We know some of our staff and students have been directly impacted and have lost or are concerned for the safety and welfare of loved ones, others will be indirectly impacted by the distressing news coverage and images.
We acknowledge that focus can be on specific conflicts such as Palestine – Israel, Russia – Ukraine and more recently, Pakistan – India. However, as an international community, we may be impacted by current conflicts elsewhere in the world such as Lebanon, Syria, Sudan, Myanmar, Ethiopia and the Democratic Republic of Congo, to name but some.
We don’t have to have personal connections to care about the devastation of war wherever it occurs, and for those who are directly impacted the University continues to call for peace and an end to violence and the tragic loss of human life.
Support for all students
There is support available for all students affected by conflict or who have experienced conflict anywhere in the world.
Student Services (Email: studentwellbeing@lboro.ac.uk, Tel: 01509 222765) offers a range of support, including mental health and wellbeing, and advice specifically for international students. One-to-one support with an advisor is also available. If you would like to access this support, please complete the online referral form or call the number above.
The University Chaplaincy is here to help you through your life, studies, and work. Chaplains are committed to supporting the welfare of students and staff and provide a timely, confidential and non-judgemental listening service. A 1:1 appointment can be booked through the Chaplaincy office by emailing chaplaincy@lboro.ac.uk. Support is available in person, by phone, or online.
If you feel your studies are being affected, you can contact your Academic School and/or Personal Tutors so that we can provide the right support to you. If you wish, you can also submit an individual Mitigating Circumstances claim to explain how you have been impacted by recent events. More information on this can be found in the Student Handbook.
Support for all staff
This support is available for all colleagues, explicitly including all those affected by conflict anywhere in the world.
Colleagues can access emotional support through our Employee Assistance Programme. More information can be found on our People and Organisational Development website.
Should you need some time away, we would like to draw attention to our compassionate leave arrangements, including our specific policy in relation to stress connected to protected charactersitics, which offers pre-approved compassionate leave for reasons such as race-based stress.
Respect and Dignity
We seek to promote respect and dignity at both our Loughborough and London campuses, in doing so the University supports everyone’s right to freedom of expression and free speech as protected within the law. We do however ask that people continue to be considerate to each other given international events and reports of hate speech in the UK, which has made some people feel unsafe.
Peaceful protest is permissible and will be facilitated by the University where appropriate. The University provides considerations regarding academic freedom and definitions of racism.
Please remember that free speech is not unfettered, and hate speech and support for proscribed organisations is an offence under UK law.
We will not tolerate hate in our community of any kind. If any member of the community experiences this, we ask you to report it to us; we will support you and follow it up.