Reports of sexual assault or harassment at the Australian National University (ANU) have increased by almost 50 per cent in a year. 

In 2019, ANU introduced a new Sexual Misconduct Disclosure form as part of its Sexual Violence Prevention Strategy. 

The new rpeorting mechanism came after a Human Rights Commission report found nearly 40 per cent of ANU students had been sexually harassed in a 12-month period.

The reported rates of sexual assaults on campus at the ANU were more than double the national average.

The ANU has now released a report revealing the number of sexual misconduct disclosures made using the online tool between October 2019 and September 2021.

It shows the number of victim-survivors, witnesses or support services that made disclosures to the university jumped from 250 in the first year to 366 the next.

Half of the incidents disclosed were alleged to have occurred at on-campus accommodation, undergraduate female students made up the vast majority of victim-survivors and male undergraduates accounted for most of the alleged perpetrators.

The ANU says an increased awareness of the online form and university processes is behind the rising figures.

The university says the report is evidence that it has taken action.

ANU deputy vice-chancellor Ian Anderson said the review is an important part of the university's ongoing response to sexual violence on campus. 

“This is important to us. It's important that we learn from survivors, we learn from their stories, and we learn in ways in which we can strengthen our service response,” he said.

“It's critical that we provide transparency and accountability. It's also critical that we work very closely with students.

“We meet with students every two weeks to discuss our next steps, to discuss how we are strengthening our service response, and to provide that trust that is necessary for students to also come forward and undertake a review under our discipline rule.”

Canberra Rape Crisis Centre (CRCC) chief Chrystina Stanford says “ANU is a microcosm of broader society, and, as is the case with the rest of the community, reports of sexual assault are under-reported quite significantly”.