East Durham College - External Speakers Policy

PROCEDURE TITLE: External Speaker
DOCUMENT NUMBER: 3.5
PROCEDURE GROUP: Equality and Diversity
AUTHOR / REVISOR / OWNER: Alfie Wilkinson
DATE OF CURRENT VERSION: September 2023
REVIEW DATE: September 2025
IMPACT ASSESSED: Yes
APPROVED BY: CMG
DATE: 23/10/2023

The policy applies to the whole College community which includes staff, Student’s and external visitors.

The purpose of this policy is to demonstrate how East Durham College manages risks around external speakers and events within its premises. It will demonstrate how it seeks to maintain a safe environment where freedom of speech, expression and academic debate can exist. The policy also sets out instructions for organising an event with external contribution, the responsibilities of guest speakers/venue hire clients and those organising such events.

East Durham College is committed to creating an environment where everyone is treated with dignity and respect and where diversity is valued. This policy outlines the procedures relating to events involving the use of external speakers regardless of who is organising them.  

It also details our approach to ensuring that we are protecting both staff and students and the reputation of East Durham College whilst following the legislation that we’re responsible for upholding.  This policy is written with reference to the Prevent Duty contained within Section 26 of the Counter Terrorism and Security Act 2015.  The Duty states that specified authorities including Further Education Colleges, in the exercise of their functions, must have “due regard to the need to prevent people from being drawn into terrorism”. 

OBJECTIVES 

• To provide an environment where freedom of expression and speech are protected balanced with the need to ensure that our community is free from harm and that incitement to hatred is never acceptable.

• To provide a supportive, inclusive and safe space for students 

• To provide clearly defined and effective procedures to ensure that the law is upheld. 

• To collaborate with others to reach sound, evidenced judgments about proposed external speakers ensuring that the College can meet their legal obligations 

• To encourage and provide a balance of opinion at any academic discussion or debate 

• To communicate to all members, volunteers, staff and visitors, that it is our mutual responsibility to comply with equality and safeguarding and that both East Durham College and the individual can be held liable if they contravene the law. 

• To provide clear instructions for organising an event with external contribution e.g. speaker, representatives, film and guidance for researching an external speaker

1. Freedom of Expression 

1.1 Freedom of expression and speech are basic human rights that are protected by law.  Freedom of speech and freedom of expression are not absolute freedoms but freedoms within the law.  Universities and College have a history of being open to debate and ideas with students at the forefront of pushing the limits of freedom of expression.  ‘Academic freedom’ is a term used to describe the law that allows for open and honest debate in an academic context. 

1.2 However, we have a duty to ensure the safety and welfare of our staff, students and communities.    The freedom to express views needs to be balanced with the need to secure freedom from harm for students and communities. We want all of our events, activities and initiatives to be safe; without risk to the reputation of the College; and within the law.   

1.3 Sometimes an external speaker or their topic of discussion has the potential to go against our conditions for a safe event. We’re committed to working together with event organisers and in some cases, external speakers themselves, to make sure that we reach a judgement that is reasonable, informed and within the law. 

2. External Speakers and their Responsibilities 

2.1 An external speaker or visitor is used to describe any individual or organisation who is not a student or staff member for East Durham College or one of its contracted partners and who has been invited to speak to students and/or staff. This includes any individual who is a student or staff member from another institution.  It also includes the main contact from any external venue hire client who is paying to use College facilities.  

2.2 An event is any event, presentation, visit, activity or initiative organised by a student group/society, individual or staff member that is being held on the East Durham College premises or where East Durham College is being represented by a stand on non-College premises e.g. at an exhibition, school event or fair.  It also includes events where external speakers are streamed live into an event or a pre-recorded film is shown. It also includes activity being held on East Durham College premises but organized by external venue hire clients 

 2.3 All speakers or visitors should be made aware by the person or group arranging the event (by referring visitors to this policy on the College website) that they have a responsibility to abide by the law and the College’s policies including that they:- 

• Must not advocate or incite hatred, violence or call for the breaking of the law 
• Are not permitted to encourage, glorify or promote any acts of terrorism including individuals, groups or organisations that support such acts 
• Must not spread hatred and intolerance in the community and thus aid in disrupting social and community harmony 
• Must be mindful of the risk of causing offence to or seek to avoid insulting other faiths or groups, within a framework of positive debate and challenge 
• Are not permitted to raise or gather funds for any external organisation or cause without express permission of the College (available from Director of Inclusive Learning)

3. Guidance for College Staff and Students Organising an Event with an External Speaker 

3.1 Curriculum Managers/Directors and Programme Area Leaders must be informed of any events that involve external speakers through this procedure. No event involving any external speakers may be publicised or considered confirmed until the speaker has been cleared through the procedure detailed in this policy. This includes advertisement through any social media platform. 

3.2 East Durham College reserves the right to cancel, prohibit or delay any event with an external speaker if the policy is not followed or if health, safety and security criteria cannot be met. 

3.3 Any room booking/ event organisation with an external speaker involved must be made no later than 14 days before the date of the event. This is to allow for the organiser to have made adequate safeguarding checks as well as allowing time for alterations to the event if necessary. Any request made outside of this timeframe may be rejected unless there are extreme extenuating circumstances. 

3.4 The individual/group organising an external speaker should complete the External Speaker Consent Form (available via the extranet) and as part of that form conduct brief research into the proposed speaker.  If in doubt as to the suitability of a speaker, they should refer the decision to:-  

•  Designated Safeguarding Lead

Reasons for doubt could be (but are not restricted to) the following: 

•  any person or group on/or linked to the UK Government list of proscribed terror organisations https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/proscribed-terror-groups-or-organisations--2 
• talks by organisations generally considered to be extremist
• a speaker who is known to have spoken previously at another institution on a topic that has caused fear or intimidation of students or staff
• a speaker accepted in mainstream as being highly controversial
• a link or links to any person or group that has been connected with any controversy of a negative or positive nature
• a speaker who has significant profile and attracts a following that could create crowd control and health and safety issues
• a speaker from a political party during an election purdah 

In the event of referral, one of the following decisions will be made:

• To not permit the event with the external speaker to go ahead 
• To not permit the external speaker to attend the event (if it is a wider event) 
• To fully permit the event with the external speaker to go ahead unrestricted 
• To permit the event with the external speaker to go ahead on the basis of regulatory steps designed to reduce risk.  These may include observation; independent filming; the inclusion of opportunities to debate or challenge the view being held 

3.5 In making recommendations, a Curriculum Manager or Director may risk assess on the following basis: 

• The potential for any decision to limit freedom of speech 
• The potential for the event going ahead to cause reputation risk to the College 
• The potential for the speaker’s presence on site to cause fear or alarm to students or members of staff AND/OR to give rise to breach of peace

3.6 The External speaker consent form (available via the extranet) should be completed and forwarded to the Programme Leader, Curriculum Manager or Curriculum Director for approval and recording. If concerns are identified following background checks, the Designated Safeguarding Lead must be informed.

Managers are responsible for ensuring that their staff team and students are aware of and support the policy. 

4. Additional Guidance for Venue Hire Clients organising an event or booking  

4.1   The organiser will make external venue hire clients aware of this policy and the college safeguarding policy. The organiser will also request details of any external speakers, presentations or any other material that they are bringing in.  This information should be provided no later than 12 days before the booking goes ahead. A shorter version of this policy for Venue Hire Clients is available and they will also be signposted to this version via the website.   

4.2   East Durham College reserves the right to cancel, prohibit or delay any venue hire booking with external speakers if the policy is not followed, requested information not produced or if health, safety and security criteria cannot be met. 

 4.3   If in doubt as to the suitability of speakers, the Conference and Events Co-Ordinator should refer the decision to:

• Designated Safeguarding Lead

Reasons for doubt could be (but are not restricted to) the following: 

•  any person or group on/or linked to the UK Government list of proscribed terror organisations https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/proscribed-terror-groups-or-organisations--2 

• talks by organisations generally considered to be extremist  

• a speaker who is known to have spoken previously at another institution on a topic that has caused fear or intimidation of students or staff 

• a speaker accepted in mainstream as being highly controversial  

• a link or links to any person or group that has been connected with any controversy of a negative or positive nature; a speaker who has significant profile and attracts a following that could create crowd control and health and safety issues  

• a speaker from a political party during an election purdah 

In the event of referral, one of the following decisions will be made:

• To not permit the event with the external speaker to go ahead 

• To not permit the external speaker to attend the event (if it is a wider event) 

• To fully permit the event with the external speaker to go ahead unrestricted 

• To permit the event with the external speaker to go ahead on the basis of regulatory steps designed to reduce risk.  These may include observation; independent filming; the inclusion of opportunities to debate or challenge the view being held 

• Safeguarding Policy (3.3) 

• Room Booking Procedure (8.2.1) 

• Freedom of Expression Policy (3.6) 

This document is issued and controlled by Quality & Standards and may only be modified by the designated group after proposed modifications have been accepted by the College Management Group. The latest version of the policy will be maintained on the College Extranet.