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MRC Mitochondrial Biology Unit

 

We strongly believe that nobody should be subjected to discrimination, bullying, harassment or sexual assault while studying or working in the MBU, and fully support the University’s statements on preventing harassment and sexual misconduct.

Whilst we hope that ongoing training and initiatives within the University and the Unit will reduce the number of incidents occurring, and we all have a shared responsibility to make this succeed, there are a number of ways in which issues can be reported and support can be sought.

Reporting

According to the University's Dignity@Work policy, any breaches, including incidents of discrimination, bullying, harassment or sexual assault, should be reported to the individual’s line manager (or next highest level of authority if the concern involves the line manager). They will provide support and guidance, act upon concerns, and when possible, may help to resolve the concerns or issues in an informal way. More information and HR policies can be found on our intranet.

Staff, students and visitors can also anonymously report inappropriate behaviour (either themselves, or on the behalf of others) to the University Student Complaints service. This will provide an anonymous record of the issues you have witnessed or experienced, and inform future policy. You can also report with your contact details through Report+Support
Direct action can only be taken if a complaint is submitted formally through a line manager or equivalent.

Any suspected criminal activity should be reported to the Police.

Further information on reporting inappropriate behaviour and support available to you can be found here

Being an active bystander

When you witness a situation that doesn’t feel right, there are many ways you can react. Being an active bystander means that you say or do something and somehow try to put the situation right, provide support, or prevent it from happening again. We all have an individual and shared responsibility to prevent discrimination, harassment or bullying. Becoming an active, rather than a passive bystander is a powerful way to take on this responsibility.

More information about being an active bystander is available on this website from the University's 'Breaking the Silence' campaign.

The University also provides Active Bystander Training through the PPD site.

Support

Don't hesitate to get in touch with the Unit's wellbeing advocate, Hannah Bridges (email), or the positive culture champion, Jelle van den Ameele (email). 

The MBU also runs a mentoring programme aimed at offering career-related support, the details of which are outlined here.

In addition to these in-house options, there is a wide variety of different support and wellbeing services offered through the University and the wideer Cambridgeshire community, links to which can be found below, or in the Wellbeing resources

Harrassment & Sexual Misconduct