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University of York

Joint statement: University of York Vice-Chancellor and York Students’ Union Sabbatical Officers

13 October 2025

As we mark National Hate Crime Awareness Week this week, we stand together to challenge and eliminate all forms of hate, prejudice and discrimination in our community. 

A hate crime can be defined as a crime, typically one involving violence, that is motivated by prejudice towards protected characteristics. It can include racism, antisemitism, islamophobia, homophobia, transphobia, ableism and other forms of discrimination. 

Simply observing Hate Crime Awareness Week is not enough; we must use it as a catalyst for action. 

Our University is a place of learning, discovery and diversity of perspectives. It is a place where every student and staff member deserves to feel safe, included and presented with every opportunity to succeed.

This means drawing on our collective experiences, so that differences become strengths, not things that divide us. It means championing values that connect us all. It means being compassionate and caring, calling out any attempt to undermine dignity, respect and safety.

Within the context of growing national concerns, notably political debates about immigration and strained community relations, we remain committed to doing all that we can to ensure that the University and York community remain a tolerant, safe and welcoming place for all.  

As part of this, the University and Students' Union have been taking steps to ensure student and staff safety, including:

  • Increasing campus safety patrols to increase visibility and focus on discrimination-related issues
  • Working closely with the North Yorkshire police on sharing intelligence, monitoring and tackling hate crime
  • Raising concerns at the highest levels, with York SU Sabbatical Officers and Vice-Chancellor meeting with civic leaders and York MPs to discuss work on tackling hate crime and discrimination

It’s for each and every one of us to recognise unconscious biases, to be allies, to find new ways to educate ourselves, and to listen to difference with respect and sensitivity. 

And we need to be ready to respond to the devastating impact of hate and discrimination. 

There are different ways to seek support and report incidences, if anyone feels they may have been a victim of a hate crime or discrimination: 

We remain committed to ensuring that the process for reporting incidents is clear and accessible. 

We remain committed to taking each and every report seriously. 

And we remain committed to supporting those who encounter discrimination, so that everyone knows we, as a York community, stand up against hate. 

Community is our defining characteristic at the University of York. This is why we will always strive for the end of hate - so that everyone feels a sense of belonging, so that everyone believes they are seen and heard, and so everyone can live, study and work in a place that is safe, inclusive and welcoming.

Yours, 

Lewis Parrey, Union Affairs Officer
Anna Lindberg-Newby, Union Development Officer
Abi Harrison, Equality and Inclusion Officer
Samuel Dickinson, Community and Wellbeing Officer
Darcy Graham, Sports Officer
Aya Haidar, Academic Officer
Kaitlyn Beattie-Zarb, Activities Officer
Charlie Jeffery, Vice-Chancellor and President