Lancaster are introducing compulsory consent classes for freshers

On the first day at university, all new students already receive a basic introduction to the issue of consent as part of their college welcome talk, which is then reinforced the following day with a specific session with an expert in consent training.

These events are compulsory components of freshers’ week and all new students must attend. As a new addition to the consent campaign, this year’s freshers will also receive a printed welfare guide containing information on consent and access to additional resources on the students’ union website.

Communications manager of Lancaster University, Bob Hart, told The Tab: “We don’t believe it’s enough to talk about this issue only at the start of university, and we take a number of other steps to ensure that the message is heard year-round.”

These include actions such as displaying consent campaign materials in the students’ union owned Sugarhouse nightclub and making consent training available on request via our Women’s Forum. Working with the students’ union, Lancaster University recently created a mobile app designed to make it easier for students to report a range of incidents including harassment of any nature.

This will be heavily promoted to all students on- and off-campus in the run-up to the start of the new academic year.