The 2021 Ofsted Sexual Abuse Report
After a year of COVID chaos, UK schools were dealt another huge blow. In March 2021 the publication of fourteen thousand testimonies of sexual abuse and harassment on the Everyone’s Invited website triggered an immediate Ofsted investigation.
If the police cannot police sexual violence, how are schools meant to?
The results of the rapid review were published in June and the findings were eye watering. Interviews with over 900 children and young people revealed that 90% of girls and 50% of boys had been sent unsolicited explicit photos, or videos, and 92% of girls, and 74% of boys had endured sexist name calling. Ofsted concluded that sexual harassment in schools was so frequent that young people now accepted it as ‘commonplace’. No one had a good word to say about Relationships, Sex and Health Education (RSHE). Young people generally considered the lessons to be too little, too late, and said that they bore no relationship to the reality of their lives.
in sex ed in school basically all we learn about is straight relationships. I'm lesbian, and I do know about stuff, but I was wondering if anyone could help me out here, is it safe? like how do I have safe sex as a lesbian is there any protection or is it just safe? sorry if this is kind of weird idk how better to say it Tellmi app user aged 16
The inadequacy of RSHE is hardly surprising given that half of all teachers who deliver the lessons were found to have received no formal training on RSHE. As a result, one of Ofted’s primary requirements is for schools to increase training for teachers and to improve the curriculum to include information on sexual harrassment, sexual violence, consent and the risks of sending ‘nudes’. Young people want much more than that. As soon as the Ofsted report was published we asked Tellmi users what they would like RSHE lessons to include and they told us that that they want explicit guidance on sex, pleasure, romance, repect, emotions, expectations, abuse, pregnancy, STDs, masturbation and sexuality. Their comments, which provide very straightforward insights into the gaps in the existing curriculum, are listed at the end of this article.
Schools have also been tasked with ensuring that young people are ‘confident to ask for help and support when they need it’. That is a very tall order. The young people who were interviewed for the Ofsted review made it clear that they were afraid to ask for help because of the risk of social ostracisation and punitive measures for abusive peers actually put young people off talking to an adult about abuse. Most perpetrators of sexual violence in, or out, of school are either friends, partners, ex-partners or family members, and once an issue has been disclosed, a young person has no control over what happens next.
I’m going to tell my teacher about my sexual assault but I’m scared about what will happen after I tell her. I’m also scared that I’m overreacting about it and I’ll create a massive thing about it and lose my friends. Tellmi app user aged 15
Young people were also unsure that they would be believed, and they worried that they might even be blamed. This is not exclusive to schools. It is true for all victims of sexual violence. Currently, just 10% of 16 - 19 year olds who have been raped report what has happened to them to the police. Since the majority of young people do not report harassment or assault to schools, or to the police, it is hardly surprising that some schools were found to underestimate the scale of the problem, or were oblivious to the fact that sexual assault is even happening. As a result, Ofsted has concluded that schools must assume that sexual harassment and online sexual abuse are happening.
If the police cannot police sexual violence, how are schools meant to?
Schools have been instructed to introduce stricter sanctions in response to reports of sexual harassment and online sexual abuse, yet the Ofsted review also acknowledges that peer-on-peer sexual harassment doesn’t actually happen on school premises. It happens online, at parties, in parks, on public transport, outside school hours and in places that are beyond the reach and responsibility of teachers. Expecting schools to sanction digital harrassment, or sexual violence that does not even happen on school grounds is unrealistic. And even of course, when schools do report serious assault or rape to the police, criminal investigation rarely leads to a prosecution. The current conviction rate for rape in the UK is a shameful 1.4%. Iif the police cannot police sexual violence, how on earth are are schools meant to?
I was raped this summer. I eventually told my mum and she told the police but the case was dropped due to lack of evidence. Every time someone mentions the word rape now I break down. How can I get over this? Tellmi app user aged 13.
Tellmi helps young people to talk about difficult things
It is going to take more than better RSHE and additional teacher training to break down the social and emotional barriers that stop victims of sexual assault from coming forward. When it comes to disclosing difficult or personal issues, talking anonymously and having direct access to straightforward advice, guidance and support is the best way to help young people to feel more confident. This is precisely what was revealed by an independent evaluation of the Tellmi app which was conducted by the Evidence Based Practice Unit (EBPU) at the Anna Freud Centre in 2020. The study, which involved 876 young people, found that anonymity made it easier for young people to be open and they were able to connect with other young people with similar experiences in a safe, but meaningful way. They felt comfortable in expressing their feelings, thoughts, and experiences freely, without worrying about being judged, and using the app led to a statistically significant increase in young people’s confidence, knowledge and mental health management skills. Overall, young people using the app reported feeling better and less alone and using the app helped them to gain confidence in both connecting to, and helping others on and offline.
Sometimes I think I really over-share on this app but I’m really grateful for it because some of the things I ask people about on here, I wouldn’t feel comfortable talking in person about. I get answers to anything here and that’s why I feel so safe. It’s so comforting <3 Thank you to Tellmi and anyone who replies to posts giving advice ily <333 Tellmi app user aged 15
Tellmi Data insights tell the real story.
The Ofsted report also mentions that some local safeguarding partners have begun working with schools to track and analyse data from schools, and understood children’s experiences of sexual harassment and violence, including online. That is something that Tellmi can help with too. Because the app is 100% pre-moderated by humans, all our data is categorised by topic and risk assessed. That means we can see the frequency of sexual assault and rape by age, gender and date, at both a National and local level and if you are part of the Tellmi Insights service, we can provide you with data from your own school. We have data from more than 1276 young people who have been raped or sexually assaulted and their lived experience provides invaluable insight into this complex and difficult issue. The posts we see tell the real story of the impact that sexual violence has on family relationships, friendships, trust, faith in the justice system, academic concentration and confidence, but the most notable consequence of sexual assault is increased mental ill health.
I’m regretting leaving school before getting A levels. I was 16 and didn’t have a clue what it meant for me. I left because of sexual assault and friendship issues and I had serious mental health problems. I wish I could turn the clock back. Tellmi app user aged 19
The link between sexual violence and mental health issues
There is a well evidenced link between sexual violence and mental health issues. Data from the 2020 Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW, 2020) shows that in 2019, 63% of female rape victims and 47% of male victims experienced mental or emotional problems, and one in ten victims attempted suicide as a result (CSEW, 2020). In 2018, Dr Sophie Khadr at University College London conducted a longitudinal study of 13-17 year olds girls attending Sexual Assault Referral Centres serving Greater London. She found that six weeks after assault, the young women had extremely high levels of depressive, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress symptoms. Five months later, 80% of them had at least one psychiatric disorder, and 55% had multiple disorders. The most common mental consequence of rape, or sexual assault, is PTSD. Young people who have been raped are also 13 times more likely to try to kill themselves and 26 times more likely to have problems with substance abuse and self-harm according to research by Elizabeth Hughes at the University of Leeds.
I feel so trapped. I self-harm every day to cope and still barely make it through the day, I have been continually bullied and sexually assaulted, but I have no friends, and my school and my family are useless. I constantly feel depressed, I have nothing to live for and nothing to look forward to in the future I just wish I had the balls to kill my self Tellmi user aged 16
Sexual violence is a crime perpetuated against women
Government guidance already outlines more than 30 statutory policies for schools which address bullying, safeguarding and child protection, sex and relationships education, data protection, equality and inclusion, behaviour and sanctions. Perhaps, instead of conducting more reviews and creating more guidelines, it is time to be honest about the fact that sexual violence is a social problem which has been exacerbated by the unregulated proliferation of free pornography and is largely perpetuated against women. Although young men, particularly those who are LGBT, are often the victims of sex crimes, 90% of recorded rape victims are female. The recent UN Women UK survey found that 86% of women aged 18-24 had been sexually harassed in public spaces and data from the 2020 Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW, 2020) shows that in 2019, nearly one in four (23.4%) girls under the age of 24 was raped or sexually assaulted. One-third of those victims were less than 15 years old, and crucially, in 75% of cases, the perpetrator was a male aged between 20 and 39 years. That fact alone confirms the responsibility for this problem does not belong to schools alone.
We have been down this road before
Ofsted have now given schools a shopping list of requirements to put in place to protect young people, but we have already been down this road and it is a dead end. In 2015 a BBC freedom of information request revealed that nearly 4,000 alleged physical sexual assaults and more than 600 rapes in schools had been reported to the police in the preceding 3 years, a Women and Equalities Committee Green Paper on ‘Sexual Harassment and Sexual Violence in Schools’ tasked Ofsted with ensuring that every child had access to high quality, age-appropriate relationships and sex education delivered by well-trained individuals. They were also meant to be assessing schools on how well they were responding to incidents of sexual harassment and sexual violence. In order to achieve these goals it was recognised that sex and relationships education (SRE) needed to become a statutory subject and that greater investment in teacher training and strengthening relationships with sexual violence specialists and local third sector specialist support would be required. The Green Paper concluded that these achievable actions would help to ‘significantly reduce the incidence of sexual harassment and sexual violence in schools’. How wrong they were.
What young people want to learn about in RSHE
LGBTQIA+ stuff, it would’ve really helped me coming out
I think they should teach how women’s bodies react as well
information about how to access contraception. maybe looking at the differences between sex in porn and sex in reality. even basic stuff like don't open a condom packet with your teeth. I went to a catholic school and I feel like they used that as an excuse to just not give us any sex ed. I'd really like to see schools like the one I went to teach even basic sex ed, we simply didn't get any.
They should teach about mental health with regards to sex, pleasure, romance, abuse, pregnancy, STDs, masturbation, sexual orientation, religion, expectations, etc..
I know that someone from my class last year asked about how 2 women have sex and the teacher just went oh I’ve got to go see if I can tell you that then went to find another teacher. When she came back she said I can’t tell you guys that. Like what!? If u r teaching about how a man and a woman have sex then why can’t you explain how LGBTQ+ people have it. I feel like they should be much more inclusive.
not entirely related but, the natural ways our bodies change. Like how body hair and stretch marks are completely normal, hygienic and healthy. And how body shape is likely to change all through life for no visible reason, but that's normal and healthy and fine too
There needs to be more LGBTQ+ taught in schools. My school barely teaches us anything.
i think sex ed is very important, schools shouldn’t promote abstinence, they should promote safe sex, talk about more about female pleasure and masturbation, contraception and def gay sex!
how to deal with emotional and physical abuse, how to say no, how to recognize toxic relationships ❤️
Gay relationships, rape, signs of abuse (mainly emotional as this is harder to spot), losing your virginity, feeling no pressure to be in relationship -its fine to be single. I don't know whether this counts but why you go through puberty eg. why do get stretch marks or why you get larger hips for a woman. Like it is all very scientific no one talks about emotions. I think talking about the emotional side might help with things like body dysmorphia etc.
About consent and SA! Both for boys and girls, and the societal issues that surround it. Also make boys learn about periods too, and contraception. LGBT too! Sex ED was not thorough and not inclusive :( I really didn’t learn anything.
I think we need to educate on catcalling and sexual abuse. We all need to be taught that's its really wrong. Maybe some safety tips especially women's safety. And how to cope if you become a victim, where to get support and the process of reporting the crime Gay sex and more about consent and respect in relationships
I think they should teach about the feelings that you can get as well, and the bodies reaction to it. I think they should also teach responsibility, and when you’re emotionally ready.
I find it weird but they kinda should...maybe in secondary schools though. only because it is kinda important…
That it’s ok not to rush into these sorts of things just to fit in and that you’re not weird for not losing your virginity at 13
Well I’m in yr 8 and it really annoys me that we don’t talk about gay sex because I’m gay.