Alan Farrell (Dublin Fingal, Fine Gael)
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332. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the status of the inclusion of mandatory consent classes in third-level institutions in Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15586/22]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Deputy for their question on this important matter. Since the start of the 2020/2021 academic year, my Department has worked with the HEA Centre of Excellence for Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) and the sectoral representative bodies to ensure the national, sectoral and local roll out of:

- Online consent training for all incoming students;

- Online bystander intervention training for all incoming students;

- An Anonymous Report and Support Tool for issues of bullying, harassment, and sexual harassment.

HEIs were requested to consider making consent classes mandatory for incoming students from the 2020/21 academic year. In practice it has not been possible to ensure all students take these classes, however all HEIs offer consent or bystander intervention programming as part of induction for new students. Progress reports submitted to the HEA in November 2021 show a continued increase in student engagement with this type of educational programming.

Sectoral guidance in relation to mandatory consent training is being developed by the HEA Advisory Group on Ending Sexual Violence and Harassment in Higher Education Institutions.