Sexual misconduct support for staff

The NHS sexual safety charter

The Trust promotes a culture that encourages openness, transparency and safety where employees feel safe raising concerns, and feel listened to.

Those who work, train and learn within the healthcare system have the right to be safe and feel supported at work. Organisations across the healthcare system have committed to working together to tackle unwanted, inappropriate and/or harmful sexual behaviour in the workplace.

What is the sexual safety charter – and why do we need it?

Sexual misconduct in the workplace includes violence, assault and harassment. This description includes any kind of sexual activity or act (within the physical or digital workplace) that is uninvited, unwelcome or non-consensual.

Although some people are at greater risk of experiencing sexual misconduct than others. More women experience sexual misconduct than men and that black, ethnic minority, disabled and LGBTQ+ people experience sexual harassment and abuse at a disproportionate rate.

The priorities set out in the NHS England sexual safety in healthcare charter has been designed to outline the ways in which the Trust aims to support any employee experiencing or affected by sexual misconduct in the workplace, along with educating colleagues who want to support others around them.

The ten principles of the NHS sexual safety in healthcare charter are that, as an organisation:

We will actively work to eradicate sexual harassment and abuse in the workplace.
We will promote a culture that fosters openness and transparency, and does not tolerate unwanted, harmful and/or inappropriate sexual behaviours.
We will take an intersectional approach to the sexual safety of our workforce, recognising certain groups will experience sexual harassment and abuse at a disproportionate rate.
We will provide appropriate support for those in our workforce who experience unwanted, inappropriate and/or harmful sexual behaviours.
We will clearly communicate standards of behaviour. This includes expected action for those who witness inappropriate, unwanted and/or harmful sexual behaviour.
We will ensure appropriate, specific, and clear policies are in place. They will include appropriate and timely action against alleged perpetrators.
We will ensure appropriate, specific, and clear training is in place.
We will ensure appropriate reporting mechanisms are in place for those experiencing these behaviours.
We will take all reports seriously and appropriate and timely action will be taken in all cases.
We will capture and share data on prevalence and staff experience transparently.

Ongoing work to ensure the measures taken to implement the Charter remain effective, and progress is undertaken by the Trust’s Violence Prevention and Reduction Steering Group.

Resources

Frequently asked questions

I have been a victim of a sexual assault or incident. What should I do?

Nobody has the right to sexually assault someone or make them feel unsafe at work. There is no time limit for reports of sexual misconduct to be received and we encourage any person who has experienced an incident like this to raise it with their line manager as soon as they can.

I am still shaken up by what has happened. Should I wait before I report it?

We recognise that a person who experiences a sexual assault or similar incident may find it difficult to talk about.

We encourage colleagues to raise issues as soon as they are able to; we will discuss the issue at a pace that feels comfortable and safe for you.

Colleagues will be listened to with compassion and provided with support to feel confident and safe to talk about what has happened.

I don’t feel comfortable raising this issue with my line manager. Is there someone else I can talk to?

Yes. If you don’t feel comfortable speaking to your line manager for whatever reason, there are a number of other individuals and teams that you can speak to in confidence.

You can speak to the People Advisory Service, or Occupational Health, or the 24/7 Freedom to Speak Up Guardian Service.

The incident that happened to me occurred some time ago, should I still report it?

There is no time limit for reports of sexual misconduct to be received and we encourage colleagues to report all incidents, even if they happened a while ago.

We want to ensure, as much as we can, that colleagues have the support in place to recover from these incidents and that people who cause them are prevented from doing so again in the future. This can still be done even if the incident happened a while ago.

What happens after I raise a concern?

Once you raise a concern with your line manager, they will firstly ensure that you have access to the appropriate wellbeing support. Following this, and after discussions with you to ensure that you are comfortable in proceeding, the trust’s Resolution Policy will be followed.

When appropriate, the Trust’s Disciplinary Policy will also be utilised in respect to a staff member who may have committed sexual assault or exhibited sexually inappropriate behaviour.

You can also discuss whether you wish to report the incident to the Police.

The person who assaulted me/behaved inappropriately is not someone who works for the Trust. Should I still report it?

We strongly recommend that you do. Although the process for managing the incident is different, we are still able to provide you with the support that you may need.

Should the incident be due to the actions of a patient or visitor, we are able to work with our security team to address the issue and prevent it from reoccurring, up to and including the exclusion of individuals from Trust premises and the involvement of the Police.

Should the incident have happened outside of work, including incidents of domestic violence, we can help you get the support you need to address the issue and reclaim your safety.

Will I get in trouble or be blamed for what happened to me?

Absolutely not. You are safe to share with us and we are here to help you. Your wellbeing is our first priority

Will the incident be reported to the Police?

We are not able to report an incident to the Police on behalf of colleagues, but we will fully support colleagues in raising incidents with the Police should they wish to do so.

We strongly advise colleagues who are thinking of raising an incident with the Police to raise it with the Trust first so that we can provide that support and help work with the Police to fully investigate the incident – but you do not have to do so.

In either case, we will work openly and constructively with the Police as part of any investigations that are opened.

I have not been assaulted, but something has happened that made me feel sexually unsafe. Can I still raise a concern?

Yes, and we encourage colleagues to do so. We recognise that inappropriate behaviour short of an assault can still have a significant impact on people’s wellbeing. If you have been made to feel sexually unsafe you can raise your concerns and receive the same support from the organisation.

Someone who I manage has raised a concern with me. What should I do?

The most important immediate action for managers is to ensure that colleagues are safe and supported. Talk to them about what they have experienced to the extent which they feel able to share information; colleagues may not feel comfortable going into detail straight away.

The Trust has created a standard operating procedure to support staff following an incident along with internal and national support for colleagues that have experienced sexual assault or inappropriate behaviour. This can be found in the Sexual Misconduct in the workplace guidance should be shared and/or discussed with the colleague.

Please note that any referral to the Staff Psychological Support Service, Occupational Health or any other wellbeing support provider should only be done with the express agreement of the colleague who has shared their concerns/experience.

The Trust’s Resolution Policy contains details of how to take a concern forward if it relates to a member of staff.

The colleague who has shared their experience may wish to report the incident to the Police, and should be supported if they wish to do so. In some rare cases, it may be necessary to undertake immediate action relating to an individual to ensure the safety of colleagues.

If the concern relates to the actions of a patient or member of the public, the security team will be able to advise and assist you with next steps.

Should the concern relate to something that has happened outside of work, including incidences of domestic violence, we are still able to support colleagues to address these issues although the Trust’s role is different.

How can I make sure that my team and I are more aware of sexual safety issues?

All staff are encouraged to complete the e-learning programme on Understanding sexual misconduct in the workplace and how to recognise and respond to disclosures of sexual misconduct safely and appropriately.

A training programme on Identifying and Responding to Sexual Assault and Abuse – elearning for healthcare (e-lfh.org.uk) is also available for clinical healthcare workers.

Access to training is via the Trust IRIS learning platform.

References