Understand how to handle possible disclosures

As a result of the issues raised in these activities, it is possible a student may make a disclosure to you about a negative online experience, or that of another student. If this happens, acknowledge the student for doing the right thing by speaking up, and follow your school or setting’s safeguarding procedure as you would for any other type of disclosure. The aim of delivering the activities in this toolkit is to increase reporting of online sexual harassment. Remember, if the number of disclosures made goes up, this is not to say more incidents are happening. It is more likely that the number of incidents remains the same but more students have come forward to report them. This should be seen as a positive step in your school’s strategy to addressing online sexual harassment amongst your student community. Detailed advice on handling disclosures around online sexual harassment is found on p.8 of the Teaching Guide.