Violence, discrimination and harassment of any kind has no place at our School.
If you experience or witness this, you can report an incident online informally or anonymously, or request follow-up action is taken. You can also make a report on behalf of someone else.
Make an online report
You may choose to tell someone in person if you don't want to make an online report.
If you're unsure if you want to make a report, you can speak to a Safe Contact. They will be able to offer further information and support to help you decide if you would like to report your experience to LSE.
How does the online reporting process work?
The report form will guide you though the process. Below, you can find out about the types of online report you can make. There are also Frequently Asked Questions with more information about what you can expect when you make report.
Types of online report you can make:
When you make a report, there are different types of responses you can ask for. They are:
- No further action
This means that no direct action will be taken, but the report will be logged. This helps us to understand patterns in behaviours at LSE.
- Support
You can ask for support and advice on the options available to you, without committing to reporting an incident formally. You will be contacted within 3 working days of submitting your report.
- Take action
You can opt to make a formal complaint, and ask that action is taken. You will be contacted within 3 working days of submitting your report.
Reporting anonymously allows us to understand the prevalence of issues or patterns in behaviour within our community. If you report anonymously, we will not be able to contact you or offer support or advice on the options available.
If someone has reported an incident to you, you can make a report on their behalf. You can choose to do this anonymously or to provide your contact details. You can also choose to take no further action, ask for support and advice, or for action to be taken.
You can also make a report if you witness an incident.
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
If you have questions about the reporting process, take a look at our FAQs on making a report and what happens after you make a report.
Making a report
The information provided in this form will be kept confidential and stored securely.
More information on how your information will be used can be found in the online report form.
The online reporting form will ask you to share some information about the experience(s) you’re reporting. This includes asking you:
- To give a brief description of what happened – this can be as much or as little as you want and feel able to share
- Whether you are a staff member or a student
- If you think the violent or harassing behaviour was directed at you due to your sex, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, religion, age or class
- If there is a particular response or action that you would like us to consider.
If you’re reporting on your own behalf, we’ll ask for some monitoring information, which helps us to identify and address any reporting patterns.
You can still make a report if you don't know the name of the person(s). Provide as much information as you can – this could include a description of how you know the person(s), for example, as a member of your class group, or someone you regularly see in the same place on campus / in halls.
This is a common and natural response to experiences of bullying, harassment, hate crime and sexual violence. If what someone else’s behaviour has left you feeling uncomfortable, confused, threatened, scared or violated, then it is likely that what they did wasn’t okay.
If you feel in any way that your experience was a form of discrimination, sexual violence or harassment we would invite you to make a report so that we can respond appropriately.
If you are in immediate danger, or are in an emergency and need an urgent response and support, please contact one of the support services below:
- The Havens provide specialist health and medical support in London for people who have been raped or sexually assaulted
- Details of other emergency medical services are available online at the London Ambulance Service website
- The Metropolitan Police, including The Sapphire Unit (which investigates rape and other forms of sexual violence)
- LSE Security are available on campus 24 hours of the day, 365 days of the year.
There is no time limit for you to report any incident of sexual violence, discrimination, bullying or harassment that you experienced or witnessed.
LSE takes all reports extremely seriously and will investigate to the best of our ability, no matter when an incident took place.
Any experience of sexual violence, harassment or hate crime can be reported to the police. If the person who behaved abusively to you is another LSE student or staff member, you can also choose to report this to LSE through the online form or by talking to someone in person.
Reporting to the police and to LSE are entirely separate processes with different procedures and possible responses and outcomes. LSE staff and external organisations can support you in considering whether or not you want to report to the police and / or LSE.
If you are considering whether you want to report some form of sexual violence, including rape or childhood sexual abuse, you can contact an external Independent Sexual Violence Advocate first, for emotional and practical support.
What happens after I've made a report?
Student reports are passed on to the Student Services Advice team. Staff reports are communicated to the Human Resources partners.
Your identity and your other personal data will be disclosed within LSE on a need-to-know basis only and will not be disclosed to any third parties without your consent unless there are legitimate reasons requiring us to do so – for example, where the information you have provided highlights a potential risk to an individual or relates to a possible criminal offence.
In these circumstances, we may disclose the information to the police and / or other members of staff within LSE.
Student Services or Human Resources will review your report, including the section that states what action you would like to be taken.
We may use the information that you have provided to help us:
- Identify the best adviser for you to speak to in relation to your experience
- Provide the advisers with your contact details (if you have provided them) and some useful background information that will enable them to understand the nature of your experience
- Investigate your report and take further action (where applicable and if required), for example to carry out disciplinary action and / or assist the police with any criminal action if your report relates to a potential crime
- Identify patterns and trends in the experiences reported across the institution. This is part of LSE's commitment to responding to sexual violence, bullying, harassment and hate crime effectively and to strengthen our commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion.
No names or other identifying information will be included in the data that we use for these reporting purposes.
If you have provided your name and contact details, then we will respond initially within three working days. We will take into account anything you have written about your preferred outcome or action, and an adviser will contact you to discuss this. If you do not provide your name or contact details, you will not receive any reply to your report.
If you are in an emergency and need an urgent response or support, then please check the list of emergency support contacts under FAQ number 5 'I need some urgent support – who can I contact?'