#9 Preparing for the Gender-Based Violence (GBV) Code: Beyond Consultation

This article is the ninth instalment in a 12-part series supporting institutions to prepare for the proposed National Code to Prevent and Respond to Gender-Based Violence in Higher Education.

When it comes to tackling gender-based violence in higher education, there’s one principle that cuts across every standard in the new National Code: students must not just be consulted and embedded in the design, delivery, and accountability of prevention and response.

Why student voice matters in this work

At its most simple it’s about recognising that the people most affected by these policies and systems, and most exposed to their shortcomings, should have a say in shaping them. Student voice, when done meaningfully, improves policy relevance and clarity, campaign effectiveness and reach, trust in systems and processes and impacts long-term cultural change

For leaders and decision-makers:  

• Formalise student representation in governance: Ensure students are part of GBV steering committees, working groups on policy, prevention, and response, risk and safety reviews, evaluation and reporting discussions.

  
  

• Pay and recognise student contributors: Too often, students are asked to share lived experience, review sensitive documents, or co-deliver training for free. Respect their expertise by paying them for advisory roles, recognising involvement through leadership programs or transcript acknowledgement and providing support for the emotional labour this work can involve

  
  

• Invest in student capacity-building: This might include briefings on institutional systems and governance, training in trauma-informed practice or respectful communication or mentoring from senior staff or alumni. Student input improves when students feel prepared to contribute and safe to challenge.

For practitioners leading the work:

• Involve students in prevention strategy: From respect and consent modules to O-Week programming, students should help decide what’s being said, how it’s delivered and what’s missing. Co-create messaging, pilot content, and always ask: “Would this land with students?”

  
  

• Partner with student organisations and leaders: Student unions, women’s collectives, queer departments, international student reps, and college RAs are natural allies. Build relationships before you need them and invite them in early and often. They can amplify key messages, raise issues you’re not seeing and pressure-test your assumptions

  
  

• Create feedback loops and act on them: Whether through anonymous forms, peer-led forums, or end-of-program surveys, make it easy for students to tell you what’s working (and what’s not). Then make sure you share what you’ve heard, say what you’ll change and follow up with progress updates.

Quick wins:

• Co-design a respectful relationships charter with students in residences

• Establish a paid student GBV advisory panel that meets quarterly

• Run “policy hackathons” with diverse student groups to improve language and access

• Partner with student creatives to design campaign materials that actually resonate

If we truly want to prevent and respond to gender-based violence, then the people most affected must be part of the solution from the start.

Interested to learn more? Read the rest of our series: Raising the Standard: A Practical Blog Series on Preventing GBV in Higher Education