Girls 'face sexual harassment routinely'

A UK poll has found that almost 66 percent young women say they have been subjected to unwanted sexual contact at school.

The End Violence Against Women Coalition (EVAW), who commissioned the poll, found that of almost 800 16 to 18-year-olds, 29percent of girls questioned had been the victim of groping, kissing or touching while at school. Around one in seven (14 percent) of the boys questioned said the same.

More than a third (37percent) of all the young people questioned said they had heard girls being called names such as "slut" or "slag" at school on a daily basis, reports The Mirror.

Nearly 24 percent said teachers had never told them that unwanted advances such as touching or name-calling were unacceptable, while 20 percent said they had never received lessons or information at school about sexual consent.

"Disturbingly, our results show that students rarely hear from their teachers that these behaviours are unacceptable. Schools are failing in their legal and ethical responsibility to effectively challenge all forms of violence against women and girls and provide safe and supportive environments for their female students," said EVAW chair Professor Liz Kelly.

"The EVAW Coalition is calling for prevention through education, led by the Department for Education, to be a priority in the Coalition Government''s forthcoming strategy to tackle violence against women and girls," she added.