From 21- 25 January, the University and the SRC united with Rape Crisis Scotland to support the ESHTE (Ending Sexual Harassment and Violence in Third-Level Education) 'It Stops Now' campaign against sexual violence and harassment in Universities.

Kathryn Dawson, Sexual Violence Prevention Coordinator at Rape Crisis Scotland, said "It’s been great to work with the University of Glasgow on their sexual violence training and education resources for staff and students, and to see them supporting the It Stops Now campaign.

“University-wide campaigns like this can make a real difference to the lives of staff and students, leading to a culture in which survivors of sexual violence receive the support they need, and in which sexual harassment and violence are never tolerated.”

Support for Survivors

The campaign was the ideal opportunity to raise awareness of the support available to survivors of sexual violence. The University's team of trained First Responders were highlighted as a valuable point of contact for students wishing to disclose experiences of sexual violence and harassment, and a new suite of web resources were launched. 

Karen Morton, Head of Student Support and Wellbeing, said: "This has been such an important week. I think we’ve shown what a supportive and open culture we have at the University, and it’s been great to raise awareness of the resources available for survivors of sexual violence and harassment.”

#GUSRCLetsTalk

This week of activity follows a long-running partnership between the SRC, Rape Crisis Scotland and Glasgow Caledonian University to develop and run a series of peer-to-peer workshops to engage students in discussions on sexual violence and consent. Let's Talk About Sexual Violence is now in its third year, and workshops have already been delivered to over 1200 UofG students.

A Let's Talk workshop ran in the middle of the week and students were also invited to help plaster a wall of the Library with It Stops Now posters. The week began with the release of an official University statement on sexual violence and harassment.

The statement, jointly signed by University Principal Professor Sir Anton Muscatelli and SRC President Lauren McDougall, emphasised that "sexual violence and harassment, of any form, has no place on our campus and will not be tolerated."

It Stops Now Mural

Fatemeh Nokhbeh, SRC Vice President Student Support, said: “I’m so proud that we’re the first in Scotland to launch this campaign. I think it’s really important for the SRC and the University to continue to work together to tackle issues like this, and the It Stops Now mural is a visible reminder that the whole University of Glasgow community stands united against sexual violence and harassment.

We’ve received some really positive feedback about the wall and how It has made staff and students on campus think about the impact of the issue. The message really is loud and clear, we have a zero-tolerance approach to sexual violence and harassment, and it definitely has no place on our campus."

 

First published: 24 January 2019

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