Brook responds to the announcement of the review of sexual harassment in Welsh schools

Brook welcomes the news that the Wales education watchdog is to conduct a review of sexual harassment in schools. No young person should be subject to the behaviours described on Everyone’s Invited, particularly in schools and colleges, which should be a place where they feel safe. Sadly for many young people that is not the case, as the recent Ofsted review highlighted, and so it is encouraging that Estyn is also working to understand the scale of this problem within Welsh schools. 

We welcome any focus on tackling rape culture, sexual harassment and violence. Brook knows from experience that excellent work can and should begin at an early age and be reinforced at school to lay the foundations for better awareness and understanding of consent and healthy relationships. But schools need adequate support to do this and wider society and government also have huge roles to play. We await the findings of the review and hope that its recommendations help ensure that abuse and harassment in schools is tackled effectively.