This conference will discuss next steps for freedom of speech in UK higher education. It takes place with the Government announcing a renewed commitment to implement key provisions in the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023, whilst removing some provisions, and follows recent publication of new guidance from the OfS designed to help institutions navigate their duties under the Act ahead of their introduction from August 2025 and respond to different scenarios.
Implications and priorities
It will bring key stakeholders, regulators and policymakers together to discuss priorities as universities prepare for the implementation of the reformed Act, and enforcement of new duties and responsibilities before the 2025/2026 academic year. These include the strengthened duty on HEIs to secure and promote freedom of speech and academic freedom, in line with new OfS guidance, alongside amendments to OfS complaints scheme.
We also expect delegates to assess implications of the removal of measures from the legislation, such as those which would have allowed individuals to sue universities for failing to uphold free speech duties alongside increased students’ union duties in this area.
The conference will also be an opportunity to look ahead to the potential introduction of further legislation in a future King’s Speech.
Responsibilities and new regulatory powers
Attendees will consider the evolving role of the OfS, with the Act granting it new powers to investigate breaches of free speech duties and issue fines, and how institutions can comply with new guidance and duties on decision-making frameworks institutions should use when managing speech-related cases. Areas for discussion include requirements for transparency, governance oversight, and the recording of free speech decisions across appointments, events and internal complaints.
The agenda will bring out latest thinking on practical considerations for institutions in meeting responsibilities related to free expression, while balancing concerns around campus culture, student safety, academic integrity, liability, and financial and administrative burdens. Sessions will explore strategies to assist universities in updating codes of practice to meet legal requirements, embedding these within staff training, external speaker policies, and governance processes, as well as approaches to navigating reputational risks, protest and disruption, and challenges from external and internal interest groups.
Complaints, compliance, and balancing with safeguarding
Areas for discussion include safeguarding against harm and harassment, alongside roles and responsibilities of the HE sector and individual institutions, their staff and students following the OfS’s recent detailed guidance on legal duties, which outlines how universities and students’ unions should assess whether speech is lawful, what ‘reasonably practicable steps’ look like in practice, and how to align complaints procedures with the new regulatory framework. Discussion will consider how institutions can uphold freedom of speech while meeting equality and safeguarding duties, including best practice in handling contentious topics and managing visiting speakers, and priorities for the protection of institutional reputation and policies in light of the banning of non-disclosure agreements.
Attendees will examine how institutions can effectively develop internal processes for handling complaints, and next steps for regulation in response to lessons learnt from early cases under the new framework, as well as preparing for dual complaints processes, with the OIA fielding complaints from students and the OfS for staff and visiting speakers.
Campus culture and students’ unions
Sessions will assess implications of key provisions of the Act, including the new statutory duties on universities, colleges, and students’ unions, looking at operational challenges of implementing free speech policies. The role of students’ unions moving forward and priorities in the wider approach to campus culture will also be discussed, looking at strategies for promoting a culture of free expression on campus whilst maintaining inclusivity and wellbeing, and how universities should approach academic freedom in teaching and research under the new legal landscape. Sessions will also consider the cultural impact of OfS requirements that institutions must protect speech even when controversial or offensive, and the importance of embedding values of lawful free expression within the broader inclusion, safeguarding and wellbeing agendas.
Religion, identity, and protecting against harassment
The conference will also be an opportunity to consider the impact of a proposed new definition of Islamophobia, development of a council on anti-Semitism on freedom of speech in HEIs, and regulation moving forward. Discussion will consider how universities can navigate definitions of hate speech and academic freedom, as well as priorities for national frameworks on protection for beliefs, religion and identity, and their interactions with legal duties around speech, harassment and equality moving forward.
All delegates will be able to contribute to the output of the conference, which will be shared with parliamentary, ministerial, departmental and regulatory offices, and more widely. This includes the full proceedings and additional articles submitted by delegates. As well as key stakeholders, those due to attend include parliamentary pass-holders from the House of Lords and officials from DfE; GLD; the Welsh Government; and The Scottish Government.
