This Wednesday (23 March 2022), the peak body for higher education, Universities Australia, will release results of the 2021 National Student Safety Survey (NSSS).
Conducted by the independent Social Research Centre (SRC), the results of this important survey will help all universities in Australia, including La Trobe, gain a deeper understanding of the prevalence of sexual harassment and sexual assault in our student communities and, from that, build on existing measures to provide the best prevention, response and support services possible.
We wanted to make you aware in advance as we understand that conversations around the report and its findings could be distressing and it is important you are aware of the many support services offered by the University.
Student Counselling Service
Students who are impacted by the survey can contact the La Trobe Counselling Service for priority appointments. The Student Counselling Service provides free and confidential one-on-one sessions for La Trobe University students.
Students can visit our website to book an appointment or call us on 9479 2956. When requesting appointments via our online form, please state that you would like to speak to a counsellor because of the NSSS survey.
LGBTIQA+ Support Services
La Trobe University has dedicated Queer Counsellors who have experience in supporting students with diverse sexualities and gender identities.
Students can visit our website to request an appointment for a Queer Counsellor.
LGBTIQA+ students may also be interested in joining the Finding Pride program, an 8-week support program for LGBTIQA+ students to connect and share their experiences about their challenges.
Northern Centre Against Sexual Assault
In partnership with La Trobe University, the Northern Centre Against Sexual Assault (NCASA) provides free crisis care and counselling to members of the La Trobe community who have experienced sexual harm. An NCASA counsellor is available at the La Trobe University Bundoora Campus, and students can make an appointment with an NCASA counsellor by contacting Student Counselling.
Safer Community
Safer Community is a free, confidential support service for students who experience threatening, inappropriate, or uncomfortable behaviour. Safer Community can provide students who have experienced or witnessed sexual harm support and advice in a trauma-informed and victim/survivor centred approach.
Students can contact Safer Community by calling 03 9479 8988 or by emailing safercommunity@latrobe.edu.au.
Other supports available in addition to La Trobe’s support services:
- 1800RESPECT: 1800 737 732, or Home | 1800RESPECT
- Lifeline: 13 11 14, or https://www.lifeline.org.au/
- QLife: 1800 184 527, or https://www.qlife.org.au/
- MensLine Australia: 1300 78 99 78, or https://mensline.org.au/
- Beyond Blue: 1300 22 4636, or https://www.beyondblue.org.au/
- Australia wide university support and safety services (listed through Universities Australia): www.universitiesaustralia.edu.au/our-universities/student-safety
We will communicate further with you on Wednesday once the survey has been released and will remind you again of the support services available.
Professor John Dewar AO
Vice-Chancellor and President
La Trobe University