Universities warn students to avoid Freshers’ Week parties or face ‘sanctions’
It is feared that an influx of young people - whom Health Secretary Matt Hancock partially blamed for a new spike in coronavirus cases - attending parties during Freshers' Week could push boroughs to the brink.
Universities in Greater Manchester have banded together to issue a joint warning for freshers – as 100,000 students begin to descend on the region.
Freshers’ Week is typically populated with large-scale events taking place in nightclubs and bars, but local universities are urging students to buck the trend this year and avoid mass gatherings when the new term begins.
Most Welcome Week events are being moved online, with some first-term lectures and seminars conducted remotely until at least Christmas.
Students are set to arrive in Greater Manchester at a tumultuous time, with restrictions tightening over the past few days.
Bolton currently has the highest rate of COVID cases in the country, whilst many neighbouring areas continue to suffer a rise in positive test results.
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It is feared that an influx of young people – whom Health Secretary Matt Hancock partially blamed for a new spike in coronavirus cases – attending parties during Freshers’ Week could push boroughs to the brink.
Vice-chancellors and National Union of Students officers from the Universities of Bolton, Manchester, Salford, Manchester Metropolitan University and the Royal Northern College of Music have come together to urge students that they must adhere to the rules.
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In a joint statement, the leaders of the five universities said: “This is a special time in the university calendar, where we welcome new students to campus for the first time as well as welcoming many more back.
“This September, though, is like no other, not just for our students, but also for the communities in which they live and study.
“Across our universities, staff and students have worked tirelessly in the fight against Covid-19 – many on the front line in healthcare, volunteering, or at the sharp end of research to treat those suffering with the virus or to protect those at risk.
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“This commitment to fighting Covid-19 continues as we bring students back on to campus and surrounding areas in our cities.
“As new and returning students join our community, we remind them of their responsibilities in minimising the transmission of the virus in our city region and in acting as ambassadors for our universities in the areas where they live and socialise.”
All universities have pledged to “use sanctions for students who do not adhere to rules on safe behaviours.”
News
Police appeal to find next of kin after man found outside Palace Theatre
Daisy Jackson
Police are trying to track down the family of a man who died after being found unresponsive outside the Palace Theatre in Manchester.
The man, who has now been named as Jonathan Bernard Carroll, was seen outside the city centre theatre at around 6.30am on Tuesday 12 November.
Emergency services rushed to the scene and Mr Carroll was taken to hospital.
Tragically, the 47-year-old passed away a short time later.
A large cordon was in place on Whitworth Street and Oxford Road while police and security attended the incident.
Greater Manchester Police are now appealing to find his next of kin.
It’s believed that he resided in the Salford area of Greater Manchester.
Anyone with any information should contact the Coroner’s Office on 0161 856 1376.
Greater Manchester public urged to help get people ‘off the streets and on their feet’ before Christmas
Emily Sergeant
Locals are being urged to help get hundreds of people “off the streets and back on their feet” this festive season.
As the temperatures told colder by the day, and Christmas creeps closer and closer, Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity is bringing back ‘1000 Beds for Christmas’, and the massively-important initiative is aiming to provide 1,000 nights of accommodation to people at risk of homelessness before the big day arrives.
Forming part of the ongoing ‘A Bed Every Night’ scheme, this festive fundraising mission is designed to provide food, shelter, warmth, and dedicated vital wrap-around support for those who need it most.
The charity says it wants to build on the “incredible success of 2023”, which raised more than £55,000 and provided 1,800 nights of accommodation.
Stockport-based property finance specialists, Together – which has supported the campaign for the last two years – has, once again, generously pledged to match every public donation for the first £20,000 raised.
Unfamiliar with the ‘A Bed Every Night’ scheme? Since 2017, when rough sleeping peaked, the initiative has helped ensure a significantly-higher rate of reduction in the numbers of people facing a night on streets in Greater Manchester than seen nationally.
The landmark scheme has given people the chance to rebuild their lives, while also giving them access to key services and opportunities that allows them to stay off the streets for good.
Despite the scheme’s recent success, organisations across Greater Manchester are under “a huge amount of pressure” to meet the demand for their services this winter, and given the current economic outlook, household budgets will continue to be squeezed – leaving people on the sharp end of inequality and poverty.
The Manc -
9th September 2020 
