Close
As a Department we believe that all staff, students, contractors and visitors should be treated with respect and dignity.
Dignity at UCL
Bullying, harassment and sexual misconduct are unacceptable behaviours and contrary to the Equality Act 2010 and/or to the Protection from Harassment Act 1997, and to UCL’s and the Department’s ethos. As a Department we believe that all staff, students, contractors and visitors should be treated with respect and dignity, and we wish to cultivate an environment of mutual respect, diversity and intellectual prosperity. We therefore have a have zero tolerance to any form of bullying, harassment, discrimination and sexual misconduct and we would like to encourage anybody who has experienced or witnessed such behaviours to report these. We are committed to investigating thoroughly any allegations and our aim is to create a friendly and welcoming environment which is devoid of bullying, racism, sexual misconduct and any form of sexual, physical, verbal or emotional abuse.
UCL has a Prevention of Bullying, Harassment and Sexual Misconduct Policy which seeks to ensure that UCL students, staff and the wider UCL community are protected from bullying, harassment and sexual misconduct.
This Policy applies to bullying, harassment and sexual misconduct that is committed or is alleged to have been committed by students, academic, research or professional services staff, UCL appointees, or third parties. The alleged misconduct may have occurred:
- on UCL property;
- via UCL IT systems;
- off UCL property;
- online whether via email, the internet or social media;
- in the UK or abroad.
Who can I talk to?
Students
If you are a student, in the first instance you can talk to your Personal Tutor, the Departmental Tutor, the Departmental Manager, the Head of Department, your Research Supervisor or any other trusted member of staff in the Department. You can also contact one of the Departmental Welfare Contacts/Dignity Advisor or a UCL Dignity Advisor.
UCL provides a wealth of support, which includes Student Psychological and Counselling Services, Students’ Union Support, a Rape Crisis Outreach Worker, as well as a Bullying, Harassment and Sexual Misconduct Line. For more information about thees resources please see below:
Staff
If you are a member of staff, in the first instance you can talk to your line manager, the Departmental Manager, the Head of Department or the Department’s HR Business Partner. You can also talk to a UCL Dignity Advisor or one of the Departmental Welfare Contacts/Dignity Advisor.
Departmental Welfare Contacts and Dignity Advisors
The Department has Welfare Contacts and a Dignity Advisor who are available to have confidential discussions with staff and students on all welfare matters, including bullying and harassment. This will involve listening to the issues raised and outlining possible options. Dignity Advisors work with staff and students across UCL whereas the Welfare Contacts are dedicated to staff and students within MSSL. All discussions are confidential. However, if there are concerns for a person's safety then steps (such as investigating a complaint, initiating disciplinary or other formal proceedings, or passing on to third parties in order to take this further) will be taken even where: a. an anonymous report is received (in which case action will be taken on a 'no names' basis); b. somebody has made a named report but does not wish to take this further.
Report and Support
Report and Support is a service for students and staff through which they may make an anonymous disclosure or a full report on an incident of bullying, harassment and/or sexual misconduct. Report and Support will provide information on support options, internal and external to UCL, and will direct the staff member or student on how to take the informal or formal complaint forward.
Manager’s Toolkit
UCL has provided a toolkit to help managers respond to disclosures (a disclosure involves a person sharing an incident or experience of bullying, harassment or sexual misconduct). This may be an incident which occurred recently or in the past. The toolkit has been designed by HR and the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Team and provides clear and simple frameworks for addressing concerns that arise in the context of managing people and teams.