Rape, Sexual Assault and Harassment is never the victim/survivor's fault. The blame lies firmly with the person who did this to you. If you think you have been the target of rape, sexual assault or harassment, it may be hard to know what to do or how to feel.
Many victim/survivors blame themselves and it is important to understand that you did nothing to make this happen to you and the person who did this to you are responsible for their actions.
Many victim/survivors blame themselves and it is important to understand that you did nothing to make this happen to you and the person who did this to you are responsible for their actions.
Are you in danger
- Are you in immediate danger? If you are in immediate danger or seriously injured, you can contact the emergency services on 999 (or 112 from a mobile phone).
- Find a safe space. If an incident has just happened try and find somewhere you feel safe. Can you talk to someone, is there somewhere you can go if you do not feel safe. If you are on campus or in accommodation on campus the accommodation staff or campus security can help if it is out of hours. If it is during working hours you can also come to student services.
Below we have outlined how you can access support and how you can report the incident. If you want to report to the police or if you are not sure you will need to look at the page on reporting to the police
The sexual assault self-referral phone service 0800 148 88 88 can refer you to a local healthcare professional at a sexual assault response co-ordination service (SARCS). After you phone, the healthcare professional at the SARCS will phone you back to discuss and arrange your care. They might also be able to arrange for you to have a forensic examination and take necessary samples without reporting to the police if you are not ready to do that. You can find out more here
The sexual assault self-referral phone service 0800 148 88 88 can refer you to a local healthcare professional at a sexual assault response co-ordination service (SARCS). After you phone, the healthcare professional at the SARCS will phone you back to discuss and arrange your care. They might also be able to arrange for you to have a forensic examination and take necessary samples without reporting to the police if you are not ready to do that. You can find out more here
Report and Support
- We believe it is important for victim/survivors to be in control of how they decide to report and get support and our role is to support you with providing you with information, options and someone to talk to without judgement. You decide what you want.
- Report . Students and staff can report an incident using the University’s Report and Support system. You can choose to do this anonymously or you can provide your details and we will support you with the reporting process if that is reporting to the university or reporting to the police.
University Procedure. If you choose to make a formal complaint to the University about a student or member of staff there are procedures which set out the steps you'll need to follow. - Support. You can also ask for support from an advisor. If you choose to talk to an advisor they will be able to talk through the options and support available to you, in confidence. They can offer you support through Student Services or refer you to support outside the university. If you chose to report at a later date we will support you to do so