Support students during the National Student Safety Survey

The third national survey will run from 14 September to 12 October 2026, and students will begin receiving email invitations from 14 September.

Conducted by Universities Australia (UA), the National Student Safety Survey (NSSS) helps universities better understand how students get information about relationships and consent, their experiences of sexual harassment, technology-facilitated abuse and sexual assault, and their awareness of support and complaints pathways. Previous surveys were conducted in 2016 and 2021.

Addressing gendered violence

UNSW has been working to strengthen the prevention of and response to gendered violence since 2016, with academic experts at UNSW’s Gendered Violence Research Network laying the foundations.

Find out more in the Gendered Violence Prevention & Response Annual Reports.

In 2024, the Safer Communities team was established to bring together staff from across UNSW to coordinate gender-based violence (GBV) prevention and response initiatives. Specialist staff were engaged to respond to incident reports through student and staff support teams, a new student consultation group with paid participation was established, mandatory GBV education for students and staff was introduced, bystander training was delivered, online reporting was streamlined and our capacity to collect incident data improved.

In 2025, the Safer Communities team coordinated the UNSW response to the National Higher Education Code to Prevent and Respond to Gender-based Violence. Working with stakeholders across UNSW, they developed a new strategy and policy, introduced new approaches to risk management and assessment in student and staff settings, including with student residential partners, and developed and implemented the Gendered Violence Portal campaign to promote awareness of support pathways in close partnership with students and ARC.

In 2026, UNSW launched the new Gender-based Violence Prevention and Response Plan and Policy. Additional staff currently focus on redeveloping prevention and response education, implementing trauma-informed processes in teams across UNSW, continuing to establish appropriate ways to manage risk related to incidents and UNSW activities, and establishing program evaluation. Work has also commenced to refine the user experience of online reporting and address the extensive data reporting requirements of the National Code.

The Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Education and Student Experience, Professor Sarah Maddison, is also getting ready to launch Sextember, UNSW’s annual student event supporting good relationships, sexual health and sex education.

This work will continue in 2027, alongside new education initiatives for students and staff, focused on trauma-informed responding to disclosures and bystander skills, and a campaign on technology-facilitated forms of gendered violence, developed in partnership with students and ARC.

Supporting student disclosures

If a student shares an experience of gendered violence with you, you can find guidance, including record-keeping responsibilities, on the UNSW Gendered Violence Portal website.

If a student is very distressed and needs help straightaway, you can contact UNSW Psychology & Wellness.

UNSW Security can also assist. You can use the SafeZone app to phone Security.

Free, confidential 24/7 support is also available as part of NSSS support.

Support for your experience

You can access free and confidential support through the UNSW Employee Assistance Program (EAP).

For support at work, speak with your supervisor or a People & Culture People Partnering team member about support for safety and workplace adjustments, including domestic violence leave.

Not sure where to start? Use the UNSW Gendered Violence Portal to connect with specialist UNSW staff to discuss your options.

You can do this anonymously – the portal enables you to create an anonymous profile and log in to view messages from specialist UNSW staff.

Responding to students’ survey questions

Students can find information about opting out of the survey and providing feedback in their survey invitation email.

There is extensive information about the survey in the NSSS frequently asked questions.

Topics addressed include opting out, accessibility, confidentiality and completing the survey.

Please encourage students to review the information in their invitation email or in the NSSS FAQs. Students who still have concerns can contact the Nucleus Student Hub.

Want to learn more?

Contact safercommunities@unsw.edu.au.