Domestic abuse can occur in many situations. Recent national statistics show that there are an estimated 2.4 million adults aged 16 to 74 who experience domestic abuse each year.

We recognise some of our employees may be living with domestic abuse. As an employer we have a duty of care to look after our employee’s welfare whilst they are at work and are committed to ensuring staff feel safe and effective in the workplace.

The university has prepared and published some new guidance for managers to help support employees experiencing domestic abuse.

You can find the guidance on our HR pages.

This guidance should help managers understand different ways in which domestic abuse can occur and the different ways in which this might manifest itself in the workplace. It offers managers advice and guidance for helping their employees in these situations.

If you are experiencing domestic abuse yourself and feel you need extra support in the workplace, please approach your manager directly.

You do not need to give them every detail of what is happening to you, but discussing things such as flexibility at work, ability to take time-off, or to discuss any concerns you might have about how you can feel safe in the workplace may help you. There are a number of other sources of support which you can find listed in the employee guidance here.