Half of student sexual assaults involve drug or alcohol use

One in five students at the University of Oxford say they have been sexually assaulted while more than two-thirds have experienced sexual harassment, the second survey of its kind at the institution has found.

Of the 1,097 people to respond, 20 per cent reported that they had experienced at least one act of attempted or forced sexual touching or rape within the previous year.

Women were more than twice as likely to report sexual assault than men, according to the latest findings of the “Our Space” (Oxford Understanding Relationships, Sex, Power, Abuse, and Consent Experiences) research project.

The overall figure is slightly down on the previous survey’s findings, in which, of the 1,318 respondents who answered at least one question, 21 per cent said they had experienced assault.

But sexual harassment has become much more prevalent, with more than two-thirds of respondents (69 per cent) reporting at least one incident in the past year, and more than four in five women saying they had experienced it. In the previous survey, 53 per cent said the same.

Researchers note that the first survey was conducted during the Covid-19 pandemic, at a time of significantly reduced social interaction, while the latest was conducted in 2024.

Forms of sexual harassment covered by the survey include harassment via electronic communication and unwanted attention.

When describing their most significant experience of sexual assault, respondents most often identified perpetrators as men and, in most cases, reported them to be fellow students. Romantic or former romantic partners accounted for nearly one-third of perpetrators, researchers found.

“We weren’t necessarily surprised to see higher rates in the instances of sexual violence in this survey,” lead author Bridget Steele, told Times Higher Education, noting both the pandemic’s impact on previous research and the “sense of what other research teams were finding” about global misconduct rates.

But one of the more crucial findings was, Steele suggested, the significance of “alcohol and substance use as a very clear risk factor for perpetration”. Most assaults reported by respondents occurred at university locations and, in more than half of cases, respondents said their perpetrator had been using drugs or had consumed alcohol.

“The link between alcohol and sexual violence has largely been focused around survivors’ experiences and protection and student safety and responsible substance use in order to protect one’s self from experiencing hurt,” Steele said, but added that this conversation should be widened to incorporate how substances affect the risk of engaging in perpetration.

The published findings are believed to represent the first time an institution in the UK has repeated a prevalence survey on sexual misconduct.

The study notes that its survey was administered prior to the implementation of the Office for Students’ (OfS) E6 regulatory conditions on sexual misconduct, which in August 2025 introduced new expectations for how providers handle complaints and monitoring relating to the issue.

Student experiences and perceptions could therefore “be expected to shift”, the research states.

Asked whether universities were doing enough generally to counteract the issue, Steele, who is also on the OfS’ advisory group for its national survey of harassment and sexual misconduct, said: “I think we’re moving in a positive direction.

“Many universities are delivering consent training to students…it’s not going to be a solution to everything but it does send a powerful signal from universities that they acknowledge [sexual misconduct] is happening and is important.”

An Oxford spokesperson said: “Sexual misconduct, harassment and violence have no place at the University of Oxford. We are committed to fostering a safe, respectful and inclusive community and to preventing and responding to sexual misconduct through evidence-based policies, education and support.”

They said the survey findings will help inform the university’s work strengthening prevention and response strategies, including a “bespoke online training programme for new students from 2026-27”.

georgia.luckhurst@timeshighereducation.com