Staff in schools interact with third parties every day as part of their jobs. Employers have had a duty to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace since October 2024, but, from 30 October, the employment rights act extends the duty to requiring employers to take all reasonable steps to prevent discriminatory harassment of their employees by third parties. After that date, an employee will be able to bring a claim if they can establish that they were harassed by a third party (eg a pupil or parent) and that their employer failed to take all reasonable steps to prevent that harassment from happening. Become a member for unlimited access to Schools Week Our members enjoy early access to exclusive content and in-depth articles before anyone else. Get expert journalism, experience fewer ads, and unlock a growing range of member benefits. subscribe If you have an account, please login. Sign in