Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make it her policy to legislate for an additional statutory duty of care for students in higher education.

It is a departmental priority that students are provided with the mental health support they need so that everyone, regardless of the challenges they face, is given the opportunity to thrive.

The department understands the arguments for a statutory duty of care and shares the aims of those calling for this, which are to protect those who study at university and to prevent future tragedies. If creating a statutory duty of care in this space was the right way to achieve this, it would have the government’s full backing. However, the department believes creating such a duty for higher education (HE) providers is not the most effective way to improve outcomes for students.

Currently, a duty of care exists in common law as part of the law of negligence. This legal position is recognised in Universities UK guidance. The department is aware that the decision in Abrahart v. University of Bristol is being appealed in the High Court and will be monitoring this closely.

There are other relevant legal protections that already apply. The Equality Act 2010 imposes a duty on providers to make reasonable adjustments where students with a mental health disability would otherwise be put at a substantial disadvantage. Providers must also fully observe health and safety obligations and requirements to safeguard vulnerable adults, as well as contractual obligations.

There may be unintended consequences of legislating at this time. There is a risk that a one-size-fits-all prescriptive approach might stifle new and innovative practices, given there is no consensus yet on which interventions are most effective. While HE providers need to provide excellent pastoral services, we must be careful not to place a duty on them which requires them to provide services the NHS has more specialism in delivering.

The department believes there are more effective solutions to improve outcomes for students in the near term. Our approach is focussed on three pillars:

• Funding and resourcing vital services
• Spreading and implementing best practice
• Clear responsibilities for providers and protection for students.

As part of the first pillar, the department has asked the Office for Students (OfS) to distribute £15 million this academic year so support can be targeted towards students who are starting university for the first time. This funding will also enable effective partnerships between providers and local NHS services so students can better navigate the pathways for mental health provision.

Through our second pillar, we are challenging the sector to deliver on supporting student mental health, including by setting a target for all eligible universities to sign up to the Mental Health Charter by September 2024. The department is confident the sector will rise to the challenge, having made great progress with the production of robust frameworks for best practice over recent years If we do not see a proactive and positive response from the sector, the department will not hesitate to ask the OfS to explore targeted regulation to protect student interests.

We have also made clear to the sector that we expect all relevant providers to follow broader best practice guidance shared with them by Universities UK and mental health experts.

Through work with the LEARN Network, the Student Support Champion Professor Edward Peck has identified areas for further improvement, which forms the third pillar of our approach. To deliver on this, Edward Peck will Chair a Higher Education Mental Health Implementation Taskforce, which will produce a plan for better early identification of students at risk, a University Student Commitment on dealing with students sensitively on disciplinary issues, and a set of clear targets for improvements in practice by providers. The Taskforce will include parent and students, mental health experts, and sector representatives. An interim plan is expected to be put in place later this year, with a final report to follow by May 2024.

The department wants to ensure all universities can learn from tragic instances of suicide by ensuring lessons are shared across the sector. A National Review of University Suicides will be commissioned, to be carried out by an independent organisation.

We owe it to our students to do even more to protect their mental health and wellbeing. This can only be achieved by the government, the sector, experts, parents, and students working together collectively towards this shared goal.