Support if you’ve experienced harassment, hate or discrimination

Overview

Experiencing harassment, hate or discrimination can be very distressing, whether it happens in person, online or in another setting.

You may be unsure what to call what has happened, whether it is serious enough to report, or what to do next. You may also be worried about the impact on your studies, your wellbeing or your relationships.

Whatever your circumstances, support is available. You do not need to decide whether something is harassment, a hate crime, a hate incident or discrimination before seeking support.

You can access support without making a formal report, and we can help you understand your options if you decide you want to report.

What do harassment, hate and discrimination mean?

Harassment, hate and discrimination are not always separate. An experience may involve more than one of these, and behaviour can be harmful or distressing even if it does not meet a particular legal definition.

Harassment

Harassment is unwanted behaviour that violates someone’s dignity or creates an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment. In law, harassment relates to a course of conduct (series of actions) involving more than one act or behaviour, as set out in the Protection from Harassment Act 1997. Under the Equality Act 2010, harassment can also be related to certain protected characteristics, such as sex, race or disability. 

Harassment can happen in your learning, working or social environment.

Read the University’s full definitions of harassment.

What is a Hate crime

A hate crime is a criminal offence that is perceived by the victim, or another person, to be motivated by hostility or prejudice towards someone because of a characteristic such as their race or ethnicity, religion or belief, disability, sexual orientation or transgender identity.

A person can be targeted because of a characteristic they are perceived to have, even if they do not actually have that characteristic.

Hate crime can happen in person or online and can include physical attacks, threats, verbal abuse, harassment, criminal damage, malicious communications and other criminal offences.

Examples include being assaulted because of your religion, receiving threatening messages because of your nationality, or having offensive graffiti written on your accommodation or property.

What is a hate incident?

A non-crime hate incident is behaviour that is perceived by the victim, or another person, to be motivated by hostility or prejudice towards someone because of a characteristic such as their race or ethnicity, religion or belief, disability, sexual orientation or transgender identity, but which does not amount to a criminal offence.

It can include offensive or insulting language, bullying, intimidation or harassment. Non-crime hate incidents can happen in person or online and can affect individuals, groups or communities.

Discrimination

Discrimination is when someone is treated less favourably or put at an unfair disadvantage because of a protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2010.

Discrimination can happen through decisions, policies, behaviour or treatment.

Read the University’s official definitions of Hate Crime, Hate Incidents and Discrimination. 

These experiences can overlap

Harassment, hate and discrimination are not always separate. An experience may involve more than one of these.

For example:

• Someone being repeatedly called a racist slur. This may be harassment and, depending on the circumstances, a hate crime or hate incident.
• Someone receives threatening messages because of their religion. This may be harassment and may also be a hate crime.
• Someone is treated unfairly because of a protected characteristic. This may be discrimination.
• Someone witnesses offensive graffiti targeting a community. This may be a hate incident or a hate crime, depending on the circumstances.

You do not need to decide what category an experience falls into before seeking support or reporting it. The University can help you understand what has happened and what support or reporting options are available.

Support from the University

Support from our Safeguarding and Welfare team

Our Safeguarding and Welfare team (login required) is the first point of contact for students who have experienced or witnessed harassment, hate or discrimination.

You do not need to make a formal report to access support.

The team can:

• listen to what has happened and offer confidential advice and support
• help you understand your options for reporting both within the University and to the police
• provide guidance on  making an anonymous hate crime report to the police
• help you access University wellbeing and mental health support
• liaise with your academic school to ensure joined up support if your studies are affected
• provide knowledge of and help signposting to specialist support from external support services

Get support from Safeguarding and Welfare (no login required)

Support if you live in University residences

The Residence Life team will be your first point of contact if you’re living in University residences. 

You can contact by completing a disclosure form on Report + Support or you can also contact them via your Residence Life Mentor (student login required).  

The Residence Life team will provide the same support as our Safeguarding and Welfare team above. 

You can access support without having to take forward a report. 

Sharing information with your school

If you’d like your school to be aware of what you’ve experienced, but feel uncomfortable telling them yourself, your Safeguarding and Welfare supporter can do so on your behalf. 

They’ll confirm what information you’d like to be shared and if there’s a particular member of staff you’d like them to contact initially. 

It will be made clear to your academic school that this information is sensitive and should only be shared with other staff where it is necessary to be able to provide you with support.

Extenuating circumstances

If you're experiencing difficulties that are affecting your studies, particularly your ability to complete any upcoming assessments, you can apply for extenuating circumstances so they can be taken into consideration.

Your Safeguarding and Welfare supporter can provide a statement to support your application. 

The content of the statement will include factual details such as the date you disclosed the incident(s) to the Safeguarding and Welfare service, and how long you have been in contact with them, rather than detailed information about what you have experienced.

Support from your Students’ Union

For some people, it’s helpful to seek community with others when a part of our identity is attacked. There are many societies, groups and liberation networks in the Students' Union.

Students' Union clubs and societies

Student Experience Diversity and Inclusion team (SEDI) 

SEDI run several groups and activities to support students from underrepresented groups, including mature students, care leavers and estranged students.

SEDI Student communities events (login required)

Belief, No Belief and Religious Life Centre (BNBR) 

An inclusive space on campus for all students, whether or not they have a belief, and offers pastoral and spiritual support, as well as social events where everyone is welcome.

Belief, No Belief and Religious (BNBR) Life Centre

Mental health & wellbeing support

Our Student Mental Health, Counselling ,Therapies & Wellbeing Service (student login required) can provide support if you need help with your mental health. 

They also run events, workshops and support groups (student login required), including a BME student support group and ADHD support sessions.

University support for your community group

• Communities and belonging (student login required)
• Student LGBT+ life and support
• Support for Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) students
• Information, advice and guidance for Muslim students

External support

You can access support whether or not you decide to report what has happened.

Reporting to the police

True Vision is a police-run website for reporting hate crime. You can use it to report a hate crime online, including if you do not want to contact the police directly.

You can report anonymously, however this may limit the police’s ability to investigate the incident or take action against the person responsible.

True Vision also provides information about hate crime, reporting options and support services.

Report a hate crime through True Vision

Independent support

Stop Hate UK is an independent organisation that provides support and reporting options for people who experience or witness hate crime or hate incidents.

You can report without giving your details. If you do provide your details, you can choose who you want Stop Hate UK to pass them to, such as the police or a local support organisation.

Stop Hate UK can also provide advice and support, including helping you understand your options if you are unsure whether you want to report to the police.

Report a hate crime or hate incident through Stop Hate UK

Contact the Stop Hate UK helpline

The Equality Advisory and Support Service can provide advice and support if you think you have been treated unfairly.

Victim Support provides support to anyone who has been the victim of a crime. They can support you coping with the after-effects of crime and help with reporting to the police. It doesn’t matter whether you have reported the crime to the police or when the crime occurred.

If you’ve witnessed harassment and/or discrimination

We all have a role to play in making our university community a safe, welcoming and inclusive place for everyone. If you see or hear something that doesn’t feel right, and it is safe to do so, consider speaking up or checking in with the person affected. 

Witnessing harassment, hate or discrimination can be upsetting, even if you were not the person it was directed at. It can be difficult to know what to say, but usually what people need and want is to feel heard. Your can support them someone by: 

• acknowledging what they’ve experienced
• taking time to listen to how their feeling
• making them aware of the support information on this page
• encouraging them to access support, by submitting a Report + Support disclosure (Remember, submitting a disclosure does not mean they have to take forward a report).
• submitting a Report + Support disclosure on their behalf if they don’t feel able to

If you have concerns about their mental health or wellbeing, the page below provides guidance on what to do.

How to help other students with mental health difficulties (student login required)

Witnessing behaviour that wasn’t directed towards anyone

If you witnessed language or behaviour that wasn’t directly targeted at anyone, you can still submit a Report + Support disclosure to make the University aware of your concerns. There may be action that can be taken to address this behaviour, however the University must also take into consideration an individual’s right to freedom of speech when considering any response.