Western's Respect. Now. Always. Campaign

Our campaign

Western's Respect Now Always campaign is coordinated by the Vice Chancellor-led, cross-Institutional Respectful Relationships Task Force (opens in a new window).

Western's Respect. Now. Always. campaign is guided by Change The Course: National Report on Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment at Australian Universities (2017) (opens in a new window), the Australian Human Rights Commission's survey-based recommendations into sexual offences in Australian Universities.

You can view our institutional level data here (opens in a new window).

Click hereOpens in a new window to see Western’s progress aligned to The Australian Human Rights Commission’s Change The Course Recommendations (as of June 2021)

Click here (opens in a new window) for our progress in key measures identified in the Overview of Australian Higher Education Responses to the Issue of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment (TEQSA 2019, 20).

Western is committed to the Australian Council of Graduate Research's Principles for Respectful Supervisory Relationships (opens in a new window) and runs Respectful Research Cultures training within the Graduate Research School.

Be part of the change

We work across Western, from curriculum development to training and campaigns. Email the team to explore collaborations respectnowalways@westernsydney.edu.au

Click here (opens in a new window) to learn more about our key student initiatives.

Support Us

There are plenty of ways to support Respect Now Always at Western.

Our materials

Please feel free to download and share these materials. We acknowledge our many partners including our passionate student supporters in producing these materials.

Respect Now Always international student brochures:

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Sexual Offences Reporting Portal

The Sexual Offences Reporting Portal (opens in a new window) was created as part of Western's Respect.Now.Always. campaign.

The portal is for reporting any sexual offence, meaning a sexual activity that was unwanted, not consented to or that made a person feel uncomfortable. The portal securely captures all reports for investigation by the Complaints Resolution Unit. The portal is not intended to replace emergency services.

The portal accepts anonymous*, witnesses and bystander reports.

*In anonymous reports users are reminded that the lack of identifying detail may limit the university’s potential actions.

For more information about the portal, visit the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) (opens in a new window) page.

Glossary

This page contains working definitions of common terms used in Western Sydney University's Respect. Now. Always. campaign. For more, see Western's policies, especially the Sexual Offences Response Policy and Procedures (opens in a new window)  and Sexual Harassment Prevention policy (opens in a new window).

To suggest a term, please let us know

  • Consent 
    • Consent means to freely and knowingly agree to something.
    • Sexual behaviour without consent is a crime. This includes non-consensual sharing of explicit images (such as revenge porn).
    • People need to understand what is happening to give consent. So, they can't consent to sexual activity if they are:
      • under significant influence of drugs or alcohol
      • asleep or unconscious
      • confused / unaware / do not understand what is happening
      • fearful for their safety
      • under 16
    • Support services such as 1800 RESPECT (opens in a new window) can help you understand your role in providing consent.
    • See what NSW Law says here (opens in a new window).
    • More info here (opens in a new window) 
  • Gender equality 
    • Gender equality refers to the equal access of resources among genders. Gender equality may be seen as an end goal. Western is proud (opens in a new window) of its stance and many approaches to gender equality.
  • Gender equity 
    • Gender equity refers to the fair allocation of resources among genders to ensure full access to a range of opportunities.
  • Sexual touching 
    • Sexual touching is a crime which refers to touching (or threatening to touch) a person's body in a sexual manner without the consent of the other person.
    • It includes unwanted touching of a person's breast, bottom or genitals Crimes Act 1900 (NSW) (opens in a new window)
    • Sexual touching is sometimes called indecent assault.
  • Positive intervention 
    • Positive intervention means safely calming conflict between others. This can be done directly, or through delegation or distraction. Find out more here (opens in a new window).
  • Rape 
  • Safety plan 
    • A safety plan refers to the many ways a person acts to keep safe in public. Safety plans are common among women and LGBTIQ+ people because they are more likely to feel vulnerable. This might include walking in well-lit areas only, or pretending to be on the phone. Safety plans indicate imbalances (unfairness) in our community.
  • Sexual Assault
    • Any person who has sexual intercourse with another person without the consent of the other person and who knows that the other person does not consent to the sexual intercourse is liable to imprisonment for 14 years. NSW Crimes Act 1900 (NSW) section 61I (opens in a new window)
    • Sexual assault can happen to people of any age, gender, culture or sexual orientation.
    • Sexual assault is never the responsibility of the person who has been assaulted.
    • Most sexual assaults are perpetrated by someone known to the person.
    • People committing the crime of sexual assault often use tactics to make a person feel responsible for the sexual assault. This can make it frightening for someone to have the courage to reach out for help.
    • Click here for AUSLAN information (opens in a new window) by Deaf Services QLD / Living Well
  • Sexual Harassment (opens in a new window)
    • Sexual harassment is (non-physical) sexual behaviour which a reasonable person would consider offensive, intimidating (scary) or humiliating in the circumstances - Crimes Act 1900 (NSW). (opens in a new window)
    • Sexual harassment is focused on the effect of the behaviour, not the intention.
    • Staff and students who engage in sexual harassment are breaking their respective Codes of Conduct and liable to punitive measures.
    • Western has zero tolerance for sexual harassment in our community.
  • Sexual Offences (opens in a new window)
  • Trauma-informed care
    • Trauma-informed care is a way to support people (also called survivors) who have been through something difficult. The survivor and their experience is at the centre of any response - whether that be administrative or interpersonal.
    • Trauma-informed care involves strength-based and empowerment principles, thereby fostering decision-making and choice without judgement.
    • This is sometimes also called victim-centric or survivor-centric care.