sexting and where it makes no distinction between adults and children, and no gender-specific reference.

53. We encourage the Home Office and the Government Equalities Office to read-across from the approach to sexting within the strategy to end Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG), to secure gender-specific guidance to be included for girls where this is not apparent in guidance on safeguarding, bullying or online safety.

What impact is pornography having on levels of sexual harassment and sexual violence in schools?

What can be done by schools and other stakeholders to tackle the impact of pornography?

54. As a member of the Sex Education Forum, Plan supports the call for high quality Sex and Relationships Education (SRE) to address the realities of pornography with young people. Good quality, comprehensive SRE addresses a range of issues relevant to pornography including body image, consent, power, gender and healthy relationships.[13]

55. Schools providing inadequate SRE are failing to address contemporary issues such as pornography and sexual exploitation. Ofsted consulted pupils for their PSHE report[14] and consequently recommended that schools address issues such as pornography and domestic violence within SRE.