Schoolchildren in Wales are being advised how to call out sexual harassment and “inappropriate behaviour” by other pupils at school. Schools inspectorate Estyn said schools don’t deal with sexual harassment well enough, don’t do enough to prevent it and don’t give enough time for pupils to learn about and discuss healthy relationships and sex.
Its new guidance to pupils, published on Wednesday, follows a report last year showing girls are regularly pressured to share nude photos and half of secondary pupils have experienced peer on peer sexual harassment. Pupils told inspectors that catcalling, being asked for nude pictures, people making hurtful or homophobic comments and body-shaming have become "a major problem".
The December 2021 report 'We don’t tell our Teachers', which included comments and experiences from 1,300 pupils aged 12 and 18, showed peer on peer sexual harassment happens mostly online and outside school, but children said it’s important that staff understand how common it is. Only two in 10 pupils who have experienced sexual harassment tell a teacher, half tell no-one at all and it happens so often that it’s viewed by many as “normal” behaviour, Estyn’s findings from 35 schools showed.
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The inspectorate hopes its new advice and recommendations will help address this and encourage pupils to report harassment. Its new report 'We Don’t Tell our Teachers, But Schools Need to Know', is published on Wednesday and is being sent to all schools in Wales and to Education Minister Jeremy Miles. The document, which has recommendations on how to prevent peer on peer sexual harassment, is clear that inspectors don’t think schools aren’t doing enough to tackle the problem.
“Unfortunately, not all schools in Wales deal with sexual harassment well enough," the report says. “Staff in schools usually respond appropriately to incidents of pupil sexual, harassment that are reported to them, but most schools are not doing enough to prevent those incidents from happening in the first place.”
Inspectors said schools are not properly detailing bullying and harassment when it is reported. The report adds: “The way that all forms of harassment and bullying are recorded in schools needs to be more detailed to allow staff to respond to incidents properly. When schools record incidents of bullying and harassment they do not always note the type of bullying or harassment that has taken place. Having more detailed and specific information means that schools could consider the extent of the problem and how well they deal with pupils on pupil sexual harassment.
“Schools do not provide enough time for young people to learn about and discuss healthy relationships, sex and sexuality in a safe, comfortable and open way.” It tells pupils: “We’re concerned by our findings, which show that this issue is happening more often than we think and becoming a major problem for young people and schools."
The report goes on to advise young people to “report any issues” to school staff, a family member, or an adult they trust, and urges: “Don’t be afraid to talk about it – whatever it may be”. Estyn urges schoolchildren to “stay safe online” and report any inappropriate behaviour as soon as possible, giving contact details for Childine, the NSPCC and the Children’s Commissioner for Wales.
Looking at how schools could change how they address peer on peer sexual harassment, the report advises pupils that they can suggest to their teachers what topics they want to talk about in health and well-being or PSE lessons, and look at what’s happening in their school to see what improvements could be made to prevent and respond to peer on peer sexual harassment.
Inspectors suggest questions pupils could ask include:
- How much of a problem is pupil on pupil sexual harassment in your school? Have you ever had an opportunity to discuss this issue in school?
- What positive steps does your school take to prevent pupil-on-pupil sexual harassment?
- If you experienced sexual harassment, who could you tell in school about it and what would they do?
- How does your school promote the importance of respecting everyone within the school?
- How does your school celebrate the differences between people, including differences in gender and sexuality?
- How helpful is the personal and social education (PSE) programme at your school? Does it prepare you for the challenges of growing up in the modern world? Are topics introduced at the right age? Is enough time given to learn about and discuss them? Are there any important topics that are missing?
- How often are people from outside school brought in to lead relationships and sexuality sessions? How helpful are these?
- Are you able to discuss relationships and sexuality in an open and honest way with school staff?
- What information on LGBTQ+ is provided by your school and what is discussed in your RSE lessons?
- How does your school work with parents and other people to prevent pupil on pupil sexual harassment?
Recommendations for schools include creating an anonymous and confidential system for pupils to report any concerns about sexual harassment - which could be a digital platform or a physical comment box in the school, inspectors suggest. Schools could also start discussions with different groups of learners, ask for training for young people to become pupil support ambassadors and allow opportunities to make suggestions to teachers.
Owen Evans, the new Chief Inspector at Estyn said: “Young people shouldn’t have to deal with sexual harassment in any form and we’re concerned by the findings of our recent report, which show that this issue is becoming a major problem for young people and schools and is happening more often than we think. This behaviour must be challenged across society.
“We all need to work together to change attitudes and behaviour around peer-on-peer sexual harassment and we would encourage schools to develop a ‘whole school’ approach to educating and challenging on this issue.” To follow the latest news on the biggest issues affecting Wales, subscribe to our Wales Matters newsletter here.
