15 per cent of University College Cork students have experienced a non-consensual sexual experience, with a third of students having faced unwanted physical contact in a university setting, according to a new survey from UCC.
Even more concerning was that 82 per cent of students do not know where or how to report a sexual offence to university authorities.
The results have been published to coincide with a new group Know Offence – a campaign to help students affected by sexual violence.
Set up to break the taboo of sexual offences, the group also hope to help publicise advice and support services both on and off-campus for those affected.
Speaking on the launch of the survey, Ruth Lawlor from the Know Offence campaign team said:
"What is potentially most worrying is the evident lack of knowledge surrounding this issue. The survey revealed that 7% of respondents were not sure whether their sexual experience had been consensual or not. The vast majority of students do not know where to report a sexual offence to university authorities in order to seek disciplinary action against the offender.
“This is something that UCC is committed to working on, and we are happy to report that the university has given us its full support in this regard. The purpose of Know Offence is, essentially, to fill in these gaps in knowledge so that UCC students may access the services they need. It is also important to recognise that this survey represents only a small segment of students in UCC, and actual incidences of sexual violence on campus could be higher."
The Know Offence campaign will officially launch their information pamphlet for students on March 23rd at 6.30pm in the Council Chambers at University College Cork.
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