Sexual misconduct and harassment

All first-year students, of all types of study, have a mandatory requirement to complete the Bystander and Consent training module on Blackboard. This course will be made available to students on Monday 15 September 2025 with a deadline of Monday 20 October 2025 for completion.

This training will cover the following: 

Understanding consent

• Provide an awareness of the importance of understanding consent in sexual acts and everyday situations.
• Raise awareness and help students with the understanding of consent in a variety of situations and help students to form healthy and consensual relationships and friendships. 
• Set out the University’s stance on sexual violence/misconduct – that it is not to be tolerated.
• Highlight the universities work around this and support available to those affected.
• Raise understanding and awareness of students’ responsibility to make the University of Leicester a safe and inclusive environment built on dignity and respect.
• Inform students of internal and external support, provide an opportunity for interaction through a quiz and finally provide students with an opportunity to be heard through feedback.

Bystander Intervention Training summary

• Introduce the types of unacceptable behaviours that can be prevalent around campus and in communities, including Examples of unacceptable behaviours include discrimination, harassment, bullying, and assault.
• Raise awareness and share information on what an active bystander is and the four stages of being an active bystander.
• Explore and inform students of ways to prevent unacceptable behaviours from taking place in the future.
• Raise understanding and awareness of students’ responsibility to make the University of Leicester a safe and inclusive environment built on dignity and respect.
• Inform students of internal and external support, provide an opportunity for interaction through a quiz and finally provide students with an opportunity to be heard through feedback.

If you have experienced, witnessed or know someone who has been a victim of sexual misconduct or harassment, then you can let us know by making an online disclosure on Report and Support.

You may see the words 'Disclosure' and 'Report' throughout this website, and you may even hear people at the University refer to these words . 

It is important to be clear about the difference between a disclosure and a report.

Disclosing or reporting are separate decisions that result in different levels of response or action by the University.

A disclosure is where someone tells you about their experience but does not necessarily want action to be taken. A disclosing party should be given time to make an informed choice about whether to make a formal report to the police or to the University.

A disclosure does not lead to a report unless you want it to.

A formal report is the first step in a formal disciplinary process. This report is completed by the disclosing/ reporting party (sometimes with support from a Standing Together case worker) and is sent to the Student Conduct Team to initiate the disciplinary process. The report will ask for information about the nature of an incident as well as any other relevant details. 

There is a short set of multiple-choice questions on this disclosure tool. 

You can let us know about the incident(s) in one of two ways, either anonymously or by leaving your contact details. You will be asked for your choice at the end of the process.

If you choose to disclose anonymously, we will not be able to offer direct support or begin any formal processes. 

If you let us know about something and leave your contact details, depending on whether you are a student, staff or visitor at the University of Leicester, you will be contacted by a member of the team from Student Support Services to discuss your options for further support.

Please note that you can leave the form at any point.

Your disclosure is sent to our Standing Together team who are all trained specialist caseworkers. 

The team will offer you an initial appointment to talk through your support options. This can either take place face to face on campus or online via Microsoft Teams. This will also be an opportunity for you to ask any questions you have about accessing support or the options available to you.

There are a number of ways that the team will be able to help you. Each student case is unique and the caseworker will make an assessment on what can be offered to you. A non-exhaustive list is noted below:

• Support with speaking to your personal tutor and School about any missed assessments.
• Practical support and guidance, including emotional support where needed.
• Support with making referrals or supporting you in referring yourself.
• Support through processes such as the University disciplinary process.
• Writing letters of support for processes such as requesting mitigating circumstances.
• Support with issues or concerns not directly related to the original referred incident(s).
• Support for as long as you may require it, as long as the support is still purposeful and falls under one of the four categories of support appointment.
• Support in making informed decisions and choices.

Please be assured that our friendly team are here to help you in any way that they can. 

If you have any questions at all relating to this, please contact the team on standingtogether@le.ac.uk

A report can also be made to the police by calling 101. A report made to the police is separate from a report made to the University.

If you would also like to access support from the University after contacting the police then you can make a disclosure on Report and Support and a trained member of staff will be in touch.

We understand that experiencing or witness any unacceptable behaviour can have an impact on other parts of your university life. If you are engaged with our Standing Together team then your allocated caseworker will be able to signpost you to other services, in which you feel may be suitable for you, as we have a range available to help you. Additionally, if you feel that you are not at the stage to engage with Standing Together support, you can still access these services. Your voice and choice is important to us.  hese are also noted below: 

If you are a current student and would like to access mental health support, you can complete a self-referral form on this link (log-in required). If you have any questions relating to this you can email wellbeing@le.ac.uk

If you would like to access any disability support such as reasonable adjustments and study support, you can email accessable@le.ac.uk

For any practical, pastoral and financial support, please contact welfare@le.ac.uk

If you are unsure on what support you can access as a registered student, then please do not hesitate to call our Student Support phoneline on 0116 (Monday-Friday, 9.00am-5.00pm) and our friendly team can guide you through any queries you may have. You can also email your allocated Standing Together Caseworker.

We want all our students to have a clear understanding of how things work at the University of Leicester. 

This section brings together the key policies and procedures that guide how we support you during your studies. 

• Dignity and Respect
• Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
• Personal Relationships (log-in required)

These webpages and policy highlights our commitment to maintaining a respectful and inclusive environment for all students and staff.

• Student Sexual Violence and Misconduct - Our approach to handling incidents of sexual violence and misconduct.
• Freedom of Speech: Conduct of Practices - Guidelines on ensuring the right to free speech while maintaining respectful conduct

It can sometimes be helpful to get in touch with local or national organisations for additional support, or if you would prefer to speak to someone outside of the University. Below are some services which may be useful for you.

• Juniper Lodge (Sexual Assault Referral Centre): discrete medical, emotional, and practical support to anyone that has been subject to sexual assault 0116 273 3330  
• Jasmine House: free and confidential services following any form of sexual violence either recently or in the past  0116 255 5962.
• First Step: supporting male rape and sexual abuse survivors and their supporters living in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland 0116 254 8535
• Victim First: supporting victims through their journey of recovery in Leicestershire 0800 953 9595

Additional external support providers can be found on the Report and Support webpages.

All staff who have been assessed as having a high likelihood of receiving a disclosure from a student regarding sexual misconduct or harassment, have been appropriately trained. 

Further information on support for staff can be found on the Report and Support website.

The Student Conduct team is a small team based within Student and Academic Services, which deals with cases of Academic and Non-Academic Misconduct across the University.

We support Academic Conduct Officers in schools by dealing with cases of Academic Misconduct, such as plagiarism or collusion, which need to go to discipline panels for decisions. We are responsible for arranging discipline panels, preparing case files and letting students know the outcome of the process. We will also manage appeals against discipline outcomes.

We also investigate a broad range of Non-Academic Misconduct matters, including fraudulent fee payments, violence, harassment and sexual misconduct. We concentrate on the most serious matters, which might be considered 'Major Misconduct.' Our role is to investigate reports about potential student misconduct, to establish whether there is enough evidence to suggest that the University’s regulations have been breached. This will include interviewing reporting students, reported students and witnesses, gathering evidence such as CCTV footage, photos and messages, and preparing reports for a decision to be made on how the matter should be resolved. If a discipline panel is required, we will arrange this, prepare outcomes for students, and deal with any appeals they wish to make about outcomes. 

The University manages student discipline cases under Senate Regulation 11, which provides the process we need to follow when we investigate matters. We also follow the Good Practice Framework published by the Office of the Independent Adjudicator, to make sure our investigations are thorough and fair.

The team

• Jon Putnam - Head of Student Conduct, Complaints and Resolution
• Alicia Brown - Conduct, Complaints and Appeals Coordinator 
• Carl Gudgeon - Administrative Officer

We also have a team of specialist Conduct and Complaints Officers who are responsible for investigating cases of misconduct:

• Jess Pallett
• Claire Mason
• Ethan Lang
• Gabby Provan

If you wish to make a complaint about another student’s conduct, we recommend that you reach out to Standing Together or make a report via Report + Support in the first instance. This will put you in touch with one of our Standing Together caseworkers, who will discuss your report with you, help you understand your options, signpost or refer you to support services, and offer support for your wellbeing during any investigation. 

If you decide that you wish to go ahead with making a formal report, this can be made by completing an Interpersonal Non-Academic Misconduct (INAM) report. In this report you will tell us who you are complaining about, what you wish to report, what the impact has been on you and what resolution you are looking for.

When we receive your report, we will make a careful assessment of what you are reporting, what evidence might be available, and what resolutions might be appropriate.

We may make some initial enquiries to find out more, which could include meeting with you or your Standing Together caseworker, or key staff members such as tutors, to understand more about the situation. We would not speak to the person/people you are reporting at this stage. 

We do not take every case into a formal process; sometimes there may not be enough evidence, or we feel that other options may be more effective. Where this is the case we will explain why, and offer assistance to find alternative solutions. This might include offering informal resolutions, such as mediation or speaking with the reported student/s to offer advice about their conduct. 

All Conduct cases are referred to the University’s Cause for Concern (CFC) group, which will monitor any risks and wellbeing issues, and consider whether precautionary measures are required. Precautionary measures include Non-Contact Orders (where students are prohibited from contacting each other), Temporary Exclusion Orders (where a student can continue to study but is prohibited from coming to certain places or the whole campus in person) or Temporary Suspension Orders (where the student’s studies are suspended entirely and they are prohibited from campus). These measures are used sparingly and are not intended as punishments.

The University follows the Office of the Independent Adjudicator (OIA) Good Practice Framework when deciding whether there is enough evidence. We must be able to demonstrate on the balance of probabilities (more likely than not, or more than 50% sure) that our regulations have been broken, and this must be supported by evidence. This is higher than simply believing that something is likely to have happened, and it is for the University to prove the breach, not for the reported student to prove they haven’t breached the rules. This is called the 'Standard of Proof.' This is a high standard to meet, and if we don’t feel it is met, this does not mean we didn’t believe what was reported or that we haven’t taken the case seriously. 

Where we decide that the case requires a full investigation, it will be allocated to one of our Conduct and Complaints Officers for further enquiries. The Conduct Officer will contact you to arrange a meeting, in which they will explore your report, take a statement from you and collect any evidence you wish to provide. You are welcome to bring a friend or your Standing Together caseworker to this meeting for support if you wish. 

The Conduct Officer will also record statements from any witnesses you put forward (if they agree to be involved). 

Once this evidence has been gathered the Conduct Officer will contact the student/s you have reported to invite them for a formal interview, where they will be asked to respond to the report made about them. 

This process can take several weeks, and there are sometimes occasions where we may pause an investigation, for example if the police are investigating too, or if you or the reported student/s are undergoing exams or assessments. The Conduct Officer will keep you updated on progress, and you are welcome to reach out to them directly or through your caseworker if you would like any particular update. 

Under Senate Regulation 11, many decisions are made by the Academic Registrar. However, the Head of Student Conduct is nominated to make day-to-day decisions on the Academic Registrar’s behalf. The Head of Conduct will usually make the initial decision on whether to investigate a report, and may also make recommendations to the Academic Registrar during investigations.

Where we fully investigate a report, the Conduct Officer will complete their report and submit it to the Academic Registrar. The Academic Registrar will then carefully review the case and decide on an outcome, as follows:

• Dismiss the case. This is usually in cases where the Academic Registrar believes there isn’t enough evidence to prove that the regulations have been broken. 
• Sanction. Under the Regulations the Academic Registrar has the power to make certain sanctions in less serious cases, where there is a suitable outcome available. This may include a fine, a requirement to apologise, a reprimand or a written warning. 
• Refer to Panel. In more serious or complex cases, the Academic Registrar will refer the case to a discipline panel. The panel will consist of three independent people from across the University who have had no previous involvement in the case, and have not had previous dealings with any of the students involved. Cases of major misconduct, such as sexual misconduct, will almost always go to a panel. In the most serious cases, the panel can suspend or expel a student.

All students involved will be updated on what decision has been made and why. If the decision has been made to dismiss the case, we will consider whether anything else can be done to help resolve the situation. 

The Student Conduct Team aims to decide on whether to take on an investigation within five working days. This can be quicker in urgent cases, but may take longer during busy periods or in very complex cases which require fact-finding.

Our investigations are thorough and detailed, so they can take some time. We aim to complete investigations within 90 days, but many investigations will be quicker than this. Sometimes our enquiries will take longer, particularly in complex cases, or those which the police are also investigating. 

If a case progresses to a discipline panel, the panel will aim to provide its decision within 5 working days. Again, depending on the circumstances of each case, this may be shorter or longer. 

All students involved in the investigation will be kept updated on how the case is progressing, and can also request updates or ask their Standing Together caseworker to find out information.