Especially in Newcastle, domestic abuse and gender based violence have continued to remain a widespread issue, despite many spirited campaigns spearheaded by the police. Students don’t feel safe, whether it’s coming back home after a night out or walking through campus alone. There is a need for societies such as It Happens Here (IHH) to help students find a safe space to campaign and a platform for much-needed awareness and activism.
We sat down with IHH President, Aimee Bond and Welfare Officer/Secretary, Megan Hardiman, to get their insights into the topic and what IHH is. They recalled being interested in joining the society as it is a springboard for activism, where the focus is on creating a community of like-minded individuals who wish to actually make change through campaigns.
Aimee and Megan elaborated on their society’s most recent ‘Flag It Newcastle’ campaign, which aims to create awareness about domestic abuse, both in your life, and that of your friends and family.
They mentioned how shifting to a new city for university is an overwhelming time. Aimee said: “People at university are in a vulnerable position especially in that first year as they move away from all of their support network… and so you are very vulnerable to abusive relationships.”
The work that IHH does to combat domestic abuse is necessary within contemporary society. Especially when considering that Northumbria Police recorded that out of 949 crimes reported in December 2024 in Newcastle Central, violence and sexual offences were the most common with 313 instances.
The most well known campaign that IHH led was the ‘Do Better’ campaign. The first year saw the society speaking to students to research the prevalence of sexual violence on campus and create recommendations to reduce it. Following that, the second year consisted of lobbying with the university to act on these recommendations and advocating for the consent and bystander training to be a mandatory part of student inductions.
IHH believes that Newcastle University can and should offer a stronger support system for those affected by domestic abuse or violence, including proposing the idea of a full-time qualified sexual violence officer to be present on campus.
The duo mentioned how they are striving to secure a larger membership so that they can focus more funds on support group development and more widespread campaigns.
“If there’s anyone reading that would like to get involved with an organisation that’s committed to creating a safe space on campus and within a wider community, campaigning, then we’d be lucky to have you…everyone’s welcome!” Megan said, earnestly.
The society is integral to the university, as they are willing to address and advocate for the darker part of university life that nobody else is willing to talk about. Tangible change starts with a single step (in this case, a slogan), as it happens here is not just a tagline, but a reality.