Consent and Healthy Relationships: What the Evidence Actually Says

Key takeaways

• Consent must be: freely given, informed, and able to be withdrawn at any time
• Capacity: someone incapacitated by alcohol or drugs cannot consent
• Most useful single change: Check in rather than assume; consent is ongoing, not one-off.
• Commonest mistake: Assuming previous consent applies to a later occasion.
• See a doctor if any of the signs under "When to speak to a doctor" below apply to you.

What it is

Freely given, informed and ongoing agreement to sexual activity. It sits within Sexual Health. The figures below are the ones published guidance uses, rather than the ones that circulate.

The numbers, in one place

What helps

What follows is the practical part: the things guidance actually asks of you.

• Check in rather than assume; consent is ongoing, not one-off
• Know that consent can be withdrawn at any point
• Seek support early if a relationship feels controlling
• Contact a Sexual Assault Referral Centre for confidential help

What to avoid

A few of these are widely believed. That is precisely why they are here.

• Assuming previous consent applies to a later occasion
• Assuming silence or passivity means agreement
• Waiting for physical violence before seeking help with coercive control

Where to go next

• What People Get Wrong About Consent and Healthy Relationships
• Starting Out With Consent and Healthy Relationships
• Consent and Healthy Relationships — the reference entry
• The Evidence on Sexual Health in Later Life, Without the Hype
• Sexually Transmitted Infections: What Published Guidance Supports

When to speak to a doctor

If you have experienced sexual assault, you can get help from a Sexual Assault Referral Centre with or without involving the police, and they can arrange medical care, emergency contraception and PEP for HIV — PEP must be started within 72 hours. Call 999 if you are in immediate danger. The National Domestic Abuse Helpline is 0808 2000 247, free and 24 hours.

Where this comes from

• NHS — Help after rape and sexual assault
• NHS — Domestic violence and abuse

How this page was put together

Every figure, recommendation and warning above is taken from the guidance named in Where this comes from. Nothing on this page is inferred, summarised or generalised beyond what those bodies publish: where they give a number, it is their number, and where they are silent, so are we. Pages are rebuilt whenever the underlying record changes. Sign-off by a named clinician, where it has happened, is shown at the top of the page along with the date.

Medical disclaimer

This article is general information, not medical advice. It cannot account for your own history, medication or circumstances. Always speak to a GP, pharmacist or another qualified health professional before making changes that affect your treatment, and never delay seeking medical advice because of something you have read here. In an emergency, call 999.