2021 National Student Safety Survey: UTS report

National Student Safety Survey logo with copy that reads - Your voice can help create a safer place

Last September, Universities Australia commissioned an independent national survey conducted by the Social Research Centre into the prevalence of sexual harassment and sexual assault of university students.

On Wednesday 23 March, the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) welcomed the release of the 2021 National Student Safety Survey (NSSS) findings and thanked all UTS students who participated in this survey. Their views and experiences will help us better understand and act upon these important issues and help inform and accelerate practical changes to safeguard our students’ physical and emotional wellbeing.  

The national report shows that the prevalence of sexual assault and sexual harassment among students remains comparable to community prevalence for the relevant demographic groups. The rates, however, remain unacceptably high. 

UTS is committed to providing a safe environment for students and to educating and influencing the behaviours and attitudes of the next generation, as well as supporting research that creates positive social change. 

The NSSS provides a valuable opportunity to hear directly from our community about the conversations and resources we need to prioritise for the next stages of work in this area.  

While much has been done in recent years, particularly through the UTS Respect.Now. Always. program (listed below), we recognise there is more to do. 

The NSSS findings will augment and guide our collective efforts to ensure a safe, equitable and inclusive learning environment for our diverse student communities. We believe that our work also extends beyond our campus and that real change involves all of us working together.  

UTS has undertaken a number of initiatives in recent years that work to tackle sexual assault and sexual harassment including: 

  • Reinforcing student and staff support services  

  • Expanding capacity building for our community with the rollout of programs such as Consent Matters, eSafety training and Trauma-Informed Design Research training   

  • Updating policies and procedures 

  • Co-designing a culture change framework for the UTS community  

  • Implementing a whole of university culture change program through our Respect.Now.Always. campaign work, including becoming signatories of the Greater Sydney Women's Safety Charter and membership of the newly formed National Women’s Safety Alliance 

  • Cross university collaborations with UTS’s Centre for Social Justice and Inclusion and Women in Engineering and IT Program to launch UTS’s inaugural Gender Equity showcase. 

We appreciate that conversations about the NSSS and its results can be distressing for members of our university and wider community. The report will contain discussions and descriptions of sexual harassment and sexual assault. If you would like to speak to somebody for support, a range of confidential resources is available to you.  Find more information about UTS’s counselling and support services.

 

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Acknowledgement of Country

UTS acknowledges the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation, the Boorooberongal people of the Dharug Nation, the Bidiagal people and the Gamaygal people, upon whose ancestral lands our university stands. We would also like to pay respect to the Elders both past and present, acknowledging them as the traditional custodians of knowledge for these lands.