100 students have reported sexual abuse and violence to Cardiff University since October

Over 100 students have reported abuse since Cardiff University launched a new system of reporting incidents in October.

Relationship abuse makes up a large proportion of the incidents, with 43 cases reported by students.

A Cardiff University spokesperson told The Tab Cardiff the number of disclosures comes from the "proactive" way the university has sought out responses, where there was "previously no mechanism to do so."

Cardiff University's new abuse support system provides students with an online disclosure form, allowing them to make a report of abuse from their own experience or on behalf of someone else.

The top six issues reported were relationship abuse, sexual assault, rape, unwanted sexual contact, harassment and stalking.

So far there have been 43 incidents of relationship abuse reported, as well as 30 sexual assault reports, and 24 rape reports, according to figures provided by the university to the BBC. However, some of these figures relate to the same report from a student.

The figures represent the success of the new system, which makes it easier to come forward, rather than a sharp increase in the incidents happening, with the university telling The Tab Cardiff they "want students who have been victims of violence or abuse to come forward – anonymously, if they wish – and get the support they need."

Amy Sykes, the Head of the Disclosure Response Team told the BBC: "It's been used more frequently than we would perhaps have thought". They have also been surprised by the proportion of students who have chosen not to report incidents anonymously but instead have provided their details.

One first year student who was sexually assaulted in March last year on the way home from a party said he knew "people who've experienced the same thing but they've kept it to themselves and then that doesn't help because your thoughts grow."

The international student explained to BBC Wales that he spoke to a lecturer before giving his consent for the incident to be reported. He has since been offered counselling and supplied extenuating circumstances if the incident impacts his studies.

The form asks you what incident has occurred, where and when it happened – options ranging from the last 72 hours to over a year ago- and if it happened as a direct result of characteristics such as age, disability, race or sexual orientation.

Once the form is complete, the Disclosure Response Team contact the student with advice on how to proceed within the next 24 hours.

If you have been the victim of an incident at Cardiff University, you can report it here.