Consent is about respect and mutual communication. It’s a voluntary and informed agreement between equal partners to participate in a sexual act. That means everyone genuinely wants to take part and makes sure their partner/s do too.
Free and voluntary
Specific and informed
Ongoing and mutual
Reflects capacity
Assumed
Present when someone lacks capacity
Agreed to where there's force
Silence or lack of resistance
A one-way transaction
Consent is an important part of all sexual experiences and all kinds of sexual intimacy – not just penetrative sex.
That means asking before you do things like:
What people like or don’t like can be very different to you. That’s why consent is all about communication and talking about you and your partner/s likes, dislikes and boundaries.
At any point of a sexual activity everyone can withdraw consent. Even if they’ve said yes at the beginning or in the past, they can say ‘no’ or show they are no longer consenting at any time. If someone decides they’ve changed their mind, even if you want to keep going, you must stop and respect their choice. Being supportive when someone withdraws their consent is how you create a safe and positive environment.
In Queensland, people aged 16 and over can legally consent.
People who are asleep or unconscious cannot consent to sex. People who are heavily intoxicated by drugs and/or alcohol may not be able to consent depending on their level of intoxication. When talking about consent with your partner/s, you need to consider if they have capacity to consent. If you think someone might be too heavily impacted by drugs or alcohol, or you’re not sure, you should stop.
People with a cognitive disability that impairs their ability to understand or clearly communicate exactly what they consent to may not be able to legally consent.
No one has the right to make you do anything you don’t want to do. That’s why everyone must check for consent before and during any sexual activity. If you or someone you know has had an experience where there was no consent, that is sexual violence. Know that is not your fault and help and support is available.