A Rape Crisis centre raised concerns with Centre for Women’s Justice (CWJ) about several girls who were not being appropriately safeguarded at school. They reported instances where the perpetrator of a sexual assault was a boy in the same class or the perpetrator was able to make contact with the girl around school. In some cases, girls who had reported rapes to the police were studying in isolation at school whilst the accused boys remained in the classroom.
CWJ arranged a meeting between Rape Crisis staff and a barrister specialising in education law. A template letter was prepared jointly with the barrister, setting out schools’ duties and drawing attention to relevant parts of the Department for Education’s guidelines, including guidance that boys who are suspects should be removed from the class, rather than the girls who have reported sexual assault.
The Rape Crisis centre used the template letter in a number of cases. They found that schools were unaware of the relevant Department for Education guidelines. The letters resulted in safeguarding meetings with school staff and families, at which solutions could be explored and girls and their families could input their views. In some cases, the schools agreed new safeguarding arrangements, including moving the boy out of lessons and a safety plan for in-between lessons, so girls could feel secure and focus on their studies.
A further six Rape Crisis centres in England & Wales have since begun using this template letter.