How universities can balance safeguarding and freedom of expression while protecting reputation

Universities in the UK are legally obliged to uphold freedom of expression, but must maintain safeguarding practices to protect their communities. Achieving a balance of these principles can be challenging, especially with social media and heightened public scrutiny amplifying reputational risk.

This guide presents strategies to help universities ensure compliance and safety while preserving institutional values.

Understanding the evolving legal and regulatory framework

The key legal duties that universities operate under include safeguarding obligations to protect students and staff from harm and the Equality Act 2010, which requires institutions to prevent discrimination, harassment, and victimisation.

The Counter-Terrorism and Security Act 2015, or Prevent Duty, obliges universities to help stop people from being drawn into terrorism. The more recent Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023 strengthens protections for lawful expression on campus. These duties can conflict on occasions, for example, when managing potentially harmful speech without veering into unlawful censorship. Universities should adopt a structured, transparent approach to compliance to ensure one obligation is not inadvertently prioritised to the detriment of another.

Developing robust policies and codes of conduct

Clear, well-drafted policies are essential for balancing rights and responsibilities. Universities should establish codes of conduct that set expectations for respectful engagement both on and off campus.

For those who breach those codes, there should be consistent and fair disciplinary procedures. Academic freedom statements are just as important to clarify an institution’s commitment to lawful expression. Staff and students should be able to easily access guidelines for digital engagement, covering appropriate use of social media, online platforms, and collaborative tools through training sessions and handbooks.

Managing controversial speakers and events on campus

Inviting external speakers has often been the cause of tensions between safeguarding and free expression over the past decade. The Higher Education Act 2023 (better known as the Freedom of Speech Act) obliges universities and students’ unions to facilitate lawful expression, even where content is divisive or unpopular.

To comply with the Act, institutions should establish clear speaker protocols, setting out procedures for approval. By conducting risk assessments that weigh both safety concerns and free speech duties, they can decide whether to host a guest speaker. When student protests occur, contingency plans can help ensure lawful demonstrations while maintaining order on campus.

Navigating these scenarios requires specialist knowledge of the new statutory duties. Consulting with education legal experts can offer invaluable guidance to mitigate legal risks while upholding safeguarding and reputational responsibilities.

Navigating online harms and student welfare

Behaviour like cyberbullying and harassment can quickly escalate and harm student welfare. Debates on campus can lead to malicious actors spreading extremist or discriminatory content, so universities should take a proactive approach with digital literacy programmes that teach students to evaluate online content and engage responsibly and critically.

Everyone in the university should be able to access monitoring and reporting mechanisms for online abuse linked to pastoral and safeguarding support. By providing accessible welfare support and clear pathways for reporting online harms, student trust will improve, minimising reputational risk.