Assault of any kind is not okay and should not be tolerated. If you or someone you know has been affected by assault, then we encourage you to seek support.
Some forms of assault may also constitute criminal offences or hate crimes.
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
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.
Sexual assault
Sexual assault is a criminal offence and contrary to the University’s Sexual Misconduct Policy. A person commits sexual or indecent assault if any physical, psychological and emotional violation in the form of a sexual act, inflicted on someone without their consent.
It involves all unwanted physical contact of a sexual nature and ranges from pinching, embracing, groping and kissing, to rape and sexual assault which involves penetration without consent.
Consent is agreeing by choice and having the freedom and capacity to make that choice. Consent can also be withdrawn at any point. A person is free to make a choice if nothing bad would happen to them if they said no. Capacity is about whether someone is physically and/or mentally able to make a choice and to understand the consequences of that choice.