Sexual Harassment Prevention Checklist
Employers have a legal duty to take proactive steps to prevent sexual harassment of their staff. Since 26 October 2024, employers have had to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace. From 30 October 2026, the Employment Rights Act 2025 raises this to “all reasonable steps”.
From 30 October 2026, employers also become liable for harassment of their employees by third parties, such as customers, clients and suppliers, where they have not taken all reasonable steps to prevent it. This covers harassment related to a protected characteristic, such as sex, race or disability, as well as sexual harassment.
The law does not list the steps an employer must take, although the Act allows the government to set out specific steps in regulations later. What is reasonable depends on matters such as the size of the business, the work it does and the risks its staff face, so employers should review their policies and procedures to make sure they take a proactive approach to protecting their staff.
What is the Sexual Harassment Prevention Checklist?
This Sexual Harassment Prevention Checklist provides employers with a practical framework for reviewing their approach to preventing sexual harassment and third-party harassment in the workplace.
The checklist helps employers identify potential gaps in their existing procedures, assess workplace harassment risks and review the effectiveness of their policies, training, reporting and preventative measures.
What Does the Checklist Cover?
The checklist covers the following key areas of workplace sexual harassment prevention:
- Leadership
- Policies and Standards
- Risk Assessment and Prevention
- Reporting Harassment
- Training and Awareness
- Manager Capability
- Investigations and Complaints Handling
- Third-Party Interactions
- Monitoring
Employers and HR professionals can use this checklist to review their approach against the strengthened duty that applies from 30 October 2026 and to keep it under regular review after that.
It works alongside our Prevention of Sexual Harassment Policy, Prevention of Sexual Harassment Risk Assessment Form and Prevention of Third-Party Harassment Policy.
For the timetable of the Employment Rights Act 2025 reforms, see our Employment Rights Act Implementation Roadmap.
Sexual Harassment Prevention Checklist is part of Employment. Just £38.50 + VAT provides unlimited downloads from Employment for 1 year.
Frequently Asked Questions
From 30 October 2026, employers must take all reasonable steps, not just reasonable steps, to prevent sexual harassment of their staff. On the same date, employers become liable if a customer, client or other third party harasses an employee and the employer did not take all reasonable steps to prevent it. Working through each area of your approach, as this checklist does, shows where more could reasonably be done.
Yes, from 30 October 2026. An employer will be liable if a third party, such as a customer, client, supplier or visitor, harasses an employee in the course of their work and the employer failed to take all reasonable steps to prevent it. This covers harassment related to a protected characteristic, such as sex, race, disability or religion, as well as sexual harassment. The checklist's third-party section helps you review those risks.
Keep a record of what you have done and why: your policy and how staff learn about it, your risk assessment, training, reporting routes, how complaints are handled and how you check that these measures work. The law does not list the steps, so what is reasonable depends on matters such as your size, your sector and the risks your staff face. Working through this checklist gives you a dated record of that review.
Yes. The duty to prevent sexual harassment applies to every employer, whatever its size, and both Acas and the Equality and Human Rights Commission treat assessing the risks as a basic step in meeting it. Your size and resources affect what is reasonable, not whether you need to look. Consider lone or night working, customer contact, work events and past incidents. The Prevention of Sexual Harassment Risk Assessment Form can be used alongside this checklist.
If an employment tribunal upholds a sexual harassment claim and finds that the employer also breached its duty to prevent sexual harassment, it can increase the compensation by up to 25%. The Equality and Human Rights Commission can also take enforcement action over a breach of the duty itself. From 30 October 2026, failing to take all reasonable steps also leaves employers open to claims over harassment by third parties.
They can be. Since 6 April 2026, a report that sexual harassment has happened, is happening or is likely to happen can be a protected disclosure if the worker reasonably believes it and that it is in the public interest. A worker who makes one is protected from being dismissed or treated badly because of it. The checklist's reporting and manager capability sections help you make sure your procedures reflect this.
The checklist reviews your whole approach across nine areas, from leadership and policies to investigations, third-party contact and monitoring. It shows where gaps remain. The Prevention of Sexual Harassment Policy sets the standards staff must follow, and the Prevention of Sexual Harassment Risk Assessment Form records the specific risks in your workplace and the steps you will take. Using all three, and reviewing them regularly, gives you a joined-up record.