Newcastle University takes a zero tolerance to sexual harassment. In light of this, NUSU’s Marginalised Genders Officer and Disability Officer have paired up to find out about incidents of sexual misconduct on campus.
The survey states that the term ‘incidents’ incorporates sexual harassment, stalking and rape
The two officers designed a short survey, which is open to any current Newcastle University student or recent graduate. The motive behind this resource was to try and find out how often incidents take place on our campus, and about the impact of said incidents. The survey states that the term ‘incidents’ incorporates sexual harassment, stalking and rape. The survey is being undertaken in the hope that its results can be used to form a report that will be ultimately be distributed to students and staff.
The results of the survey will show students' opinions on both how the university disciplines perpetrators of harassment, and how victims are supported. Furthermore, it will assess the frequency of students accessing support after incidents, from sources both on and off campus. It also seeks to figure out the extent to which students feel comfortable to report incidents, anonymously and non-anonymously, to the University or the to the Police.
Eleasha Haslam, the Marginalised Genders Officer, has stated that the survey’s intention was to “prove to the university that sexual violence and misconduct is a prevalent issue on university campuses, and it is scary even if you haven’t experienced it.” Haslam claims there have been incidents where staff have abused their “professional power to coerce students”, and that there has been a “lack of support” for these victims. The Officers hope that this report will allow “the power of the collective voice” to help “lobby the university into creating change”.
The survey aims to empower students to voice their experiences, and the officers state that they are “PUTTING THE SURVIVORS FIRST FOR A CHANGE!”.