CAMPAIGNERS came out in force to raise concerns about their university's handling of sexual assault cases.

Rebels with a Cause protested at Essex University and raised their voices about consent.

It comes after university bosses apologised for taking too long to investigate allegations of sexual assault on students.

Essex University registrar Bryn Morris said their aim is to conclude all investigations within 60 days, however they failed to meet the standard for 20 per cent of the complaints last year.

Amy Stephenson-Yankuba, who lead the campaign, said: "The student union was fully aware of what we were doing, and the registrar.

"Our uni is founded on rebellion and Rebels with a Cause is what we call ourselves.

"They were happy to allow us to have that voice and express our concerns.

"It was a very positive experience and lots of changes have been made."

University registrar Bryn Morris said the university has been working closely with the SU.

He said: “We will not tolerate harassment and hate crime of any kind on our campuses and that is why we’re working together, across the university and Students’ Union, to take clear and direct action.

“We know students feel incredibly strongly about this issue and we are continuing to work with the SU to listen to their views and respond to them.

"This year, we’re putting in place a whole range of actions this includes a new Code of Student Conduct, compulsory consent training, a year-long programme of bystander training, additional patrols at night, increased CCTV coverage across all campuses and additional resources for our conduct team to ensure issues are dealt with as quickly as possible.”