Reporting an Incident or Inappropriate Behaviour

As a college of the University of Oxford LMH is committed to fostering an inclusive culture which promotes equality, values diversity and maintains a working, learning and social environment in which the rights and dignity of all its students and staff are respected. Adapting to life in the University and the city of Oxford under COVID-19 safety measures has been a challenge for everyone. We all have needed to develop new habits and make adjustments to our daily life to enable academic learning.

Sometimes things do go wrong, or someone else’s actions unjustifiably disrupts the lives of others. In a college community everyone has a responsibility to take care in relation to themselves and others. In a physically compressed environment like LMH, together with the pressures of Oxford life in a global pandemic, it is even more important to be aware that your actions will affect others in College. Hopefully, your actions will benefit others but just in case not, we have policies and regulations to reduce the risk of detrimental behaviours, and procedures for addressing such behaviours should they arise.

The College has rules that apply to all members of the community. Some, of course, are specifically in place to mitigate the health and safety risks associated with Covid-19 whilst others are contained within our Bye-Laws, Regulations and agreements. Some of our rules may have greater significance as a result of the impact of Covid-19 on life in LMH and are highlighted below.

Safety Concerns

If you or someone you are with requires immediate medical attention, please telephone the Lodge who will arrange for an ambulance, or if there is no time for it, contact first the ambulance and then the Lodge.

Lodge: Tel: 01865274300

In case you are concerned about the safety of another person, and it would not be appropriate or it is not possible to discuss directly with the person concerned, please use the Wellbeing contact page to identify the most appropriate person to contact.

If you are concerned about the behaviour of another member of College please contact the Dean (dean@lmh.ox.ac.uk).

If you see something in College that is putting others at risk (e.g. broken fire door, electrical fault), please email faults@lmh.ox.ac.uk or, if urgent, telephone the Lodge.

For any other matter relating to individual or community safety please contact staysafe@lmh.ox.ac.uk in the first instance.

Harassment

Lady Margaret Hall does not tolerate any form of harassment or victimisation and expects all members of the College community, its visitors and contractors to treat each other with respect, courtesy and consideration. The LMH policy and procedure on harassment (including a definition of what constitutes harassment) is available via https://www.lmh.ox.ac.uk/harassment. The

College’s Harassment Advisors will be willing to talk to you about any harassment you are experiencing, including behaviour that is unwelcome towards you but you might be unsure whether it is harassment. You can also contact any of the Welfare Team.

Please be aware that harassment may involve repeated forms of unwanted and unwarranted behaviour, but a one-off incident can also amount to harassment. With this in mind please:

• Take care to maintain an appropriate distance from others in College, especially those who are not members of your household; avoid invading someone else’s personal space.
• Do not ask someone why they may not be wearing a face-covering or if they have an exemption. Some people will have legitimate reasons why they are not able to wear a face covering. Some of these reasons may be hidden and asking someone the reason may be humiliating or intimidating for them. If necessary, College will send periodic reminders to members about the face-coverings policy (e.g. if there are general concerns about compliance).
• Please be supportive of any member of your household who tests positive for Covid-19. In particular, please take care not to assign blame. We must all strive to keep ourselves and others safe, taking responsibility for our actions. However, the virus can be contracted in various ways and not everything is within our control.

Alcohol

If you drink alcohol please stay alert to the amount you consume at any one time, and over the course of the term. In particular, if you prepare alcoholic drinks for yourself or members of your household be mindful of the greater risk of consuming an unsafe amount of alcohol in the absence of standard pub measures. Please be aware that the intoxicating effect of alcohol may increase the risk of unsafe behaviour, affecting both yourself and others. Compromising the safety of others whilst drunk will not be tolerated. Take particular care to avoid participating in crowds. Look out for each other. The College does not have the means of retrieving and keeping safe intoxicated individuals on the streets of Oxford.

Fire Detection Equipment

You are responsible for what you cook and how you use the kitchen equipment (and please keep in mind that cooking equipment, other than a kettle, is not permitted in study-bedrooms). Please take care, by paying attention to your cooking, not to trigger the heat detection monitor in the kitchen, or the smoke detector in your room. Under no circumstances whatsoever interfere with fire detection equipment, including temporarily covering units. Tampering with fire detection and prevention equipment is a serious breach of College rules (and may also be a criminal offence).

Smoking and Vaping Equipment

Smoking and vaping (“e-cigarettes”) are only permitted in designated smoking areas. Currently these are spaces next to the Pipe Partridge Building, next to the Middle Common Room in the Clore Graduate Centre, behind the main Deneke kitchens, and outside the College Bar. Smoking and vaping are not permitted elsewhere. It is against the law to smoke within all College buildings at any time.