What support is available to me?

The University’s Counselling and Wellbeing Service provides a listening ear and can also support you if you want to know what next steps might be available for you. Their services are completely confidential. This client confidentiality will only be broken if the counsellors think there is a risk to you or someone else, or if there is a legal duty.  

You can also access advice and guidance from your G.P. surgery (you may be registered with the University Medical Centre or otherwise you can look up your G.P.’s information here if you can’t remember).  
 

You may prefer to speak to someone outside of the University instead of, or as well as, our services. 
 

St Mary’s Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC) provides a comprehensive and coordinated forensic, counselling and medical aftercare service to anyone in Greater Manchester who has experienced rape or sexual assault (whether recently or in the past). Services are offered on a 24-hour basis and if you do not wish to report the matter to the police, you can refer yourself. The police will not be contacted without your consent.  If you are not in Greater Manchester you may find you have a SARC for your area or county too. 
 

Manchester Rape Crisis provides a confidential support service run by women for women and girls who have been raped or sexually abused. 

 

Survivors Manchester offers support and counselling for adult male survivors of sexual abuse and rape, regardless of when the event happened.

Manchester: Survivor Support Pack  offers lots of practical advice for people who have experienced sexual violence and are looking for support and advice in the Manchester area. 

 

Survivors UK provides information, support and counselling for men, who have been raped or sexually abused. 
 

Greater Manchester Victim Support helps people cope with the effects of crime by providing confidential support, counselling and information to victims and to witnesses attending court. They also provide support in the community and a separate waiting area in Magistrates and Crown Courts.  The services are free, confidential, independent of the police, courts and Crown Prosecution Service and available to everyone, whether or not the crime has been reported and regardless of when it happened. 
 

The Survivors Trust (TST) is a national umbrella agency for specialist rape, sexual violence and childhood sexual abuse support organisations throughout the UK and Ireland. 
 

Refuge UK is a national charity providing a range of services for women and children affected by domestic violence. 
 

Men’s Advice Line provides advice and support for heterosexual, gay, bisexual and trans men experiencing domestic violence and abuse.  
 

Galop provides advice and support for lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans people, including including the LGBTQ+ Domestic Abuse Helpline.  
 

National Stalking Helpline offers specialist advice and support for anyone experiencing stalking. 
 

Paladin, National Stalking Advocacy Service is a national service assisting high risk victims of stalking in England and Wales.  
 

Karma Nirvana is a national charity supporting victims of forced marriage and ‘honour’ based violence. 
 

Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) is a joint Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Home Office including a Global Response Centre.  

Respect Phoneline an information and advice line for anyone who is concerned about their own violence or abuse towards a partner or ex-partner.  

 

It is up to you whether you decide to report, and who you want to talk to. 

You can use this form to let the University know and access support. 

You can seek advice from a number of agencies at any time after the incident, even years later - support is not limited to those who choose to make an immediate report. Any decisions made will be yours alone and will be respected.  

Reporting the incident to the Police
You can report an incident to the Police at any time by: 
 

 

If you choose to report an incident of sexual violence to the Police, a specially trained officer will be sent out to see you or will speak to you over the phone. The officer will ask some basic questions to make sure you are safe and find out what happened, when and where, and who was involved. They will work out what needs to be done next and tell you about the support services that are available locally.  The officer may also be able to take mouth and urine samples immediately so that forensic evidence can be preserved and you will be able to eat, drink and go to the toilet without fear of losing such evidence.  

 

The officer may, with your permission, take you to the nearest Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC).  You can take a supportive friend or relative with you. Take a change of clothes as they will need the clothes you are wearing. Also take any bedding or used condom if relevant.  

 

The staff at the SARC will be able to discuss with you immediate concerns relating to the risk of pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections, as well as assessing any injuries that may be present. Staff can also help and support you through the immediate trauma.  

 

At some point you will be asked to give an official statement to the Police, this will usually be in a special room with comfy sofas and hot drinks, where you can be interviewed if that feels ok for you. Alternatively you could decide to be interviewed in another location where you feel more comfortable, when you are ready.  

 

You should be aware that although you have called the Police, you can opt out of the reporting process at any point without losing the support of the SARC staff. You should be offered a referral for additional specialist advice and support services in your local area too. 

Many people do not wish to report an incident of sexual assault to the Police immediately, but decide after a while that they want to do so. This is perfectly valid and there are steps you can take now to make it easier to report to the Police at a later stage: 

 

You can go to your nearest Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC) for information and support – for University of Salford students this will usually be St Mary’s Centre in Manchester. It's good to take a friend or trusted person with you if you can. At the SARC, you will be allocated a Support Worker who can talk you through the different options available to you.  

 

At the SARC, you can have a forensic medical examination, as well as tests for sexually transmitted infections and pregnancy. The SARC should not pressure you into reporting to the police and they can store the results of the forensic examination (or evidence) until you make up your mind whether to report to the police or not.  

 

If there are signs of a disturbance at the scene of the assault, it would be useful if you could take photographs in case you decide to report it to the police at a later date. Remember to keep any relevant clothes, bedding or used condom. 

 

Another option is to report the incident to the Police anonymously.   It is unlikely that the police would be able to prosecute anybody from an anonymous report, however it could alert them to information which could lead them to serial offenders or help to prevent future attacks. 

 

A SARC can pass on information to the Police without giving away any details which could identify you.  SARC will always ask your permission before they pass on any information.  Another option is to report anonymously through Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 

If you are certain you do not want to report the incident to the Police at any time, then you can still access the support of the Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC) services. You can choose not to provide forensic evidence but can still receive specialist medical support and be referred for additional support. 

The University has internal procedures for addressing misconduct by students and staff, such as the Student Disciplinary procedure. You can speak to askUS services or a member of staff in your School to find out more about this. It’s helpful to be aware that as these are internal institutional procedures they are limited in scope and may be put on hold until the completion of any legal or criminal proceedings.