If you have any concerns or you have been impacted by a global conflict or crisis, either because you are from the countries affected, or have friends or family from/living in the regions, please let your manager or another senior colleague in your department or college know. This will allow them to ensure you get any relevant support.

You can access our Employee Assistance Programme 24/7 which can give you expert advice and counselling. Support is also available from the University’s Multi-Faith Chaplaincy.

You can also access our Mental Health Support Signposting Guide for colleagues and managers. This outlines the mental health support that is available both within the University and externally.  

We have an extensive range of support services available within the University which you can signpost students to. This includes emotional, financial and academic support resources. Details of all support available can be found on our Student Support Hub (internal access only). Please direct students to the Hub, the information in the FAQs for students or their College Support Office.

All staff and students who are planning to travel to, within, or through an area of conflict are advised to check the latest travel advice from the UK Government, the relevant authorities in the region, as well as appropriate advice on travel disruption.   

For updated UK Government travel advice see the UK government website. 

Please note this advice can update frequently (including several times in the same day) due to the rapidly changing situations. It is recommended you sign up for relevant alerts and / or check the website regularly.  

Staff are asked to consult with their line manager on any travel plans in the Middle East region, mindful of what is a rapidly changing situation and the UK Government advice. 

Likewise, staff arranging student placements (such as fieldwork) are asked to consult with Heads of Department. Staff who have any additional queries may speak to their line manager. 

The University Executive Committee (UEC) has taken the decision to prohibit travel on University business to Belarus, Russia and Ukraine until further notice. 

If colleagues wish to travel for personal reasons, we would ask that they carefully consider any travel to Ukraine, Russia or Belarus taking into account travel advice from the FCDO. You should inform your line manager if you are planning to travel to Ukraine, Russia or Belarus.    

We would remind colleagues that you are not entitled to undertake your duties from abroad unless you have previously agreed a business case for doing so. Working from another country can have implications on your tax, insurance and pension. Should you not be able to return to the UK to undertake your duties, you may not be allowed to continue to work. 

We understand that there are no restrictions on work visas or plans to make any changes.  The HR UKVI team would contact relevant colleagues, should the need arise.  Please contact hr.ukvi@durham.ac.uk.

As an inclusive community, we do not tolerate antisemitism or anti-Muslim hatred, and we take reports of bullying and harassment, hate incidents and abuse seriously.  

We condemn in the strongest possible terms any incidents of racism or targeting individuals or groups for their religious, political or cultural beliefs.

We have robust risk assessment procedures for any planned events on campus. We have an emergency response plan to prepare for and deal with any incidents and we work closely with local police. 

Our priority is your safety and wellbeing. We encourage and expect respectful behaviours from everyone in our community. Our Race Equality Charter contains a number of actions designed to tackle racism, including through educational talks, training and informative events and activities throughout the academic year on racial and intercultural issues.   

You can use our online ‘Report and Support’ tool to report an incident or seek support or speak to your line manager or another senior colleague in your department/college.  

We also have a network of advisors who can provide support in cases of bullying, harassment or other causes for concern. They act as a first point of contact for those who feel they have experienced a hate incident. 

If a hate crime is in progress on campus and immediate action is required, our SafeZone app enables you to send an emergency alert if anyone is in danger.

The app is free to download and as a user you will be directly connected to the University security team who will find and assist you as quickly as possible when an emergency alert is issued. Off campus, SafeZone will connect you directly to the emergency services. 

You can also contact University Security directly on +44 (0)191 334 2222. 

As a university community, we uphold freedom of speech within the law and expect and require all our community to do so.  

We encourage the pursuit of knowledge and the exchange of ideas, but this must be done in a tolerant manner. Anything less will not be accepted. As set out in our Code of Practice, any activity, including meetings, demonstrations or the distribution of materials, must be notified in writing to the University Secretary at least 14 days before the activity is due to take place.  

Our response is in line with our legal and compliance requirements, including the Prevent Duty, Government guidelines and our own Purpose and Core Lived Values.  

In partnership with the Council for Assisting at Risk Academics (CARA), Durham provides funding for fellowship placements for academics identified through CARA as being at risk of physical harm or persecution.  Our CARA placements are for two years and include academic mentorship, pastoral support, career guidance and a small stipend, enough to allow a Fellow to come to Durham with their family for this two-year period. Travel and visas, initial accommodation, language support and acclimatisation (including introductions to the local schooling system for children) are provided in partnership with CARA. The first step is for the academic to reach out to CARA (www.cara.ngo/get-support).  Each of our Fellows is supported by an academic mentor. If you are interested in mentoring a future CARA fellow, please get in touch with the International Office via abir.van-hunen@durham.ac.uk.  

Our Antisemitism Support Guide provides useful information for responding to experiences of antisemitism and details support available for our Jewish Students.

The Community Security Trust (CST) has published a number of resources on their social media feeds, including guidance on how to communicate about Israel in a non-antisemitic way. CST also has a national emergency number which should be used to report antisemitic attacks, alongside contacting the police via 999: 0800 032 3263.  

Tell Mama is a confidential support service for those suffering from anti-Muslim hate and discrimination across the UK. Their website features a number of different ways to report anti-Muslim incidents, including via phone or WhatsApp.