Harassment & Bullying Policy

1. This policy applies to all members of the College, including all employees, staff, students, fellows and all contractors and visitors to the college. The policy covers harassment, bullying and victimisation.

2. The College is committed to fostering an inclusive culture which promotes equality, values diversity, and maintains a working, learning, and social environment in which the rights and dignity of all members of the College community are respected. The College does not tolerate any form of harassment, bullying or victimisation.

3. If you have experienced or witnessed an incident of harassment or bullying, then this can be an upsetting experience. It is the aim of the College that all members of the College community can feel that they will be listened to, respected and that any concerns raised will be acted on diligently. Support will be offered, and the College will do all that it reasonably can to resolve the matter.

4. The College expects all members of the College community, its visitors, and contractors to treat each other with courtesy and consideration.

5. The aims of the College as reflected in this Policy are to:

(a) promote a positive environment in which people are treated fairly and with respect;

(b) make it clear that harassment, bullying and victimisation are unacceptable, recognising that those behaviours may cause harm, physically or emotionally, and that all members of the College have an active role to play in creating an environment free from harassment, bullying or victimisation;

(c) provide a framework of support for staff and students who feel they have been subject to harassment, bullying or victimisation, and

(d) provide a mechanism by which complaints can wherever possible be addressed appropriately and in a timely way.

6. Those in positions of authority, such as senior Officers of the College, managers, and members of the Governing Body, have formal responsibilities under this Policy and are expected to familiarise themselves with the Policy on appointment. All managers have a duty to implement this Policy and to take reasonable steps to ensure that harassment, bullying and victimisation do not occur in the areas of work for which they are responsible; and that if they do occur, any concerns are taken seriously and dealt with appropriately under this Policy and the relevant Procedures.

The College's definitions of key terms are based on the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 sections 8(1), (3) & (4), and the Equality Act 2010 sections 26(1), (2), (3) and 27, translated into actions that might arise in a College context.

7. Harassment is defined as unwanted conduct meeting one or more of the following criteria:

(a) a course of conduct on at least two occasions that harasses one other person, or a course of conduct that harasses two or more persons at least once each; in this context, harassment includes causing a person alarm or distress where this is not a reasonable course of conduct in the particular circumstances.

(b) unwanted conduct of a sexual nature that has the purpose or effect of violating a person’s dignity or creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating, or offensive environment, or;

(c) unwanted conduct of a sexual nature or related to gender reassignment or sex that has the purpose or effect of violating a person’s dignity or creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment and because of the alleged victim’s rejection of or submission to the conduct the alleged perpetrator treats the alleged victim less favourably than they would have done had the alleged victim not have rejected or submitted to the conduct;

(d) unwanted conduct relating to a protected characteristic (age; disability; gender reassignment; marriage or civil partnership; pregnancy; maternity; race; religion or belief; sex; or sexual orientation), that has the purpose or effect of violating a person’s dignity or creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating, or offensive environment;

8. Bullying may be characterised as unwanted behaviour that is either: offensive, intimidating, malicious or insulting, or an abuse or misuse of power that undermines, humiliates, or causes physical or emotional harm to someone.

9. When deciding whether harassment or bullying has occurred the intentions of the alleged perpetrator and the perception of the alleged victim, including the extent to which that perception is in all the circumstances reasonable, will be taken into account.

10. Harassment and bullying can be either face to face through other forms of communication, including but not limited to written communications and communications via any form of digital media. It can be verbal and/or physical. It can be direct to the person concerned or to a third party.

11. Being under the influence of alcohol or drugs, or otherwise intoxicated, is not an excuse for harassment or bullying.

12. Victimisation in a College context means subjecting someone to detrimental treatment because they have done, or you believe that they have done or may do, one of the following:

(a) made an allegation of harassment, bullying or discrimination;

(b) indicated an intention to make such an allegation;

(c) assisted or supported another person in bringing forward such an allegation;

(d) participated in an investigation of a complaint;

(e) participated in any disciplinary hearing arising from an investigation, or;

(f) taken any other steps in connection with this Policy.

13. Freedom of speech and academic freedom are central tenets of College life as set out in our Code of Practice on Freedom of Speech Policy. Exposure to any of the following is unlikely to amount to harassment:

(a) the content of higher education course materials, including but not limited to books, videos, sound recordings, pictures;

(b) statements made and views expressed by a person as part of teaching, research or discussions about any subject matter which is connected with the content of a higher education course;

(c) vigorous academic debate when conducted respectfully and without violating the dignity of others or creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for them.

However, in some cases otherwise-lawful speech can amount to harassment if the time, place, and/or manner of its expression interferes disproportionately with the rights of others. For example, speech which is acceptable as part of a formal debate on a controversial topic might nonetheless constitute harassment if delivered unprompted to a student with the relevant protected characteristic in a social context.

14. Reasonable management/criticism of work or the commencement of internal college procedures are not within themselves a form of bullying or harassment.

15. Harassment and bullying can take a variety of forms. Appendix A sets out a non-exhaustive list of examples of such behaviours.

16. Members of the College community who feel that they have been subjected to harassment, bullying or victimisation or have witnessed such behaviour or who are the subject of an allegation of such behaviour can find welfare support and/or support and advice on the options available to them from a variety of different sources. Appendix B sets out a list of resources and the various sources of support available.

Reporting:

17. Harassment, bullying, and victimisation are serious forms of misconduct. Members of the College community who consider that they have been subject to harassment, bullying or victimisation or have witnessed such behaviour may make a report. For reports relating to the behaviour of:

a student of the College - report to the Dean;

a member of College Staff - report to the Head of Human Resources;

a College Fellow - report to the Warden;

a guest of a student of the College - report to the Dean in the first instance

a third party - report to a College Officer

an alumnus - report to the Warden. See also University of Oxford Alumni, Supporters and Friends Code of Conduct

University Procedures:

18. Incidents of harassment that occur within a University context will normally be dealt with under University procedures and policy. This includes alleged harassment by students of a college other than Wadham College, in which case a report can be made to the Proctors. Advice and support on how to make a report to the Proctors can be provided for by the College Dean, College Harassment Advisors or the Welfare Lead. For matters relating to a member of University staff who is not linked to the College please consult the University Harassment Policy/Procedure.

College Procedures:

19. Where the responsible officer or manager judges a report to raise sufficient grounds for investigation, the College will investigate and if necessary, take action. This will take place under the appropriate College Procedure. For reports relating to the behaviour of:

a student of the College – Student Non-Academic Disciplinary Procedure Disciplinary;

a member of College Staff – Employee Disciplinary Procedure;

a College Fellow – Statute XVL, Part III: College Statutes; and

a third party – the most reasonably appropriate of either the Employee Disciplinary Procedure or Student Non-Academic Disciplinary procedure, given the nature of the third party.

20. Wherever possible, the College will be guided by the wishes of those who have been subjected to alleged harassment in determining whether or not to begin formal procedures and in general will only usually investigate if they have received a report. However, the College reserves the right to investigate in the absence of a report from the person who has been subjected to alleged harassment or where they do not wish any action to be taken in certain circumstances (for example, where the alleged behaviour indicates a risk to others in the College community).

Informal Resolution:

21. Where appropriate and where the alleged victim wishes, reports of harassment, bullying or victimisation may be resolved informally without recourse to formal investigation or other procedures. Parties can request facilitated mediation, and any such request will be received sympathetically by the College.

Precautionary Measures:

22. Where necessary, the College may also implement precautionary measures to ensure the safety of those involved or others on the College site. These may include (but are not limited to) the precautionary measures in the student non-academic disciplinary procedures or suspension or action short of suspension under the Employee Disciplinary Procedure.

Complaints:

23. A member of the College community who is dissatisfied with the College’s actions regarding a report of alleged harassment, bullying or victimisation may make a complaint under the Student Complaints Procedure (unless the complaint is more appropriately dealt with through another college procedure) (if the person who is dissatisfied is a student of the College); or raise a Grievance under either the Employee Grievance Procedure (unless the complaint is more appropriately dealt with through another college procedure contained within the Staff Handbook (if the person who is dissatisfied is a member of College staff) or Statute XVL, Part VI: College Statutes (if the person who is dissatisfied is subject to the provisions of that Statute).

24. No action will be taken against someone making a report of harassment, bullying or victimisation which proves to be unfounded if the report is judged to have been made in good faith. However, in the highly unlikely event that someone is quite demonstrably deemed to have known or to have reasonably been expected to know that a report was completely unfounded, the allegation of harassment, bullying or victimisation may be judged to be vexatious or malicious, and disciplinary action may be taken in accordance with the relevant procedure.

Confidentiality:

25. All parties involved in a matter (including any witnesses who may be interviewed as part of any investigation, or other members of the College community, and/or trade union representatives supporting any of the parties) should maintain the confidentiality of the process. Where possible, those involved in advising complainants should seek the consent of the individual for the onward disclosure of relevant information to those with a clear need to know. Where such consent is not forthcoming, the person entrusted with the information should make it clear that, in exceptional circumstances, it may be necessary to disclose the information.

(a) The Governing Body has overall responsibility for this Policy and for ensuring that the College takes all reasonable steps to promote and maintain an environment where neither harassment, bullying or victimisation is tolerated.

(b) The Governing Body also takes responsibility for ensuring that all those who might raise a concern about harassment or bullying have their concerns received in good faith and have access to support for their welfare and wellbeing.

(c) Responsibility for the operation and application of this Policy is delegated to the Dean in respect of the conduct of student members; to the Warden in respect of the conduct of Fellows of the College; and to the Domestic Bursar in respect of the conduct of non-academic employees of the College and the Senior Tutor in respect of the conduct of academic employees.

(d) Equalities and Liaison Committee, reporting into the Governing Body, is responsible for:

(a) overseeing the actions in respect of this Policy of those to whom responsibility under this Policy has been delegated, and;

(b) receiving assurance and reporting on the application and effectiveness of this Policy for onward reporting to Governing Body.

(c) All members and employees of the College are responsible for familiarising themselves with and adhering to this Policy.

26. This Policy will be subject to regular review by the Equalities and Liaison Committee of Governing Body.