Welfare

Your mental, physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual well-being are essential for us here at Darwin. The Welfare team is here to offer you peer-to-peer support, advise you and point you towards helpful resources. It is composed by the Men’s, Women’s and non-binary’s Welfare Officers, the Women’s Officer, the Q+ Officer, Disabilities’ Officer and the BAME Officer. If you would like to get involved or if you have an idea of how to improve welfare at Darwin email dcsa_welfare@darwin.cam.ac.uk or talk to us. Welfare events can be found on the DCSA calendar.

Resources

Urgent support (suitable for students who feel at immediate risk):

NHS: 111 option 2
Samaritans (available 24/7 all year round): 116 123
Nightline (7pm-7am term time): 01223 744444

Counselling: if you would like to get mental health support from a professional, you can book multiple sessions with a trained counsellor. Usually, it will take a couple of weeks to get an appointment, so book it as soon as possible both in College and the University. Once you have an appointment with one of the two, you can cancel the other.

Key contacts in Darwin:

The Deanery: together with your tutor (see below), it can offer confidential advice and support on non-academic matters. Although focused on looking after the general welfare of students, they can also offer financial, personal and, in special occasions, also academic advice. Dean and Senior Tutor: Dr Duncan Needham (djn33@cam.ac.uk)
Your Tutor: College Fellow that can also offer confidential advice and support on non-academic problems. In addition, they can provide careers advice and write tutorial references for you. If your work is disrupted and you need to take time off, your Tutor will help you ensure that your application is presented properly to the relevant university bodies. You can find out who your Graduate Tutor is on the ‘Academic’ section here.
Welfare team:
1. Welfare Officers: dcsa_welfare@darwin.cam.ac.uk
2. Women’s Officer: dcsa_women@darwin.cam.ac.uk
3. Q+ Officer: dcsa_lgbtq@darwin.cam.ac.uk
4. BAME Officer: dcsa_bame@darwin.cam.ac.uk

Key contacts in the University:

Sexual Harassment, Assault & Violence

Darwin college and Cambridge University have a zero tolerance policy on sexual misconduct. Darwin college’s procedures for handling cases of harassment and sexual misconduct are outlined here (Look under ‘Racial and Sexual Harassment Policy’).

If you have experienced sexual harassment, assault and/or violence you can :

Write down an account of what happened with a date, as soon as you can. This will be very helpful in the future, if you want to file a formal complaint or report it to the police.
Contact Darwin’s key contacts for support (see above): If you decide to reach out to a senior member of the College, you are welcome to invite a DCSA Officer to accompany you when you report.
Contact the university’s Sexual Assault and Harassment Advisor (SAHA)
File a formal complaint in College: complaints should be sent to the Dean (see points 22-28 in the pdf)
File a formal complaint in the University: you can contact OSCAA to help you through the process (OSCCA@admin.cam.ac.uk)
Call the police (999) if in urgent need or file a report
Join a supporting group or workshop for survivors: from the Uni or from the government.

Spiking

Spiking may takes place in drinking settings, where drugs or alcohol are added to someone’s drink without their consent (drink spiking) or when a person is directly injected with a drug without their consent (needle spiking). Symptoms vary depending on the substance used, but are generally similar to those of excessive alcohol consumption. If you think you have been spiked:

Get immediate help from someone that you trust and go to a safe space. Beware that sexual harassment, assault and violence are more likely to take place if you have been spiked (see section above).
If you are in college, contact the porters, the dean (djn33@cam.ac.uk) and/or the welfare and women’s officers (dcsa_welfare@darwin.cam.ac.uk; dcsa_women@darwin.cam.ac.uk).
If your conditions deteriorate, call 999.
To know more about how to prevent spiking and what to do if you think that you or a friend have been spiked, read the information from the university, or the drinkaware charity.

Sexual Health

All forms of contraception are available for free in the UK. Help on choosing contraception can be found on the NHS and FPA websites or you can speak with a doctor at your GP practice or local sexual health clinic.

Free condoms can be found in the main college toilets. They are stocked by the welfare officer. If they are running low let us know [dcsa_welfare AT darwin.cam.ac.uk]. CUSU also provide condoms, including latex-free, female condoms and dental dams.

Free pregnancy test from DCSA Welfare officers or CUSU can also be requested to your pigeonhole in an unmarked envelope. If you find that you are pregnant, there are several options – find more information here. Remember that, whether you choose to continue or terminate your pregnancy, there is support for you should you need it. You can contact the DCSA Welfare Officers, the Dean (Look under ‘The Deanery: student support’), your tutor (Look under ‘Welfare & Support’) , or CUSU. The University can grant you an intermission in your coursework for maternity leave or medical reasons if you need it to complete your degree.

The NHS help page and/or iCASH have details and contacts for free emergency contraceptive pill or fitting the emergency intrauterine device (IAD). You can also contact the Lime Tree Clinic, your GP and some Cambridge Pharmacies if you are registered with a Cambridge GP.

Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) can happen to anyone who has had sex. Regular sexual health check-ups are important even if you are not experiencing symptoms. The local sexual health clinic, providing confidential support, advice and treatment is the Lime Tree Clinic. If you think you may have been exposed to HIV, through unprotected penetrative or oral sex, it is possible to receive a drug treatment that will reduce your chances to develop the disease. Contact the Lime Tree Clinic for advice. Welfare officers and CUSU also organise sexual health screenings. Details will be advertised on the DCSA calendar and WhatsUp mailing list.