skip to content

Support for you

The University and Colleges provide a range of support for students to access where they have experienced any form of abusive behaviour, physical misconduct, sexual misconduct, or other form of inappropriate behaviour by other students or staff.  Find more information about available sources of support

If your studies have been impacted by a student's or staff member's behaviour then you will not need to provide a full account of the behaviour if you have already reported it to the University, College or police in order to apply for intermission, an examination allowance or other practical support.  If you are an undergraduate or postgraduate taught student your College Tutor can help apply for these measures.  If you are a postgraduate research student you can apply directly - more information is available on this exam allowances webpage or intermission webpage.

Reporting the behaviour of other students or staff

You can report inappropriate behaviour of other students and staff either anonymously here or with your contact details using the Reporting Misconduct Form.  If you report with contact details, a member of OSCCA will be in contact with you in 5 working days to discuss the next steps.  An explanation of the reporting process and a summary of the resulting processes are available in a Student Flow Chart.  If you have a question about reporting you can email OSCCA@admin.cam.ac.uk.

For all reports made:

  • You will never be disadvantaged for raising a genuine complaint;
  • You will be able to bring a supporter with you to any meetings;
  • You will be informed of the outcome of your complaint and any resulting actions that have a direct impact on you.

If you report inappropriate behaviour of other students and staff through Reporting Misconduct Form the following action can be initiated, with your consent:

Informal Complaint Procedure for Student Misconduct - for informal action for student misconduct

  • The Procedure will not make any findings or decisions about whether the behaviour you describe has taken place;
  • This is an informal procedure and it will not be formally recorded on CamSIS or other student record;
  • Outcomes of the process can include a conduct agreement, which can prevent the student(s) from contacting or approaching you; or being able to access parts of the University that you frequently use.

Student Disciplinary Procedure - for formal action for student misconduct

Procedure for behaviour occurring on or after 1 October 2023

Procedure for behaviour occurring before 1 October 2023

  • The Procedure will include a formal investigation of the behaviour and determine whether or not, on the balance of probabilities, it has taken place and breaches the University's Rules of Behaviour;
  • Where the University's Rules of Behaviour have been breached, sanctions can be imposed including no contact with specified people, restrictions on use of buildings, facilities or services, or for very serious matters, temporary or permanent exclusion.

Student Complaints Procedure - for formal action for staff misconduct

  • Other options for reporting staff behaviour are shown in the flowchart of processes for student complaints about staff behaviour.
  • It is highly likely that any responsibility or decision-making that the staff member has over you will be removed.
  • At no point during the investigation will you be expected to be in the same room as the staff member and it is very unlikely that you will need to attend a hearing.  You will always be informed of the outcome of your complaint and any actions that directly affect you.

Reporting to the police

If you believe that a criminal offence has been committed then you can report the matter to the police.  If the incident has taken place in Cambridge then you can find out more information from the Cambridge Constabulary.  If you report a matter to the police, you can still report a matter to the University or College.  The University can limit any interaction between you and the student or staff member you have reported whilst any criminal investigation is ongoing, otherwise the University is likely to wait until the conclusion of any criminal proceedings before taking further action.  Unless the University considers there to be an immediate and significant threat to you or other members of the community, it will never inform the police about a matter you have reported without your explicit consent.

Reporting misconduct to a College

The procedure for complaining about a student, fellow or College employee to a College is likely to be published on the College website.  You can seek advice from your Tutor or Senior Tutor, or from the Tutorial Office about how to make a complaint, or where the Senior Tutor is involved, the Master of the College.

With your consent, the University and College may work together to decide how best to investigate a matter.  Where the report relates to a student engaging in sexual misconduct you will normally be directed to use the University's procedures.  For advice about which procedure to use, speak to your Tutor, the Sexual Violence Support Service or contact the Office of Student Conduct, Complaints and Appeals at OSCCA@admin.cam.ac.uk.

Q. How long will a reporting process take?

This is a difficult question to answer because it depends on the complexity and specifics of the case.  For the Informal Complaint Procedure on Student Misconduct, cases usually take between 1 and 2 months.  For the Student Discipline Procedure, depending on the outcome a typical case can take between 3 and 6 months, though very complex cases can take longer.

Q. If I report will I be prevented from speaking about what happened to me?

The short answer is 'no', OSCCA does not use 'Non-disclosure agreements' for any cases relating to staff or students. 

However, while an investigation is ongoing, we ask everyone involved to not discuss the matter with others, except from those who are providing you with support.  This requirement enables the investigator to gather accounts from individuals about what they remember about an event, rather than what they've told others or what others have told them. 

Before and after the reporting procedure the general University Rules of Behaviour apply - students cannot engage or attempt to engage in abusive behaviour, behaviour which is reasonably likely to cause harm; or have the effect of violating another’s dignity; or create an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for that other (including threats or abusive comments).

Within the Informal Student Complaint Procedure on student misconduct, reporting students can request as part of an agreement, that the respondent student does not discuss the reporting student with their peers, it would then be for the respondent student to agree or not agree to that request.

The Student Discipline Procedure and the Student Complaint Procedure (for formal student and staff investigations) can have outcomes that remove any form of contact with the reporting person.

Q. How can I give feedback on the harassment and sexual misconduct process?

If you have any feedback or questions regarding this webpage or any of the University's reporting procedures please contact oscca@admin.cam.ac.uk