Durham pays out £177,000 to silence students with NDAs

By Jack Taylor

Durham University paid out £177,300 to students following complaints, each with a non-disclosure agreement (NDA), a Freedom of Information request by the BBC reveals. 

Durham paid out £20,500 to fewer than five students in 2018/19 and £156,800 to eight students in 2017/18. 

Rianna Croxford, an award winning BBC journalist, found that universities across the country were silencing students’ complaints of sexual assault, bullying and poor teaching by using non-disclosure agreements attached to payments. Durham University has stated that they do not use NDAs in relation to students’ complaints of sexual misconduct and violence.

Since 2016, 45 universities have paid out a total of £1.3 million, with payments ranging from £250 to £40,000. 

Payments were also used nationally for complaints of false advertising of courses, lack of disability support and accommodation issues, according to Freedom of Information requests seen by the BBC The Next Episode podcast. 

Universities UK, which represents 136 institutions, said that NDAs should not be used to silence students. adding that “Every student should feel safe and supported through their time at university”. 

According to the BBC, the government has said the use of NDAs for student complaints is “unacceptable” and they are legislating to stop such agreements being misused across society. 

Durham University, when approached by Palatinate to comment on the use of NDAs said: “The University may add confidentiality undertakings to letters to individuals offering financial settlements, under a range of different circumstances. In some situations, for a number of reasons, the University may wish to maintain confidentiality in respect of the offer made and the circumstances behind the offer.”

Jeremy Cook, Durham’s Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Colleges and Student Experience), said: “The University is committed to eliminating sexual violence and misconduct from within its community – as it is to ensuring victim-survivors get the support they need to report allegations, rebuild their lives, and stay safe.

“For this reason we do not use Non-Disclosure Agreements in any student case involving sexual misconduct and violence.”

Photography: Les Hull via Wikimedia Commons