Sexual harassment at work is rarely out of the news headlines. It's an issue that continues to be a workplace reality which damages trust, morale and productivity.
From 30 October 2026, the bar gets higher as UK employers must take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment, not just reasonable steps. This is a change introduced by the Employment Rights Act 2025. Preventing harassment has always been the right thing to do. But from October 2026, it’s no longer enough to be doing a little to prevent it: employers must go further than publishing a policy and hoping for the best.
This is where effective sexual harassment eLearning comes in: it helps people understand what harassment looks like, and how to stop it. Which in turn creates real cultural change.
In this article:
- What are the October 2026 changes to employers' responsibilities around sexual harassment prevention?
- The real cost of inaction in preventing sexual harassment
- When policies aren't enough
- Why sexual harassment eLearning works
What are the October 2026 changes to employers' responsibilities around sexual harassment prevention?
Acas sets out what the higher bar means in practice:
- Taking all of the steps that are reasonable for your organisation, rather than just some of them
- Focusing on prevention rather than only reacting to incidents, and applying those steps across the whole organisation rather than only where something has already gone wrong
- Mitigating against online harassment as well as in-person incidents
What is the cost of inaction in preventing sexual harassment?
When sexual harassment goes unaddressed, your entire organisation is open to risk. Reputational and financial risk, legal risks, emotional risk, and importantly, the risk of employees feeling unsafe – a potential cultural shift.
From a financial standpoint, the UK government estimates that the average cost of a sexual harassment tribunal claim can range between £27,000 and £45,000, but it can reach millions of pounds.
For employees, organisations that fail to effectively address and prevent sexual harassment aren’t worth sticking around for, with 18% (nearly one in five) leaving their job because they experienced sexual harassment.
Higher turnover, lower engagement and reputational damage are just some of the key costs organisations face for not taking harassment seriously.
18% (nearly one in five) leave their job because they experienced sexual harassment.
When a policy isn't enough: put training into practice
Under the Worker Protection Act 2023, organisations have a legal responsibility to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment. This duty shifts the focus from simply reacting to complaints with a policy to actively preventing harassment before it happens.
What does this mean for organisations?
- You can’t just wait for harassment to take place to act
- You must be proactive in assessing risks, implementing preventative measures and creating a culture of respect
Policies alone don’t change behaviour. Effective training does. It equips people with the knowledge and confidence to recognise and challenge harassment – making compliance practical, not theoretical.
Everyone needs to know what sexual harassment in the workplace looks like and to understand the different forms that it can take.
Ann Allcock, former head of diversity, shares: “One of the most effective steps that employers can take to prevent sexual harassment, as required under the Worker Protection Act, is to provide training for all staff. Everyone needs to know what sexual harassment in the workplace looks like and to understand the different forms that it can take.
“Facilitated training also presents a great opportunity to build understanding about the barriers to reporting sexual harassment, and to have conversations about why it’s so important for all staff to contribute to creating a workplace culture where any harassment is challenged as unacceptable. And tailored eLearning, as offered by Ciphr, also provides an additional route and platform to share policies and information about where and how to make a complaint or to get advice and support.”
Want to learn more about this legislation and what it means for organisations? Watch our on-demand webinar on ‘Sexual harassment and the Worker Protection Act: are you compliant?’
Why sexual harassment prevention eLearning works
eLearning is an engaging and accessible format that makes content digestible and memorable.
Through eLearning, employees have access to a resource they can work through at their own pace, in their own way – whether that’s via a computer or mobile device – and revisit for refreshers when needed.
Sexual harassment prevention eLearning enables people to learn from real-world scenarios depicting sexual harassment and the different ways it can manifest in the workplace – while also offering practical advice and guidance on how to respond in these situations.
eLearning is also an effective way to highlight this sensitive topic, which can be difficult to address.
How Ciphr eLearning can help you with sexual harassment prevention eLearning
Ciphr's sexual harassment eLearning has updated to reflect the new legislation. The course has been tried and tested over several years by hundreds of organisations looking to build a culture of respect and have proactive measures in place to comply with legislation.
Our sexual harassment prevention eLearning covers:
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The legal definitions of harassment and sexual harassment
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The legislation that organisations must comply with
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The behaviours that constitute sexual harassment
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Practical guidance on how to act if you experience or witness sexual harassment
For more information about our sexual harassment eLearning, and options to create a bespoke eLearning course for your organisation, contact us or take a look at our course catalogue.
This article was first published on 17 November 2025. It was updated on 30 September 2026 to include the new duty for UK employers, effective from 30 October 2026, to take "all reasonable steps" to prevent sexual harassment at work, including harassment by third parties.