The National Women’s Council of Ireland (NWCI) has called for sustained funding for the work of the National Advisory Committee on tackling sexual harassment and sexual violence on campus. The National Advisory Committee is currently led by the NWCI (whose director Orla O'Connor is pictured above), as part of its EU funded ESHTE project (Ending Sexual Harassment and Violence in Third Level Education, which runs the web site itstopsnow.org).

The call was made, at the National workshop meeting on consent in Higher Education, convened by Minister for Higher Education, Mary Mitchell O’Connor, in Dublin Castle today.

“We welcome the serious commitment by Minister Mary Mitchell O’Connor to tackle the issue of sexual harassment and violence on campus and to bring together all relevant stakeholders at this event today,” Jennifer McCarthy Flynn, Head of Policy, NWCI said. "Sexual harassment and violence on campus are unacceptable and urgent action from all relevant bodies is required to develop an effective response.

"In our National Advisory Committee for the EU funded ESHTE project,” she added, "NWCI has been privileged to be working with nine higher education institutions and their student representative bodies, representing the majority of the student population in Ireland, An Garda Síochána, Cosc, the Union of Students in Ireland and specialist support agencies. We have created a trusted space, where institutions and people can share their experiences and develop shared responses and policies in relation to sexual harassment and violence on campus.”

Jennifer McCarthy Flynn made a strong case for further funding of the National Advisory Committee.

“We believe the ESHTE National Advisory Committee provides a unique model to bring the work that students, institutions and NWCI have been doing over the past years on this issue to the next level,” she explained. "In line with commitments made in the National Strategy on Gender Based Violence, NWCI calls on the Government to sustain funding for the work of the ESHTE National Advisory Committee to continue and expand its work, once the EU funding ceases in March 2019, bringing on board all publicly-funded Higher Education Institutions and associated student bodies in Ireland. Only if all of us work together will we be able to ensure that women students are safe from violence and harassment on campus."

The full list of participants in the National Advisory Committee is listed below.

National Advisory Committee Members (Ireland)

Lead

National Women’s Council of Ireland

Higher Education Institutions

Dublin City University (DCU), Dublin Institute of Technology (DIT), Dundalk Institute of Technology (DKIT), Institute of Art Design and Technology Dún Laoghaire (IADT), Queen’s University Belfast (QUB), Trinity College Dublin (TCD), University College Cork (UCC), University College Dublin (UCD), University of Limerick (UL)

Student Unions

Dublin City University SU, Dublin Institute of Technology SU, Dundalk Institute of Technology SU, Institute of Art Design and Technology Dún Laoghaire SU, Queen’s University Belfast SU, Trinity College Dublin SU, University College Cork SU, University College Dublin SU, University of Limerick SU, Union of Students of Ireland (USI)

Statutory

An Garda Síochána, Cosc- National Office for the Prevention of Domestic, Sexual and Gender-based Violence

Non-Governmental and Support Organisations

Dublin Rape Crisis Centre, Sexual Violence Centre Cork, Irish Observatory on Violence Against Women, Irish Student Health Association, Confederation of Student Services in Ireland, Galway Rape Crisis Centre