1. What is Report and Support?
Report and Support is a platform that can be used by anyone to report concerns about safeguarding or harmful behaviours. Reports can be made anonymously or with contact details, the data from this platform allows BCU to identify, monitor and prevent issues, and offer support to those affected by behaviours. Report and Support also provides information to users about internal and external support, policies and procedures.
2. Who is culture shift?
Culture Shift developed the platform Report and Support in collaboration with the University of Manchester in 2017; they aim to help create positive cultures by enabling users to report incidents safely and provide survivor-centred support. Culture Shift helps institutions drive positive change and reduce barriers to reporting concerns.
3. Who manages R&S at BCU?
For reports relating to students, Report and Support is managed by the Mental Health and Wellbeing team. People and Culture manage reports relating to staff members.
4. Who can use R&S to raise a concern?
Report and Support can be used by anyone, this includes BCU staff, students, visitors and members of the public.
5. What if I’m not 100% sure concerns are true, or I don’t think it’s serious enough?
You do not need to be 100% sure concerns are true or serious enough. The information you provide may be part of a bigger picture. Once a Report and Support is received, the information you provide will be risk assessed and any safeguarding actions required will be carried out.
6. Can I use R&S to submit a complaint?
Report and Support is primarily used to access support and guidance for both staff and students. If you want to submit a formal complaint, you will be provided with the details of how to do this and where to access support from. Reporting through this tool will not automatically create a formal action.
If you would like to read more about how to submit a formal complaint, please see the following iCity page: Student Complaints Procedure : Birmingham City University.
7. What happens after a report is submitted?
When a report relating to a student is received, it will be risk assessed by the Mental Health and Wellbeing team and any necessary actions will be carried out. For reports submitted with contact details, an advisor will reach out to the person affected by the incident and provide support information and guidance; the advisor will also complete any necessary safeguarding actions which may include onwards referrals. With anonymous reports, the University is not able to contact the reporter and provide support. However, this information can still be used to inform preventative work in the university and inform security measures where appropriate.
For reports relating to staff members, this is actioned by People and Culture.
8.How will the university manage malicious reports?
If a report is found to be malicious or vexatious, such reports will be addressed under existing student and staff procedures.
9. Is there a time limit on the reports I can submit via R&S?
We would always recommend that you report an incident to the University at the earliest opportunity, when you feel best placed to do so. There is no time limit on reporting, but generally the more time that has elapsed since an incident took place, the more limited we are likely to be in the action we can take.
10. How secure is the data and information sent through the system?
Data held on Report and Support is GDPR compliant and further information about how data is collected and stored is outlined in the Privacy Notice available on the site. The system has been security tested by both Culture Shift and by BCU.
11. Where can I learn more about the incidents I can report through R&S?
The ‘Support’ section of the Report and Support site includes detailed guidance on understanding the issues captured by Report and Support, including explanations of terms, recommended steps to take in particular situations, and sources of internal and external help.
12. What support can I access from BCU as an enrolled student?
The BCU Mental Health & Wellbeing Team offers a wide range of confidential support to students, and the team consists of mental health advisors, wellbeing advisors, counsellors and cognitive behavioural therapists. If you wish to access support from our service, you can find the link to register here on our iCity page: Mental Health and Wellbeing Team : Birmingham City University (bcu.ac.uk).
The Student Money, Housing, and Childcare Advice team and the Accommodation team can explore housing and financial concerns in more detail. If you would like to find out more information about this support and other support services within BCU, please follow this link: https://icity.bcu.ac.uk/Your-BCU
13. What support is available to me external to the university?
If you are concerned about your mental health but do not feel it is an emergency, we would advise making an appointment with your GP in the first instance.
If you feel at risk of immediate harm, please contact the emergency services on 999 or if possible go to your nearest A&E department. A mental health emergency is just as important as a physical health emergency.
To find your local mental health urgent care/crisis team, please click here: Mental Health Helpline for Urgent Help - NHS (www.nhs.uk).
If you are a student and would like to find out more about the external support available, please click here: Crisis & out of hours support : Birmingham City University.
14. What training is available for staff members?
BCU staff members complete mandatory Safeguarding training every 3 years, and mandatory Prevent training every year. The Mental Health and Wellbeing Team offers additional training for BCU staff members. To find out more information on the training available, please see the following iCity page: Staff Training : Birmingham City University.