The House of Lords was the venue for the launch of a service aimed at keeping university students free from crime.
SaferU will be rolled out into three universities initially – Northampton, Anglia Ruskin and Plymouth. The aim is to give crime prevention advice to students to make their stay in higher education a safe one, while also recruiting willing volunteers to help keep their fellow students safe on campus. Speakers at the launch included Crimestoppers founder and chair, Lord Ashcroft KCMG PC, and Martin Lawrence, Universities Ambassador for Crimestoppers.
As well as providing crime prevention advice and materials to students at the three unis, the plan is to acquire a network of young volunteers to work with Crimestoppers regional committees in tackling issues that exist in their locality, and on their campus.
This launch follows on from a trial by students at the University of Northampton that saw them run a campaign called ‘Stick it, Stole it,’ in February 2013. That aimed to raise awareness of the theft of small personal items, such as laptops and mobiles left unattended on campus.
Lord Ashcroft told the guests: “SaferU is an initiative focused on the protection of students through engagement and awareness about personal safety and crime. It engages young people on the subject of crime and encourages them to be part of the solution by developing campaigns about issues that matter to them. Above all, it really empowers students to lead, rather than be led, and encourages a community spirit, and that’s what makes the difference.
Martin Lawrence, Crimestoppers Universities Ambassador said: “I believe wholeheartedly that an initiative like SaferU not only ensures our students are safe, but also provides important foundations for their professional lives including wider civic awareness and a shared interest in their communities. I look forward to supporting the programme and the representatives of the universities that will become partners over the coming years.”
Nick Petford, Vice Chancellor of the University of Northampton, added: “The University of Northampton is proud to be leading SaferU on behalf of the sector and keen to share our positive experience with Crimestoppers more widely.” And Doug Rae, Dean of the University of Northampton’s School of Social Sciences, added: “The SaferU project is the exciting culmination of some innovative students’ campaigns run across our two campuses over the last three years.
“Working in true partnership with Crimestoppers and enjoying the excellent support of their Universities Ambassador, Martin Lawrence, our students have demonstrated hugely positive and successful outcomes. We look forward to exporting our good practice to our peers in other universities.”
If you are a university and are interested in joining the SaferU email Sue Langley at Crimestoppers on [email protected].
Background
While the ‘Complete University Guide’ online ranks the ‘best and worst’ universities and colleges for student-relevant crime, some unis that score ‘worst’ complain that as they are in the main cities such as London and Manchester, they are bound to be ranked high on crime; but the guide uses police data for burglary, robbery and violent crime within three miles of the main university or college campus; and unis argue that doesn’t necessarily reflect safety on the actual campus.
http://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/crime-in-university-towns-and-cities/.
