University Support
If you would like to speak to someone within the University, the following services may be useful for you.
If you are a student who has been affected by sexual assault, harassment or rape, the University of Southampton and the Students’ Union can advise you on how to get help and support.
Expect Respect is a campaign by the Students’ Union and the University of Southampton raising awareness about sexual violence and promoting a zero tolerance approach to sexual violence in all forms. Sexual consent means that a person is free to make their own decisions and willingly agrees to have sex or engage in any kind of sexual activity. It's important to ensure that we are all clear on what counts as consent and what doesn't, there can be no grey areas and there are consequences should sexual violence occur.
The University and the Students’ Union aim to increase and sustain awareness, offer education and training, as well as support for those impacted by sexual violence.
Any person who has been affected by sexual violence in any form should be able to get the help and support that they need. We understand that taking the first step of asking for support can be really difficult so we hope to provide the information you require to make this process as easy as possible. This page contains information about support available to University of Southampton students, useful contact details, campaign information and any other relevant updates about this issue.
Available Support
If you have experienced any form of sexual assault, sexual harassment or rape, it is not your fault. This can happen to anybody regardless of age, gender identity or sexuality. At the University of Southampton, we are committed to supporting students affected by any form of sexual violence and working to prevent these incidents.
What you can do
Everybody reacts differently to situations – don’t feel you must respond in a particular way. Some options you may want to consider include:
What we can do
The University will aim to support you in a way that feels most comfortable to you within the boundaries of our services. This may include:
There is support available to you at the University and in the wider community. Please see the links below for more information.
Support is available to any University of Southampton student who may have experienced sexual assault, harassment or rape, even if this occurred away from University grounds.
You don’t have to tell anybody anything or seek support if you don’t want to. It is your choice but the services included in this section are experienced at dealing with these kinds of issues and can work with you to find the best outcome for you.
If you would like to speak to someone within the University, the following services may be useful for you.
If you would prefer to speak to someone outside of the University, the following services may be useful for you.
If you are unsure about sexual violence and want to find out more about how it is defined, click here for further information.
To learn more about the definition of consent, click here for further information.