What are Bullying and Harassment?

If you have been affected by bullying or harassment, you can let us know using the You Report, We Support form.

Whether you’re a student or a staff member, bullying and harassment is never okay.

Both bullying and harassment are contrary to the Equality Act 2010 and the University of Cumbria's Code of Conduct policy.

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.

Examples of bullying include, but are not limited to:

shouting at, being sarcastic towards, ridiculing or demeaning others
overbearing and intimidating levels of supervision
inappropriate and/or derogatory remarks about someone's performance
abuse of authority or power by those in positions of seniority
deliberately excluding someone without good reason

Bullying can take the form of persistent behaviour or a single action.

Important to note: There are differences between bullying and assertive management. Bullying is always unfair and may undermine someone’s efforts to perform well. Assertive management, on the other hand, may involve setting demanding – but fair and achievable – targets and standards of behaviour appropriate to someone’s job, grade and level of responsibility.

What is Harassment?

The University of Cumbria defines harassment as unwanted conduct related to a relevant protected characteristic that has the purpose or effect of violating a person’s dignity or creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for that person. The conduct may be persistent or an isolated incident and can be physical, verbal or non-verbal.

The key is that the conduct is viewed as demeaning and unacceptable to the recipient.

Under our definition, we understand harassment to include domestic violence and abuse (which can also involve control, coercion and threats) and stalking.

We would also consider harassment to include any incidents of physical violence towards another person(s) on the basis of a protected characteristic.

Unwanted behaviour could be, but is not limited to:

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

> I have been affected by bullying and/or harassment

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