Bullying and Harassment

The University of Essex is an international, diverse and multicultural community.  It is expected that all staff and students should be treated with dignity and respect.  Harassment and bullying behaviour is considered unacceptable and the Students' Union and the University take a zero tolerance approach to harassment, hate crime, bullying and sexual violence.

If you feel you are being harassed or experiencing behaviour that is unwelcome, inappropriate, intimidating or offensive you are encouraged to speak to somebody about this. SU Advice is a confidential and impartial service and we can offer advice and support on how to deal with harassment and who to speak to if you wish to report this behaviour. SU Advice and the University are also Hate Incident Reporting Centres - this means we can support you to report incidents of hate crime to the police.  You can find out more about the Hate incident Reporting Centre here.

For more information about the University's stance on Harassment and Bullying please see the University’s Equality and Diversity policy pages.

What is sexual harassment

Sexual harassment is unwanted behaviour of sexual nature and/or the inappropriate use of sexual comments or activities.  Sexual harassment may be something that makes you feel violated, intimidated, degraded or humiliated.  It is totally unacceptable and anyone who reports an incident will always be believed and supported.

Reporting incidents

In an emergency:If you feel in immediate danger you should contact the appropriate emergency services.  If you are off-campus this would be contacting 999 to request emergency police support.  If you are on campus, you are advised to contact Campus Patrol Staff in the first instance - they can then arrange for emergency services to gain access to campus as necessary.  You can contact your campus Patrol Staff in an emergency situation as follows:

• Colchester Campus - contact the Information Centre on Square 3 or by calling 2222 or 01206 872222
• Southend Campus - contact University Square Reception or by calling 01702 328400 or 07827 988085
• Loughton Campus - during office hours (9am - 5pm) contact the main Reception on 5983 or 0208 508 5983.  Between 5pm and midnight (Monday - Saturday) contact Security on 07825 670709.

In a non-emergency situation: If you wish to report the behavior of an individual member of the University/group of individuals from the University, the University operates a Report and Support system for reporting any type of bullying, harasment, sexual violence, hate crime or discrimination.  Reports can be made in two ways:

1. Reporting to an adviser - choosing to report in this way will mean your contact details will be sent to a University adviser.  They will be in contact with you within 3 days of you making the report to discuss the report and your wellbeing and options.  You can also request the University to take action on the report when you submit it.  This would mean the report is sent to the appropriate team for investigation (e.g. Student Conduct, University HR etc).
2. Reporting anonymously - if you choose this option, you will not be contacted following the submission of your report.  The University would be unable to take action on anonymous reports but the information provided will be used to provide statistical information and to inform the Universitys proactive and preventative work on tackling sexual violence, harassment, hate crimes and bullying.

If you wish to discuss the options, or would like help to submit a report, you are welcome to contact SU Advice and one of our advisers would be happy to discuss this and support you through the process.

STANDING UP!

In some cases you may find that you see or witness a situation, or discussion that makes you or another person feel uneasy and you may be in a position to stand up and intervene. 

Before you can intervene effectively, it is vital to think about your own personal safety and the safety of those around you. Once you’ve assessed this, you can intervene in the following three ways:

• Direct: this approach can be used to address your friends and people you know. Do not use this method in situations that can risk your own safety. You can ask them, "Hey, what’s going on?" or "Is everything okay?" Make your presence known and that you're not happy with what’s occurring.
• Delegate: in situations that are potentially dangerous or the harassment or assault is physical, contact the closest authority figure. Depending on where the incident is happening and what type of harassment or assault has occurred, you should contact campus security on Square 3, your department, Students' Union security staff, your Resident Assistant or local police.
• Distract: confrontation can be uncomfortable and awkward for many people. However, sometimes causing a distraction between the parties involved can be a simple solution to prevent a serious problem. Pretending to you know the persons involved or distracting them is an easy way to shift the focus.

• Watch the University Stand Up! video on Vimeo
• Stand Up! Essex won't replace the current mechanisms used to support people affected or how they report instances of sexual violence. It acts as an additional way to support our stand against sexual violence on our campuses.

Contact us

Phone: 01206 863211
E-mail: suadvice@essex.ac.uk (Colchester); suacsou@essex.ac.uk (Southend); suaclou@essex.ac.uk (Loughton)