Be an Empowered Bystander

A bystander is someone who witnesses an event. In this case, an empowered bystander is someone who chooses to take action to intervene in harmful situations in ways that impact the outcome positively.

Why choose to be an empowered bystander?

When you intervene as an empowered bystander you can help to create change through reinforcing positive values and behaviours. Importantly you can also give support to those who are experiencing the behaviour that has the potential to cause harm. You can:

Stop incidents from occurring by intervening before a situation occurs
Stop incidents from escalating by stopping them as they happen
Offer support to victims after the incident to make sure they are OK
Inspire those who witness your intervention to effectively intervene themselves in the future
Help to create a culture where abuse, unacceptable and harmful behaviour is not tolerated

Who can be an empowered bystander?

Anyone can become an empowered bystander! Acting as an empowered bystander doesn’t have to mean intervening directly or at the time you witness unacceptable behaviour from others. There are different ways in which you can act as an empowered bystander and it is often possible to make safe, unthreatening interventions, that don’t compromise personal safety.

How can I intervene safely as an empowered bystander?

To become an empowered bystander in any situation you must firstly become aware of a problem and recognise the negative impact it is having on someone.You not only need to recognise the situation as having the potential to cause harm, but you need to recognise your own barriers that may prevent intervention. For example, is the situation you are witnessing somewhat ambiguous? Are you sure there is potential for harm? Are other people intervening? Is it your place to intervene? Do you feel confident and skilled enough to intervene?

Remember:

If you feel uncomfortable with a situation, but you are not sure whether it is likely to cause harm, you are still able to intervene as a precaution.
You don’t need to wait to be asked for help before intervening; remember the person affected may feel too powerless to ask for help.
In a group situation you may feel that someone else will intervene. However, it is a surprising fact that the more people who are present to witness unacceptable or harmful behaviour, the lesser the likelihood of a bystander effectively intervening. Don’t expect that someone else will intervene, as this may not be the case.

Before intervening, it is crucial that you risk assess the situation to intervene safely. Consider if you can intervene in a safe way, whether you can do so in a group and how you may be able to care for the victim. Intervening from a distance and with others is the safest option. If you are intervening close up and on your own, you should consider whether this will affect your personal safety. You should never put yourself at risk.

How can I intervene?

When it comes to intervening there are different techniques you can choose from. These techniques are valid forms of intervention, and your risk assessment of the situation can help you to make a more informed decision on which intervention technique is most appropriate at any given time.

Remember the four Ds – direct, distract, delegate, delay.

Direct action

You can step in, in a respectful manner, and challenge potentially harmful behaviour when you witness it.

Distraction

You can create a diversion to interrupt the situation.

Delegate

You can alert or contact someone with more authority or specialist knowledge to take action

Delay

You should not act immediately if this will put you in potential danger. But remember, it is never too late to act. Talk to the person affected after the situation has passed to ask them if they are OK. Or report the incident when it’s safe to do so.

Reporting an incident

In an emergency situation, call the emergency services on 999
If there is no danger or immediate threat, you can report a crime by calling 101.

Student Safety