Sexual misconduct and violence

Sexual misconduct or violence constitutes a type of harassment or assault characterised by unacceptable behavior of a sexual nature. This encompasses:

Intimate partner violence
Grooming
Coercion or sexual requests
Unwanted or inappropriate physical contact
Suggestive comments, gestures or innuendos
Online comments, posts or unsolicited images via social media, email or texts
Intrusive questions or spreading rumours of a sexual nature

There may be other forms of sexual misconduct or violence that are not listed above, which could also constitute sexual harrassment or assault.

Sexual assault is a criminal offense wherein an individual deliberately touches another person without their consent, the touch being sexual in nature.

Sexual harassment denotes unwanted and unwelcome words, actions or behavior of a sexual nature that aims to create an intimidating, hostile, degrading or humiliating environment. It often involves the misuse of personal or institutional power.

Get the right support

There is lots of specialist support available both within the college and externally that you or someone you know can access for support with sexual misconduct and violence.

Support within the college

At Sunderland College, safety and wellbeing is our number one priority.

We can provide counselling and support to our students. You can self-refer to make either a face-to-face or a virtual appointment with the service by emailing counselling@educationpartnershipne.ac.uk. Or, if you prefer, a member of staff can do it on your behalf with your consent. Find out more information here.

We also have a safeguarding representative available at each campus. You can find more information on safeguarding and wellbeing support here.

As part of our employee assistance programme, we have partnered with MLC Medics, who provide free, confidential advice and support. Staff can email EAP@mlc-medics.com or 0808 196 1441 to speak to a counsellor.

Employees may also with to speak to our People, Organisational and Development team to access any available support.

College policies and procedures

We have a range of policies and procedures that help us to govern and manage the College. Below are our policies that may be relevant when addressing hate incidents. You can click on each of the policies listed below to find out more information and read the full policy or procedure.

External support

In the North East of England, various specialist services are available to support individuals affected by sexual misconduct and violence. These include Sexual Assault Referral Centres (SARCs), Rape Crisis centres, and other organisations offering counselling, advocacy, and practical support. Here are some resources that can offer support:

Safe Newcastle - highlights the 24-hour crisis intervention and support provided by the Angel Centre (Northumbria SARC) for anyone who has experienced a sexual offence
Rape Crisis Tyneside and Northumberland - provides specialised services for women, trans women, and girls affected by sexual violence
SARC Teesside - provides 24-hour support, including forensic examinations and advice to police and patients
RSACC - provides services in Darlington and County Durham, including counselling, advocacy, and trauma-informed groups
Children North East - offers support to young people and families affected by sexual abuse, including trauma processing and recovery actions

Reporting

There are two ways to report:

If you select 'Report anonymously', the College will not be able to directly help you or follow up with you on your report. We will be able to track incidents and concerns, identify trends and improve things based on these.

If you would like someone from the College to contact you in regard to your report, please 'Report with details'.

You can report a number of different types of concerns. For example, you can report an incident of sexual harassment, bullying or hate incidents. If your are unsure which category your concern is most relevant to, or you would like to find out more information about the support available, please see the How to get the right information and support section, which provides information on the definitions of the various types of concerns you can report.

The College will keep the information you provide in the form confidential and only share with those who need to know. Your personal data will be maintained pursuant to data protection legislation, regulation and our policy and procedure. You can learn more about this by reading our Student Privacy Notice and our Staff Privacy Notice.