Findings were in audit of policies tackling sexism, bullying and

They are being told to 'take

Universities are trivialising student sexual harassment cases by asking victims to reconcile ‘informally’ with their attackers, campaigners have warned.

The National Union of Students said institutions were forcing victims to ‘take responsibility’ for incidents by advising them to talk to their tormentors before reporting them.

Such an approach means the victim must have direct contact with the culprit and ‘does not guarantee their safety’, it warned.

Campaigners have warned that universities are trivialising student sexual harassment cases by asking victims to reconcile with their attackers

The findings were contained in the union’s latest audit of university’s policies to tackle sexism, bullying and harassment.

The ‘Lad Culture’ report found a number of universities are failing to adequately tackle sexist yobbish behaviour on campus.

Only half of the 35 institutions examined had a formal policy on sexual harassment and only 1 in 10 had a policy that covers the display of sexist and discriminatory material.

Equality and harassment policies are in evidence in the majority of institutions, but many were ill-defined, the report found.

The union said policies were not relevant to ‘lad culture’ and at times unclear on what is meant by ‘sexual harassment and assault’.

It also hit out at university complaints procedures, which ‘often put the onus on victims to try to resolve matters informally first.’

In one example, a university policy read: ‘Speaking to the person who is causing you distress is always an informal option and an approach preferred by many in delicate circumstances.

‘This is because sometimes individuals are genuinely not aware of the offensive effect of their behaviour and will naturally stop when it is brought to their attention.’

Another policy said: ‘You are encouraged to attempt to resolve the matter informally at the earliest opportunity with the individual concerned as it is often the case that the alleged harasser is not aware of the impact of his or her behaviour.’

The NUS report said: ‘There is a real danger these policies are forcing victims rather than institutions to take responsibility for addressing difficult situations.

Oxford University undergraduate Ione Wells (pictured) penned a moving open letter after she was sexually assaulted near her home in London

‘If institutions fail to provide clear or sufficient information on victim support programmes available, the situation may be even further compounded.’

The report also warned that there was no information in the policies about the circumstances in which an informal approach would not be appropriate.

It added: ‘Clearly for cases of serious sexual harassment and assault, advising people to try first an informal approach can be problematic: it tends to minimise the impact of the offence and pushes the victim to have a direct confrontation with her/his aggressor.

‘It also does not guarantee a victims’ safety and assumes the behaviour of the offender will be changed simply by having an informal chat.’

In order to act on the findings of the audit, nine university student unions including Oxford and the London School of Economics have volunteered to take part in a pilot scheme to tackle lad culture.

NUS Women’s Officer Susuana Amoah said: ‘Yes - women can participate in education, work and social activities, but that doesn’t mean that these spaces are accessible to all women or that women are treated fairly and respectfully.

‘In fact, harassment, violence and blatant discrimination can make education and other spaces inaccessible for many students, not just women.’

It comes after an NUS study in 2010 found 1 in 7 women students had been the victim of serious sexual assault or serious physical violence while at university or college.

Earlier this year, the principal of Somerville College, Oxford, expressed concern over increased reports of rape jokes and groping.