Consent and becoming an active bystander
At Reading, we are committed to creating a safe, fun and respectful environment for all where we can all thrive and a community where we all look out for one another. Talking about sex and consent can be difficult, but it is so important that we all build a shared understanding of what consent is, how to respect boundaries and how to positively intervene in a situation as an active bystander.
All students are expected to complete the Consent Matters programme consisting of three short modules. The course is all online, so you can work through the material privately and at your own pace.
The three modules cover:
- Module 1: Thinking about consent (20mins). This module looks at what consent means in normal, everyday situations before exploring why it is important to have sexual consent. It also empowers students to apply the principle of affirmative consent to both 'real-life' and online situations.
- Module 2: Communication skills and relationships (20mins). This module asks you to consider what you value in your relationships, prompts you to reflect on your personal boundaries, and suggests approaches for communicating effectively with partners. It also looks at both communicating sexual boundaries and more general relationship boundaries.
- Module 3: Looking out for others (20mins). This module informs you all about being an active bystander, helping you to look out for others and intervene when you see behaviour that makes you uncomfortable, such as verbal, physical or sexual harassment.
Consent Matters
- Register on the Epigeum website:
- Current staff and students register with your @student.reading.ac.uk/@reading.ac.uk email address.
- Applicants please register with the email you used for your application.
- The University of Reading token code is 594a01c4 (use in the token code field). When registering please enter your Reading ID (8 digits) into the box titled ‘Institution-specific' field.
- Activate your account. You’ll be sent an account activation email to the email you registered with. You’ll need to activate your account by clicking the link in your email. If the activation email doesn’t show up check your SPAM/junk mail. You can also resend the activation email.
- When you’ve activated your account, login using your chosen username and password combination. To see the Consent Matters course go to 'My Courses'.
- Click on the Consent Matters course and choose one of the three modules. The course will work best if you do the modules in the right order, 1 - 3.
- Once a module has been successfully completed, you will be able to download a certificate of completion. A course completion certificate is also available once all three modules have been completed.
Any form of sexual misconduct, assault or harassment is #Never OK.
Report and Support is an online tool for staff, students, and visitors to report issues of harassment, bullying, sexual misconduct, hate crimes, and other problematic behaviours. Users can report with their name and details to receive support from the University, or you can report anonymously.
Find out more about Report and Support and Never OK.
Thames Valley Police's Consent Conversations campaign aims to encourage people to get talking and working together to combat the myths and misconceptions around consent.
We encourage you to watch Thames Valley Police's 'Consent Conversations: We Need To Talk' documentary, and start a conversation about consent. The educational video features Georgia Harrison and a number of voices.