Any form of assault is never acceptable.
What is assault?
There are different types of assault, including verbal and physical assault which are outlined below. For information on sexual assault, please visit our sexual misconduct and assault pages.
Verbal assault
Verbal assault makes it an offence to use threatening, abusive or insulting language with the intention of causing someone else harassment, alarm or distress.
Physical assault
Is an assault is any act by which a person intentionally or recklessly causes another to suffer or apprehend immediate unlawful violence. The term assault is often used to include a battery, which is committed by the intentional or reckless application of unlawful force to another person.
There are different types of assault, including verbal and physical assault which are outlined below. For information on sexual assault, please visit our sexual misconduct and assault pages.
Verbal assault
Verbal assault makes it an offence to use threatening, abusive or insulting language with the intention of causing someone else harassment, alarm or distress.
Physical assault
Is an assault is any act by which a person intentionally or recklessly causes another to suffer or apprehend immediate unlawful violence. The term assault is often used to include a battery, which is committed by the intentional or reckless application of unlawful force to another person.
What is hate crime?
Any criminal offence 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; race or perceived race; or religion or perceived religion; or sexual orientation or perceived sexual orientation or transgender identity or perceived transgender identity.
Examples of hate crime include, but are not limited to:
- physical assault
- verbal abuse, threats or name calling
- incitement to hatred, when someone acts in a way that is threatening and intended to stir up hated. This could be in words, pictures, videos, music and includes information on websites.
What can you do?
Talk - If someone you know has been affected:
- Listen. Just taking the time to listen to someone and talk about what has happened can help. Try these 6 active listening tips to help you support them.
- Important to know:
- If someone you know has experienced physical assault, please encourage them to seek out urgent care from NHS services in the first instance.
- If someone you know has experienced serious sexual assault, please encourage them to refer to NHS: Help after rape and sexual assault in the first instance.
- Give options. When they have finished talking, ask them if they are okay to talk through some possible options and next steps.
- You can encourage them to seek support.
- Alternatively you make an anonymous disclosure or named disclosure through Report and Support which will allow us to review/investigate as appropriate.
Get support
- Find out what support is available on the External contacts page.
- Take care of yourself. It’s important that you take care of yourself. If you’ve heard something distressing or if something is troubling you, the University's Student Wellbeing and Disability Support and People and Culture teams offer confidential help to students and staff.
- Find out more on the support available for your mental health and wellbeing: