At ACM, we’re firmly committed to creating and maintaining a safe, inclusive, and respectful environment across all our campuses. Our approach prioritises the prevention of harassment and sexual misconduct, while also providing clear and accessible support for those who experience it.
This webpage is your centralised source of information on how we prevent and respond to harassment and sexual misconduct, in accordance with the Office for Students’ Condition of Registration E6.
It brings together relevant policies, procedures, support services, reporting mechanisms, and preventative initiatives in one place. This ensures transparency, clarity, and ease of access for all students, staff, and visitors.
The information is organised into clear sections to help you find what you need quickly and confidently, whether you’re seeking help, guidance, or simply wish to understand our comprehensive approach.
2. Definition of Key Terms
Here’s a summary of key terms related to tackling harassment and sexual misconduct, along with illustrative examples of behaviours. Please remember these examples aren’t exhaustive.
You can find further definitions on the Office for Students website.
Consent
Consent is about freely agreeing to something, with the ability to make that choice. It must be active, continuous, and can be revoked at any time.
- Examples include: Clearly saying “yes” to sexual activity, or immediately stopping an activity if someone says “no” or becomes unresponsive.
Harassment
This covers any repeated unwelcome behaviour that undermines a person’s dignity or creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive atmosphere.
- Examples include: Name-calling or insults, offensive jokes, or repeatedly making unwanted contact.
For more information, please refer to Protection from Harassment Act 1997 and our Dignity at Work Policy (Harassment and Bullying) and Student Code of Conduct.
Sexual Harassment
A specific type of harassment, this involves any unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature.
- Examples include: Enquiring about someone’s sexual history, preferences, or intimate relationships; repeatedly asking a student or colleague out after they’ve said no; making sexual jokes; inappropriate touching or groping and openly discussing topics of a sexual nature.
Sexual Misconduct
This is a broader term for any unwanted or attempted unwanted behaviour of a sexual nature. It covers a range of serious actions.
- Examples include: Sexual assault, sexual harassment, and rape.
Abuse of Power
This happens when a staff member leverages their authority to influence or pressure a student, particularly in personal or intimate situations.
- Examples include: Offering better grades in return for romantic or sexual favours, or threatening poor academic results if their advances are rejected.
Staff Student Relationships
This refers to intimate personal relationships between staff and students. We strongly discourage or prohibit these to prevent any actual or perceived conflicts of interest or abuse of power.
- Examples include: Intimate personal relationships between academic staff and students they teach or supervise, or failing to disclose a personal relationship that could affect impartiality.
For more information, please refer to our Safeguarding, and Sexual Harassment Policies.
3. Reporting Harassment and Sexual Misconduct
At ACM, we utilise the ACM Safeguarding Disclosure for any member of staff, student, or visitor to our campuses who experiences abuse, bullying, harassment, hate crime, or sexual misconduct.
You can use this platform to share your concerns (anonymous sharing may limit our ability to respond) or to speak with an advisor who can explain the support and reporting options available to you, in line with our Dignity at Work Policy (Harassment and Bullying) Policy and Student code of Conduct.
The Student Sexual Misconduct Policy also outlines other reporting avenues. However, we encourage all students and staff to initially use the ACM Safeguarding Disclosure to access specialist support from a trained advisor.
Disclosing vs. Reporting
Disclosing means sharing your experience to gain personal support. At this stage, an investigation may not commence but ACM reserves the right to act on any concerns that pose a significant risk, and disciplinary action may not be taken. Students who have experienced an act of sexual misconduct are encouraged to make a disclosure through the ACM Safeguarding Disclosure or speak to a member of the Safeguarding Team.
Reporting is a formal notification that may lead to further action or investigation. You remain in control of the next steps, and support is available regardless of your choice.
4. Support for Those Affected
The ACM Safeguarding Disclosure
Request support, raise safeguarding concerns, explore reporting options, or speak with our safeguarding team using our confidential ACM Safeguarding Disclosure. You can report anonymously, though this may limit our ability to provide full support.
Alternatively, provide your details to access further assistance, including a referral to our Wellbeing Team.
Find out more and make a report
Student Support and Wellbeing Services
Our Student Support and Wellbeing teams provide tailored support across a range of areas. This includes assistance with mental health and wellbeing, disability and inclusion, financial and housing advice and international student support.
5. Investigating Harassment and Sexual Misconduct
When allegations of harassment and sexual misconduct arise, we rely on a clear framework of policies to ensure a fair and thorough investigation.
Here’s how we approach it:
Our Student Sexual Misconduct Policy clearly defines sexual misconduct and outlines ACM’s approach to prevention and redress. This policy applies to the conduct of registered students towards other students or staff members. The procedures within this policy detail how incidents are investigated.
The Dignity at Work Policy (Harassment and Bullying) and Student Code of Conduct establish both informal and formal processes for addressing and investigating allegations of harassment and sexual misconduct made by students against other students or staff. You’ll find that these policies are typically initiated by the individual involved (whether staff or student), putting them at the heart of the entire process.
In contrast, the Student Disciplinary Procedure is initiated by ACM and primarily focuses on managing non-academic misconduct, with more limited involvement from the reporting party.
For allegations of harassment and sexual misconduct between staff members, the Staff Grievance Policy will be used for addressing and investigating these concerns.
Both the Dignity at Work Policy (Harassment and Bullying), Student Code of Conduct and the Staff Grievance Policy detail how investigations will be conducted fairly, including expected timescales, the process itself, potential outcomes, and the appeal process.
6. Staff and Student Training
As part of our commitments under the Office for Students’ Condition E6, we ensure that everyone at
ACM is well-informed and understands:
● What constitutes harassment and sexual misconduct.
● How to access support and reporting services.
● The standards of behaviour we expect within our ACM community.
To meet this, all students and staff will be asked to complete a brief introductory training at the
beginning of each academic year. This training explains the Academy’s policy framework, including
where to find help and how to report concerns. It contains no personal case studies and is designed
to give everyone a shared foundation of knowledge, which we believe is crucial for maintaining a
safe and supportive learning environment.
The purpose of our training is to focus on fostering a culture where we look out for and stand up for
one another, blending policy, support structures, and practical guidance.
For both staff and students, there are additional e-learning activities available covering Consent,
Tackling Harassment, and Being an Active Bystander.
This training is backed by credible research,
designed by experienced specialists, and aims to deepen understanding while equipping
individuals with practical tools to support our community.
We understand that individuals may engage with these topics differently, and for some, certain
content might be emotionally challenging. We’ve built in the option for students to step away from
this training if needed. Data reporting of participation rates are monitored anonymously so no
personal data will be linked to individual learners. We encourage students to take the steps they
feel are right for them, and we’re committed to supporting your wellbeing throughout.
If at any point you’d like to access support or speak to someone confidentially, please consider
these services:
Throughout the academic year, we’ll run campaigns to promote awareness on topics related to
tackling harassment and sexual misconduct. These will include social media campaigns and sharing
information online.
By being informed and aware, we can collectively help foster a culture of respect, dignity, and
accountability at ACM.
7. Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs)
As of 1st September 2024, universities / Higher Education Institutions in the UK are prohibited from
using non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) in cases involving allegations of harassment or sexual
misconduct against students. ACM has, in fact, been compliant with this measure for several years,
even before the regulation was formally put in place.
This directive aligns with Condition E6.10 of the Office for Students regulatory framework. This
condition clearly states that education providers must not impose or enforce any contractual terms
that prevent or restrict a student from disclosing information about such allegations. It’s designed to
ensure students can speak openly about their experiences, support others, and contribute to a
culture of accountability and transparency within the institution.
We are deeply committed to fostering a safe and supportive environment where all allegations of
harassment or sexual misconduct can be raised, addressed, and learned from, without any fear of
enforced silence.
8. Staff / Student Relationships
At ACM, we recognise the importance of implementing measures that genuinely protect students from any actual or potential conflicts of interest or abuses of power. To this end, we’ve adopted a ‘notify and manage’ approach when it comes to relationships between staff and students.
Under this approach, an appropriate manager will conduct a risk assessment with both the staff member and student involved. The aim is to identify and put in place actions that proactively reduce and manage any possible conflict of interest or abuse of power. This assessment document will be stored securely, in line with ACM’s data protection principles as outlined in our Data Protection Policy. You can find further guidance on this in our Personal Relationships Between Staff and Students Policy.
9. Relevant Policies and Procedures at ACM
We have a range of policies and procedures in place to ensure a safe and respectful environment. These documents outline expected behaviours, how to raise concerns, and the processes for addressing incidents.
Students can find all relevant policies on the ACM website policy page.
Staff can access detailed policies and procedures via the online internal HR system.