Best of: Staying safe at uni

When you’ve moved away from your hometown you might feel the need to be more cautious when you’re going out, especially at night, so our content creators have gathered their best advice!

If you’re going out, make arrangements of how you’re going to get home – Rebecca Garbutt

“Coordinating taxis and arranging to meet friends when you leave may seem a little overprotective, but ultimately, it’s better to be safe than sorry. Dark streets can often feel intimidating, and regardless of how safe an area might be, travelling alone can still be pretty frightening. By travelling with a group or staying at a friends’ house, this ensures everyone is comfortable and safe.”

Personal alarms – Tash Etherington

“Personal safety alarms, also sometimes called rape alarms, are one of the most easily available safety tools in the UK. They are pretty compact and often come on keyrings, so they are super easy to fit on your keys or in your bag; these alarms have a pull string which when pulled sets off the alarm, emitting a really loud high-pitched noise, designed to put off anyone making you uncomfortable and draw attention to you if you need help. These keychain alarms also usually come with a little LED torch, which is great for making your way home at night or after the streetlights are off. Lincoln SU have given out these personal alarms for free a handful of times and often have spares if you want to get your hands on one.”

Download safety apps – Emma Smedley

“Download personal safety apps like HollyGuard, as these act like a personal safety alarm on your phone. You can also share your location with friends and flatmates via Snapchat maps or Find My Friends.”

Join area group chats – Tash Etherington

“When it comes to keeping yourself safe knowledge really is power, so being able to keep yourself and people around you in the know about anything to worry about or keep in mind is a great way to help keep everyone in Lincoln safe. Groups like ‘Lincoln Girl Gang’ on Facebook are open to anyone in Lincoln and creates a feed of any incidents that happen in the city, where they happened etc. so you know where to keep an eye out.”

Be aware of your surroundings – Emma Smedley

“If you’re walking alone, keep an eye out at all times – it is best to not use headphones so you can be fully aware of your surroundings. Similarly, it is a good idea to let family and friends know when and where you are travelling if you’re going somewhere, e.g. let them know what time your train is leaving/arriving when travelling to and from Lincoln.”