St Andrews heads sexual misconduct complaints table
St Andrews has had the most sexual misconduct complaints of any Scottish university, with 64 made against students and staff since 2017.
The oldest and most prestigious university in the country came out top of the table in new data with six allegations being made against members of staff.
There have been eight sexual misconduct claims this year alone at the university, whose alumni include Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge and actress Siobhan Redmond.
The academic year ending 2021 saw the highest annual number since with 18 sexual allegations made by students or staff against fellow students or staff at St Andrews.
The new figures obtained also showed 13 allegations were recorded against students at Dundee University between 2017 and 2021, with six logged this year.
Seven reports have been made against staff and students at Abertay University since 2017; however, Abertay defines these as sexual assault allegations rather than sexual misconduct.
While the St Andrews numbers are significantly higher, the universities have stressed that they operate separate reporting systems, so cases may be logged differently.
Student rolls also differ at each location – with more than 16,000 at Dundee, 10,000 at St Andrews and 4,500 at Abertay.
But one campaigner has suggested that high numbers could show a reporting system which encourages students to come forward.
Six claims of sexual misconduct were made against
staff at St Andrews from 2017 to 2021 and three against staff at Abertay, with none at Dundee.
One former student, known only as Miss M, dealt with St Andrews University's reporting system after being raped on a night out in Fife in September 2013.
She said: "The student services provided a safe space for me to decide what to do after I had been raped.
"They provided me support and discussed through the options available.
"When I made the decision to come forward to the police, they supported me every step of the way."
She added: "Regarding the figures in this report, I think it is a positive that so many students have felt confident to come forward and get support.
"High figures should reflect
a supportive and welcoming university rather than instilling fear into the community."
A spokesperson for St Andrews University said: "We continue to work with our students to create an environment in which they can come forward to disclose sexual misconduct, and trust that they will be listened to, supported and looked after."
Dundee University said it has a "zero-tolerance policy" on sexual misconduct.
A spokesperson said: "There are various routes for students and staff to report any sexual misconduct or harassment, including anonymously through our safeguarding protocol, and we look to provide whatever support is needed."
Abertay also takes a zerotolerance approach.