Equally Safe in Higher Education Toolkit: Guidance and Checklist for Implementing a Strategic Approach to Gender-based Violence Prevention in Scottish Higher Education Institutions

This Guidance is predicated on the vision and aim of Equally Safe which provides a framework and reference point for preventing GBV in Scottish Higher Education Institutions. Equally Safe is endorsed by a wide range of statutory, public and third sector agencies all of whom play key roles in the oversight and delivery of the strategy at a national level through the Equally Safe National Delivery Plan (Scottish Government 2017). This Guidance reflects Equally Safe’s four priorities: 1. Scottish society embraces equality and mutual respect, and rejects all forms of violence against women and girls. 2. Women and girls thrive as equal citizens: socially, culturally, economically and politically. 3. Interventions are early and effective, preventing violence and maximising the safety and wellbeing of women and girls. 4. Men desist from all forms of violence against women and girls and perpetrators of such violence receive a robust and effective response. (Scottish Government 2016a: 3) An opportunity now exists for Scotland’s Higher Education Institutions to contribute to the implementation of Equally Safe. The Equally Safe in Higher Education (ESHE) Toolkit was developed to provide Scottish HEIs with an approach to preventing GBV that will create a step change in how universities approach issues of inclusivity and equality. By acknowledging the need to address GBV at an institutional level, the ESHE Toolkit aligns itself with the Scottish Government and the United Nations in their recognition that GBV is both a cause and consequence of gender inequality.