What is Bullying, Harassment and Stalking?
Whether you’re a student or a staff member, any form of bullying or harassment is never okay and is not tolerated at the University of Cumbria, report your concerns.
What is Bullying? (including cyberbullying and peer-to-peer bullying)
Bullying can be defined in many ways but is generally behaviour that is identified as a misuse of power.
Bullying can be in-person or digital (cyberbullying). Bullying that takes place between two people of a similar age (or status) is known as peer-to-peer bullying.
According to ACAS guidance, bullying is intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive behaviour, through means which have the purpose or effect of violating a person’s dignity or creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, or humiliating environment. Bullying usually involves a repeated course of conduct.
This may make the recipient feel upset, threatened, humiliated or vulnerable and undermines self-confidence. Bullying behaviour is not necessarily always obvious or apparent to others.
Bullying is not unlawful but harassment based upon any of the characteristics listed in the definition above, is unlawful under the Equality Act 2010.
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What is Harassment?
The key is that the conduct is viewed as demeaning and unacceptable to the recipient.
Deliberate physical and/or verbal abuse including embarrassing or derogatory remarks, jokes, name-calling and obscene gestures |
Ridiculing an individual because of physical differences, the way they present their masculinity or femininity, in terms of dress or attitude |
Making stereotypical assumptions about colleagues, friends or members of the public based on their sexuality |
Deliberate interference with wheelchair or support equipment |
Racist, sexist, homophobic or ageist 'jokes', or derogatory or stereotypical remarks about a particular ethnic or religious group or gender |
Outing or threatening to out someone as LGBTQ+ |
Ridiculing an individual because of the way they dress or their religious observance customs |
Using blasphemous or offensive language against any religion or belief, or making inappropriate or derogatory references to religious figures or customs |
What is Stalking?
Stalking is a form of harassment, where the stalker has an unwanted obsession with the person they're targeting and their repeated, unwanted behaviour can make the victim feel distressed or scared.
Stalking may include:
- Following someone
- Going uninvited to their home
- Hanging around somewhere they know the person often visits
- Watching or spying on someone
- Identity theft (signing-up to services, buying things in someone's name)
- Writing or posting online about someone if it's unwanted or the person doesn't know
If the unwanted behaviour has happened two times or more and made you feel scared, distressed or threatened it may be stalking so report it.
> I have been affected by Bullying and/or Harassment. What should I do?
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