What is the difference between a disclosure and a report?
Disclosure
A disclosure is where someone tells you about their experience but does not necessarily want action to be taken but would like to explore options of support hat are available to them. A disclosure is not a formal report and disclosing or reporting are separate decisions that result in different levels of response or action by the University. A disclosing party should be given time to make an informed choice about whether or not to make a formal report to the police or to the University.
We recognise that people may choose to disclose harmful behaviour to whomever they feel most comfortable approaching; this might be, for example, a friend, society lead, Personal Tutor, a lecturer, line manager, a colleague, or a member of the Students’ Union. We do not place any limitation on who staff and students can report to, as we understand that making a disclosure to anyone can be difficult and takes courage.
If you receive a disclosure, we understand that it may be difficult to hear of such experiences. It is important to acknowledge your own feelings, practice self-care and seek support. The university offers the following training to inform staff and students of how best to support peers and students, whilst also looking after your own wellbeing:
- Look After Your Mate (for students)
- Dealing with Students in Distress (for staff)
- Staff Introduction to Safeguarding and Report and Support (for staff)
Report
The University takes all instances of harmful behaviour seriously. Where you experience or witness harmful behaviour, we encourage you to report it using the Report and Support online system. Further detail of the University's position in respect of harmful behaviour can be found in the University Community Agreement and Definitions of Harmful Behaviour and Related Issues.
The University will not normally take action without consulting you and will not treat your report as a complaint until we have contacted you. If, however, there are serious safety and wellbeing concerns raised by a report we may need to take urgent action without asking you first. This action would only be made if there was a serious risk of harm to yourself or others. An example of this may be contacting a student’s emergency contact or the emergency services if there are concerns regarding immediate safety. To read more about the role of an emergency contact, please see here:
Once you submit a Report and Support, you will be contacted by the Mental Health and Wellbeing Team, People and Culture or Student Governance to discuss support and reporting options. For more information on the complaints process, please see the Student Complaints Procedure and Grievance Policy (for staff only).
For advice and assistance on all stages of the complaint process, students can contact the Students' Union Advice Centre. If you are a staff member, please contact the Employee Assistance Programme or People and Culture to discuss the support available to you.
A report can also be made to the police by calling 101. A report made to the police is separate from a report made to the University. Please note that if you have reported, or are thinking of reporting to the police, you can still report to the University but be aware that any internal investigation may be pending police action so that the University does not interfere with any criminal justice proceedings (e.g. interviewing witnesses).