Birmingham student launches petition to include sexual assault on university's 'extenuating circumstances' list

The unnamed student said the university should include a specific exception to encourage survivors to come forward before it is too late

The University of Birmingham (Stuart Ferguson/CC by SA 2.0)

A student has launched a petition calling for sexual assault and rape to be classed as "extenuating circumstances" by their university.

The unnamed student at the University of Birmingham said current guidelines do not contain a specific clause in its extenuating circumstances guidelines to give rape survivors extra time or leniency during exam time or when handing in coursework.

The petition on Change.org has currently been signed by over 1,800 people.

Current guidelines state that as of this academic year, a new code of "acute personal and emotional circumstances" were introduced into the university’s code of practice which would cover rape survivors.

But the student said rape and sexual assault to should be included as its own category.

The student wrote: "Speaking from experience, I believe that students who want to seek academic support after a rape or assault may be more inclined to do so if some type of academic support is guaranteed, by plainly stating this in the Code of Practice.

"Speaking out after a rape or assault is particularly difficult for the survivor, and asking for help with an unclear outcome can develop as a part of the problem.

"A clearly written clause in the Code of Practice could help to lessen some of this anxiety, and demonstrate to students who have been affected that support is available to them."

They explained that sexual assault often severely damaged a person’s mental and even physical health in the same way as serious illness, accidents or the deaths of family members would.

These specific circumstances are currently highlighted in the Code of Practice.

A survey published by the Birmingham Tab earlier this year said that 44 per cent of Birmingham students said they had been sexually assaulted while at university and 12 per cent said they had been raped.

The university issued a statement on its website saying it "takes the safety and wellbeing of its students and staff extremely seriously and this includes allegations of sexual harassment and rape".

"Our Code of Practice on Extenuating Circumstances does not contain an exhaustive list of what might be treated as an extenuating circumstance, but rape or sexual assault are examples of the type of exceptional and unforeseen events which can be considered as an extenuating circumstance."