Emergency Contact
An Emergency Contact is similar to a Next of Kin, and the person the University will contact in serious circumstances. Reasons for contact may include a medical emergency such as admittance to hospital, a student has gone missing, or in the event of the death of a student.
Wherever possible, university staff will discuss contacting an Emergency Contact, but this is not always possible.
Trusted Contact
A trusted contact is the person the University will contact if there is a serious concern about welfare. Your Trusted Contact and Emergency Contact may be the same person, but we recognise that students may wish to have a different Trusted Contact. Reasons for contacting your Trusted Contact may include a serious wellbeing concern, or mental illness or concerning behaviour.
Who is an appropriate Trusted Contact?
A Trusted Contact must be over the age of 18, ideally be able to speak English and contactable by telephone. A Trusted Contact would usually be a close family member, friend or other supporter. It is up to the student to decide who this is, but we would recommend that this is someone the student trusts.
Staff will only attempt to contact your Trusted Contact if:
- You have not responded to all attempts made to contact you, or
- In an emergency where there is an urgent risk to your safety
- Where the University has a serious wellbeing concern for you
Wherever possible, University staff will discuss contacting a Trusted Contact with the student. As our aim is to prevent any student coming to harm, under certain circumstances, the University will communicate with a Trusted Contact without discussing it in advance.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to get in contact by emailing trustedcontact@rgu.ac.uk, or if you have a concern you would like to report, please use our Concern About a Student form.