Reporting

You may wish to make a report to the university and/or NSW Police. If you choose to make a report to the university and to NSW Police then this will involve two separate reporting processes.

Survivors of sexually based assault or harassment sometimes experience a number of barriers to making a formal report. Please consider talking to an independent specialist service for support in making your decision.

There are different reporting options available:

Reporting to the University of Newcastle

Informal disclosure to your HR Business Partner or Health and Safety officer to keep on file with a request for no further action. This does not initiate an investigation and may remain anonymous.

Report to HR Business Partner for a formal investigation. This does not initiate and would be separate to a police investigation.

Reporting to NSW Police

You can decide to provide information to NSW Police and request that the incident is not formally investigated.

You can do this in person at a police station, or by completing a form called the Sexual Assault Reporting Option (SARO) which you can complete anonymously if you so choose. The reporting process can be upsetting, so we encourage you to engage with support services before, during, or after completing the form.

NSW Police have detailed information about making a report and the processes involved on their website.

You can decide to provide information to NSW Police and request that the incident is formally investigated.

This process will involve providing police with a statement and an offender may be arrested and charged. If the matter goes to court then you may be required to attend. NSW Police have detailed information about making a report and the processes involved on their website.

The reporting process can be upsetting, so we encourage you to engage with support services before, during, or after lodging your police report.

You may also consider speaking to a doctor or a sexual assault worker at a public hospital or public Sexual Assault Service and you can have a Sexual Assault Investigation Kit (SAIK) carried out. This is a series of tests used to collect forensic evidence.