Just a day after handing out £40,000 in fines to four students in Nottingham for hosting an illegal party, police were once again forced to fine more students for similar antics last night.
Nottinghamshire Police had to deal with more than 60 students breaking the rules in separate incidents across the city when they shut down a further four student parties. While there were no gatherings of more than 30 which would have by law instigated a £10,000 fine for the host, a number of individual fixed penalty notices were issued instead.
Officers were called to two separate parties in close proximately in Broad Street in the city centre following reports of large gatherings of Nottingham Trent University students on Wednesday night (22 October).
The advertised ticketed party was being held for a birthday party and allegedly even had door security for the event outside the student house.
Upon entry, officers found people to be hiding in bedrooms and on the balcony.
Meanwhile another gathering was being held next door at the same time.
In a third incident in Church Avenue in Lenton, police found University of Nottingham students partying, with several of them caught trying to leave by the backdoor after seeing officers.
The final fourth party was shut down in Hamden Street following a report of another large gathering of Nottingham Trent University students. Officers were swiftly on the scene, but the majority had left by the time they had arrived.
Assistant Chief Constable Kate Meynell, of Nottinghamshire Police, said: “Despite a plea to stop these parties and only a day after we have given out considerable fines for exactly this which should have served as a warning, we are still finding a number of students who think the law simply doesn’t apply to them.
“We know the vast, vast majority of students who come and study in our city are following the rules and for this we really do want to thank them. They are saving lives by taking this responsible approach. But for some reason there is a small minority of students who are deliberately and provocatively flouting the rules like this and enough is enough.
“It is illegal and there are very good reasons for that. By not complying with the rules they are increasing the spread of Covid in our city and surrounding areas.
“We also have to use valuable police resource to deal with this, and this is impacting on how we manage other criminal matters, which is not how it should be and responsibility for this now needs to be taken.
“I find it absolutely astounding that we need to keep repeating the same message again so quickly after issuing a strong plea earlier this week.”
A University of Nottingham spokesperson said: “The majority of our 35,000 students are following the rules, however, under our student Code of Conduct there are serious consequences for any student who breach the restrictions, including disciplinary action, fines and campus sanctions – in addition to police fines. The University takes swift and proportionate disciplinary action when students are found to have wilfully breached Covid restrictions.
“In the most serious cases, students will be fast-tracked to the highest levels of our process where suspension and exclusion are potential outcomes. People should be under no illusion that misconduct will be discovered and it will be punished.”
A spokesperson for Nottingham Trent University added: “Any behaviour by our students which is in breach of restrictions is completely unacceptable. Working with Nottinghamshire Police, and the City Council, we are funding more Community Protection Officers to ensure our students are following local restrictions, and we have made clear that we are willing to provide more money to extend this important service.
“Our students have been told repeatedly that they – like everyone – have a crucial role to play in limiting the spread of COVID-19. While the vast majority of our students continue to respect the guidelines and advice, we will not tolerate any breaches. Where we have evidence of any breaches, students will face immediate disciplinary action that may include further fines or expulsion.”
