Here at the College we are wholly dedicated to supporting the wellbeing of both our students and our staff. We have a large and dedicated team of people who are here to support you in your wellbeing, both mental and physical, and there will be a programme of events across the year that will be available to you in order to work pro-actively on your own self-care. Below you will find some further information and useful links on a range of topics that you or someone you know might be facing.
Talk to someone at College
If you or anyone you know has experienced or been affected by sexual violence, domestic abuse, financial abuse, emotional abuse, peer-on-peer abuse or sexual harassment, please talk to a member of staff such as your Progress Coach, who can talk you through support options. Ask for a Designated Safeguarding Person at the Welcome Desk or email stayingsafe@yorkcollege.ac.uk.
Domestic Abuse is not okay. It has no place in the College community.
We consider domestic abuse to be when somebody uses threatening, violent or abusive behaviour to control another person with whom they are having or have had a relationship with. This can be a partner, spouse, boyfriend or girlfriend or a family member. The abuse can be psychological, physical, sexual, financial or emotional and is often a combination of these. Domestic abuse is made worse by the fact it is usually perpetrated by someone you care about and by the fact it happens over and over again. There are different kinds of abuse, but it's always about having power and control over you. If you think you may be in an abusive relationship, there is support available and people who can talk you through your options.
IDAS
The Independent Domestic Abuse Service (IDAS) is a specialist charity based in York who support anyone who is a victim or survivor of domestic abuse or sexual violence. When you contact IDAS they will talk to you about your situation and together you will agree on the support you need. Among other things, this can include helping you through the criminal justice system, giving you information on benefits and housing, providing emotional support or referring you on for counselling. They offer a helpline and web chat service.
www.idas.org.uk | 03000 110 110
Contact Survive
Survive is a charity based in York who provides support to survivors of child sexual abuse, rape or sexual assault. Survive is managed by a team of staff and volunteers, trained in supporting people with experiences surrounding rape and sexual abuse. Survive offers: a counselling service, one-to-one support sessions, support groups & a confidential helpline.
www.survive-northyorks.org.uk | 01904 638813
Contact Bridge House SARC
Bridge House Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC) offers free support and practical help to anyone in North Yorkshire and the City of York that has experienced sexual violence and/or abuse. The service is completely confidential, and you do not have to give any personal information in order to get help.
www.bridgehousesarc.org | 0330 223 0099
Emotional Abuse is not okay. It has no place in the College community.
Emotional Abuse is the most common form of domestic abuse, and its effects are extremely harmful. However, it can be hard to spot the signs of emotional abuse in your own situation or that of others. Emotional abuse is a series of repeated incidents that threatens, insults, isolates, degrades, humiliates and/or controls the other person. Types of behaviour that could be classed as emotional abuse include name calling, being put down, having someone control what you do or what you wear, being isolated from friends and family, making you feel you are responsible for the abuse, criticising parenting, threatening family and friends and making unreasonable demands.
Talk to someone
If you or anyone you know has experienced or been affected by sexual violence, please talk to a member of staff such as your Progress Coach, who can talk you through support options. Ask for a Designated Safeguarding Person at the Welcome Desk or email stayingsafe@yorkcollege.ac.uk.
Contact IDAS
The Independent Domestic Abuse Service (IDAS) is a specialist charity based in York who support anyone who is a victim or survivor of domestic abuse or sexual violence. When you contact IDAS they will talk to you about your situation and together you will agree on the support you need. Among other things, this can include helping you through the criminal justice system, giving you information on benefits and housing, providing emotional support or referring you on for counselling. They offer a helpline and web chat service.
www.idas.org.uk | 03000 110 110
Financial abuse is not okay. It has no place in the College community.
Financial abuse is an aspect of ‘coercive control’ – a pattern of controlling, threatening and degrading behaviour that restricts a victims’ freedom.
It’s important to understand that financial abuse seldom happens in isolation: in most cases perpetrators use other abusive behaviours to threaten and reinforce the financial abuse.
Financial abuse involves a perpetrator using or misusing money which limits and controls their partner’s current and future actions and their freedom of choice. It can include using credit cards without permission, putting contractual obligations in their partner’s name, and gambling with family assets.
Financial abuse can leave the victim with no money for basic essentials such as food and clothing. It can leave them without access to their own bank accounts, with no access to any independent income and with debts that have been built up by abusive partners set against their names. Even when a survivor has left the home, financial control can still be exerted by the abuser with regard to child maintenance.
Economic abuse is wider in its definition than ‘financial abuse’, as it can also include restricting access to essential resources such as food, clothing or transport, and denying the means to improve a person’s economic status (for example, through employment, education or training).
Financial abuse includes but is not limited to:
- theft – either physically, or through transfer of funds from the vulnerable person
- misappropriation or misuse of money or property – for example, improper use of money or assets when handling it for a vulnerable person under informal arrangements
- exerting undue influence to give away assets or gifts – this can include putting inappropriate pressure on a vulnerable person to change their will, or make gifts they otherwise would not, or to sign over the family home to one relative when the vulnerable person is about to go into residential care
- putting undue pressure on the vulnerable person to accept lower-cost/lower-quality services in order to preserve more financial resources to be passed to beneficiaries when the person dies
- carrying out unnecessary work and/or overcharging – for example, tradespeople recommending unnecessary repairs to property, pressure-selling of services, overcharging for work or charging in advance
- misuse of a vulnerable person’s assets by professionals – for example, by accountants or legal professionals with access to client funds
- misuse of welfare benefits by those appointed to manage such benefits on behalf of someone lacking capacity
- misuse by paid carers or family members of local authority direct payments, which should be used to pay for care and support
- sales representatives encouraging vulnerable people to enter into contracts or change suppliers (for example for mobile phone services) when they do not understand their contractual responsibilities
- internet and postal scams that fraudulently obtain payments from a vulnerable person
- identity fraud, where the perpetrator gains access to the vulnerable person’s identification documents and takes out credit cards and loans in their name
- romance abuse and predatory marriages, where the vulnerable person is ‘groomed’ to have a relationship with the perpetrator who intends to scam the victim out of money, or marry them with the intention of inheriting their estate
Controlling or coercive behaviour, sometimes taking place alongside physical abuse, can take the form of:
- depriving the person of their basic needs
- limiting access to finances
- denying access to support services, such as specialist support or medical services
- forcing the victim to take part in criminal activity such as shoplifting
- controlling finances, such as only allowing a person a punitive allowance
- taking wages, benefits or allowances
Talk to someone
If you or anyone you know has experienced or been affected by financial abuse, please talk to a member of staff such as your Progress Coach, who can talk you through support options. Ask for a Designated Safeguarding Person at the Welcome Desk or email stayingsafe@yorkcollege.ac.uk.
Peer-on-peer abuse is not okay. It has no place in the College community.
Students can abuse other students. This is generally referred to as peer-on-peer abuse and can take many forms. It can happen both inside and outside of College and online. It is most likely to include, but may not be limited to: bullying (including cyberbullying, prejudice-based and discriminatory bullying); abuse in intimate personal relationships between peers; physical abuse; sexual violence, such as rape, assault by penetration and sexual assault; sexual harassment; non-consensual sharing of nudes and semi nudes images and/or videos; causing someone to engage in sexual activity without consent; upskirting; and initiation/hazing type violence and rituals.
Peer-on-peer abuse can be motivated by perceived differences e.g. on grounds of race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, disability or other differences. It can result in significant, long lasting and traumatic isolation, intimidation or violence to the victim. Children or young people who harm others may have additional or complex needs e.g. significant disruption in their own lives, exposure to domestic abuse or witnessing or suffering abuse, educational under-achievement, being involved in crime. It should be recognised that peer abuse is harmful to both the perpetrator and the victim.
Talk to someone
If you or anyone you know has experienced or been affected by peer-on-peer abuse, please talk to a member of staff such as your Progress Coach, who can talk you through support options Ask for a Designated Safeguarding Person at the Welcome Desk or email stayingsafe@yorkcollege.ac.uk.
Sexual Harassment is not okay. It has no place in the College community.
Sexual harassment is defined as unwanted behaviour of a sexual nature which makes you feel
distressed, intimidated or offended. Sexual harassment is a form of discrimination under the Equality Act 2010. Sexual harassment includes many things: Unwanted pressure for sexual favours, unwanted deliberate touching, unwanted sexual looks or gestures, unwanted letters, texts, telephone calls, or materials of a sexual nature, displaying pictures, photos or drawings of a sexual nature, unwanted sexual teasing, jokes, questions, comments, wolf whistling or cat calls, sexual comments about a person's clothing, anatomy, or looks, telling lies or spreading rumours about a person's personal sex life, actual or attempted rape or sexual assault.
Talk to someone
If you or anyone you know has experienced or been affected by sexual violence, please talk to a member of staff such as your Progress Coach, who can talk you through support options. Ask for a Designated Safeguarding Person at the Welcome Desk or email stayingsafe@yorkcollege.ac.uk.
Sexual Violence is not okay. It has no place in the College Community
Sexual violence is any unwanted sexual act or activity, including but not restricted to: rape, sexual assault, child sexual abuse, sexual harassment, rape within marriage / relationships, forced marriage, so-called honour-based violence, female genital mutilation, trafficking, sexual exploitation, and ritual abuse.
Sexual violence can be perpetrated by a complete stranger, or by someone known and trusted, such as a friend, colleague, family member, partner or ex-partner. Sexual violence can happen to anyone. No-one ever deserves or asks for it to happen. If you have experienced any form of sexual violence, there is support available and people who can talk you through your options.
Talk to someone
If you or anyone you know has experienced or been affected by sexual violence, please talk to a member of staff such as your Progress Coach, who can talk you through support options. Ask for a Designated Safeguarding Person at the Welcome Desk or email stayingsafe@yorkcollege.ac.uk.
Contact IDAS
The Independent Domestic Abuse Service (IDAS) is a specialist charity based in York who support anyone who is a victim or survivor of domestic abuse or sexual violence. When you contact IDAS they will talk to you about your situation and together you will agree on the support you need. Among other things, this can include helping you through the criminal justice system, giving you information on benefits and housing, providing emotional support or referring you on for counselling. They offer a helpline and web chat service.
www.idas.org.uk | 03000 110 110
Contact Survive
Survive is a charity based in York who provides support to survivors of child sexual abuse, rape or sexual assault. Survive is managed by a team of staff and volunteers trained in supporting people with experiences surrounding rape and sexual abuse. Survive offers a counselling service, one to one support sessions, a confidential helpline and support groups.
www.survive-northyorks.org.uk | 01904 638 813
Contact Bridge House SARC
Bridge House Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC) offers free support and practical help to anyone in the City of York and North Yorkshire who has experienced sexual violence and/or sexual abuse. The service is completely confidential, and you do not have to give any personal information in order to get help.
Bridgehouse.sarc@nhs.net | 0330 223 0362
