Speak Out is an online anonymous reporting tool developed by the sector through the leadership of the Psychological Counsellors in Higher Education Ireland (PCHEI), with funding from the Higher Education Authority .
“The catalyst for the development of Speak Out as a report and support tool, was the experience of counsellors across the country who found that students were finding it difficult to verbalise their experiences of sexual harassment and violence.”
– Tony McMahon, Associate Director for HR and Equality, Diversity & Inclusion
Anonymous reporting tools for incidents of sexual harassment and violence can be found across higher education institutions in Europe, the UK, the US, and Australia; a well-established mechanism for providing staff and students with a space to safely disclose their experiences. In this context also, UCD had already initiated and implemented a bespoke Report and Support tool in 2020.
Speak Out was developed as a bespoke tool in consultation with representatives from each Higher Education Institution, including staff from the counselling services, academic staff, and equality, diversity, and inclusion offices. The development was overseen by a steering group with representatives from the Higher Education Authority, the Union of Students in Ireland, and HEIs, as well as from external partners such as the National Women’s Council of Ireland, and Dublin Rape Crisis Centre.
The key goals of Speak Out are to:
- Provide a space for staff, students, and visitors to safely speak out about their experiences of harassment, discrimination and assault
- Promote the visibility of the support services available to staff, students, and visitors to the institution
- Contribute to the sectoral efforts to monitor & report on the trends of reported behaviours across HEIs
- Ensure policy and procedures are representative of the experiences of the HEI’s community & are accessible to all members
- Produce communications campaigns based on the culture of the HEI as reported
- Develop customised training programmes based on the culture of the HEI as reported
The tool utilises a series of questions and drop-down options which give the opportunity to those speaking out to provide details of their experience in a safe and anonymous way. It is the hope of Speak Out that the information provided by those who choose to speak out can help to inform the improvement of both educational initiatives and formal reporting procedures.
This tool has created a space for members of college communities to speak out about their experiences of bullying, cyberbullying, harassment, discrimination, hate crime, coercive behaviour/control, stalking, assault, sexual harassment, sexual assault, and rape.
Speak Out was launched in October 2021, and is live in all IUA universities, ensuring that one of the key outcomes of the Framework for Consent in Higher Education Safe, Respectful, Supportive and Positive – Ending Sexual Violence and Harassment in Irish Higher Education Institutions in relation to “Institutional Processes: Recording” is achieved, as follows.
- Institutions shall record statistics on harassment, assault, and rape and report them in the context of their strategic dialogue with the HEA.
- HEIs will create an easy to use system for students to disclose and report incidents, which would be reflected in a high level of awareness and understanding among both students and staff.
- The reporting system for students is compatible with complainant/survivor rights, cognisant of the needs of vulnerable groups, and has the confidence of the higher education community