Hate incident reporting
Overview
Any student, staff member, contractor or visitor can report a hate incident (including bullying, harassment and incidents of sexism) that they have witnessed or personally experienced. The incident must relate to UWE Bristol staff, students, contractors or visitors on university premises or in the context of university business.
Students, staff or contractors may wish to report incidents they have experienced or witnessed off campus through the reporting process or through external agencies such as the Bristol Hate Crime and Discrimination Services.
Reporting options
Report and Support
Report and Support is an online platform that has been developed for students to report hate incidents and get practical support and guidance.
The Students’ Union at UWE
Any student can contact The Students' Union at UWE and report an incident via The Students’ Union at UWE Advice Centre. Advice Centre staff and volunteers will provide you with a reporting form and signpost you to the relevant University process to resolve the incident.
The Campus Police Officer
You can talk directly and report an incident to the Campus Police Officer. They can be contacted via the 9999 UWE Bristol Gatehouse telephone number. All designated staff (including the Campus Police Officer) will assist you in accessing the reporting form and advise on the most appropriate University process to resolve the incident.
Corporate Complaints inbox
You can send the University details of a complaint via studentcasework@uwe.ac.uk. See more information on the University’s complaints procedure. If you report an incident to the University a trained member of staff will support you in the following ways:
- Trained individuals will respond in a sensitive, positive, non-judgemental, victim-orientated and culturally competent manner.
- Individuals will provide additional information on UWE Bristol support structures/networks, and external agencies.
- Individuals will provide information on how the University responds to incidents.
Bristol Hate Crime Services
This service is for victims of any type of hate incident including racist, faith-based, disablist, homophobic, transphobic, age-based or gender-based. Call the one-stop reporting line on 0800 171 2272 (freephone).
Reporting options
Hate Incident Monitoring form
Download the University’s hate incident monitoring form and return it to EDI@uwe.ac.uk. The Equality, Diversity and Inclusivity Team will use the form to signpost you to the relevant university department to resolve the incident.
Line managers
Any staff member can report an incident to their line manager/supervisor who will record the incident using the UWE Bristol reporting form and with their consent, explore the involvement of People and Organisation Development, Dignity at Work Advisers and/or any external support agency. If a staff member’s line manager is the perpetrator, a staff member can report to their manager’s line manager. This applies to professional service or academic staff.
Campus Trade Unions
Any union member can contact a campus Trade Union representative and report an incident. The Trade Union representative will provide a reporting form and signpost the individual to the relevant University process to resolve the incident.
The Campus Police Officer
Any individual can talk directly and report an incident to the Campus Police Officer. The Campus Police Officer can be contacted via the 9999 UWE Bristol Gatehouse telephone number. All designated UWE Bristol staff (including the Campus Police Officer) will assist the individual in accessing the reporting form and advise on the most appropriate University process to resolve the incident.
Corporate Complaints inbox
Any individual can send the University details of a complaint via studentcasework@uwe.ac.uk. See more information on the University’s complaints procedure. All individuals reporting incidents to the University will be supported using the following principles:
- Trained individuals will respond in a sensitive, positive, non-judgemental, victim orientated and culturally competent manner.
- Individuals will provide additional information on UWE Bristol support structures/networks, and external agencies.
- Individuals will provide information on how UWE Bristol will respond to incidents.
Bristol Hate Crime Services
This service is for victims of any type of hate incident including racist, faith-based, disablist, homophobic, transphobic, age-based or gender based. Call the one-stop reporting line on 0800 171 2272 (freephone).
Reporting options
Hate Incident Monitoring form
Download the University’s hate incident monitoring form and return it to EDI@uwe.ac.uk. The Equality, Diversity and Inclusivity Team will use the form to signpost you to the relevant university department to resolve the incident.
The Campus Police Officer
Any individual can talk directly and report an incident to the Campus Police Officer. The Campus Police Officer can be contacted via the 9999 UWE Bristol Gatehouse telephone number. All designated UWE Bristol staff (including the Campus Police Officer) will assist the individual in accessing the reporting form and advise on the most appropriate University process to resolve the incident.
Corporate Complaints inbox
Any individual can send the University details of a complaint via studentcasework@uwe.ac.uk. See more information on the University’s complaints procedure. All individuals reporting incidents to the University will be supported using the following principles:
- Trained individuals will respond in a sensitive, positive, non-judgemental, victim orientated and culturally competent manner.
- Individuals will provide additional information on UWE Bristol support structures/networks, and external agencies.
- Individuals will provide information on how UWE Bristol will respond to incidents.
Bristol Hate Crime Services
This service is for victims of any type of hate incident including racist, faith-based, disablist, homophobic, transphobic, age-based or gender based. Call the one-stop reporting line on 0800 171 2272 (freephone).
Hate incidents
UWE Bristol students, staff, contractors and visitors with specific (or a combination of) protected characteristics can face hate incidents related to their protected characteristic. It is important to note that under these definitions a person does not have to possess the protected characteristic for them to have been the victim of. For example, a person does not have to be a disabled person to be a victim of a disability hate incident. Neither does a person have to be gay to be a victim of a homophobic hate incident. It may be that the perpetrator perceives the victim to be gay. Under the Equality 2010, this is referred to as ‘discrimination by perception’.
Disability hate incidents
A disability hate incident is any behaviour which is perceived, by the victim or any other person, to be motivated by hostility or prejudice based on a person's disability or perceived disability. For example, a disabled student being called derogatory names in The Students’ Union at UWE bar.
Homophobic/biphobic hate incidents
A homophobic/biphobic hate incident is any behaviour which is perceived, by the victim or any other person, to be motivated by a hostility or prejudice based on a person's sexual orientation or perceived sexual orientation. For example, a couple in a same-sex relationship being made to justify their relationship.
Race hate incidents
A race hate incident is any behaviour which is perceived, by the victim or any other person, to be motivated by hostility or prejudice based on a person's race or perceived race. For example, a black and minority ethnic staff member is racially abused by a student’s parent.
Religious hate incidents
A religious hate incident is any behaviour which is perceived, by the victim or any other person, to be motivated by a hostility or prejudice based on a person's religion or perceived religion. For example, a student’s Christian belief system being ridiculed in one of the University’s Learning Zone areas.
Transphobic hate incidents
A transphobic hate incident is any behaviour which is perceived, by the victim or any other person, to be motivated by a hostility or prejudice against a person who is transgender or perceived to be transgender. For example, comments made about a trans person’s clothing or appearance.
Reasons to report hate incidents
Reasons to report
Bristol is a great place to live, work and study but, like any large city, it contains a few individuals with negative and prejudiced views about others. The University, local police and local council all have policies in place to tackle prejudice and antisocial behaviour and they provide services for people to report incidents.
The University and police take these reports very seriously. UWE Bristol believes that any type of hate incident or harassment is unacceptable. Reporting incidents will help us to make communities safer for those living, working and studying here.
It is important that the University, the Police and Bristol’s Hate Crime Services know about hate incidents so that they can work out where there are issues and what extra support might be needed. If the University and our partners don't know about it then we can't stop it.
Hate incidents can be particularly hurtful to victims as they are being targeted solely because of their age, disability, gender reassignment status, marriage or civil partnership status, pregnancy or maternity status, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation. The nature of these incidents can have far-reaching consequences for diverse communities.
The impact on victims or witnesses is different for each individual, but many experience similar problems. The confusion, fear and lack of safety felt by victims and witnesses of these incidents can have a ripple effect on their particular groups (racial or religious, lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender and vulnerable people) in the wider community.
After you report
If you report an incident without disclosing your details the report will be used for monitoring purposes to build a picture of what is happening across the UWE Bristol community. If you report an incident with your details the incident can be investigated fully and you can get the support you need.
All incidents reported to the University via the hate incident monitoring form (DOC) will be monitored by the Equality, Diversity and Inclusivity Team. They will produce quarterly collated responses from all reporting processes and share relevant and appropriate data and trend findings.
Annual monitoring data will be included in the University’s annual published equality data report and used to inform future activities to reduce the levels of incidents involving students, staff and visitors. University responses to cases of hate incidents will be managed by the three university procedures relating to the:
- complaints procedure
- student conduct procedure
- staff Dignity at Work procedures (staff login required).
UWE Bristol works closely with Avon and Somerset Police and will take positive action to eliminate hate incidents. For certain incidents that constitute a crime, a perpetrator could be liable for prosecution. The victim will be fully involved in resolving the incident and the University will support the victim to make the right decision.
Bullying, harassment and sexism
Antisemitism
We stand against and oppose all racism and illegal discrimination. It has no place in our society and our universities. We recognise that antisemitism is a specific form of racism that has a long history and presents itself in specific ways.
The University has adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s (IHRA) working definition on antisemitism in full, with the clarifications recommended by the Home Affairs Select Committee in 2016 to protect freedom of speech. The adoption of the definition was agreed at a meeting of the Board of Governors on 8 July 2021 (see the full statement for details and clarifications (DOC)).
UWE Bristol’s strategic ‘Speak Up’ programme, rolling out to all staff and students, reinforces the importance of becoming active bystanders, allies and anti-racists in all that we do, challenging inappropriate behaviour in a safe way.
Bullying
The main difference between bullying and harassment is that, conduct will only amount to harassment if it is carried out for a prohibited reason (eg on the grounds of race, gender, religion etc), while bullying is indiscriminate and can manifest in many different ways.
The Advisory Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) define bullying as: "Offensive, intimidating, malicious or insulting behaviour, an abuse or misuse of power through means intended to undermine, humiliate, denigrate or injure the recipient”.
Conduct that may amount to bullying could be:
- spreading malicious rumours, or insulting someone by word or behaviour
- ridiculing or demeaning someone — picking on them or setting them up to fail
- exclusion or victimisation.
Harassment
Under the Equality Act 2010, harassment is any unwelcome comments (written or spoken) or conduct which violates an individual's dignity; and/or creates an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment. Harassment is related to one of the following:
- age
- disability
- gender reassignment
- race
- religion or belief
- sex
- sexual orientation.
Harassment can involve verbal abuse and name calling, offensive graffiti, emails, letters, text messages, or social media platforms. Harassment is a criminal offence.
Sexism
UWE Bristol’s hate incident reporting enables any student, staff member, contractor or visitor to report unwanted harassment or bullying that is also motivated by misogyny, sexism or contempt for women. This will also include everyday physical, verbal, emotional psychological, financial or cyber abuse.
Support from university services
Primary support for the reporting, resolution and future learning from hate incidents will come from UWE Bristol internal support services. These are:
Students
- The Students’ Union at UWE
- Student Services (student conduct procedure).
Staff
- Your line manager
- Employee Assistance Programme (staff login required)
- Dignity at Work procedure (staff login required)
- Trade unions (staff login required).
Support from external agencies
The following agencies are promoted as additional avenues for the reporting of hate incidents:
- Bristol Hate Crime Services (BHCS) - a collaboration of agencies led by S.A.R.I. (Stand Against Racism and Inequality) with Brandon Trust, Bristol Mind and Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Bristol are working together to deliver hate crime and incident support services for Bristol.
- Local agencies such as the Citizens Advice Bureau and other community voluntary services can also receive incident reports and will provide advice and support.
- True Vision provides a 24-hour online reporting service, with information on support agencies.
You may also be interested in
Complaints
Information about the UWE Bristol complaints process and the different stages involved.
Policies
View a listing of key UWE Bristol policy and strategy documents.
Support for staff
Members of staff at UWE Bristol can log in to the intranet for staff-only information on equality, diversity and inclusivity.
Contact the EDI Team
Ways to contact the Equality, Diversity and Inclusivity (EDI) Team.