How university police officers are keeping students safe

PC Nick Lewis (left) handing out a burglary prevention pack

A new policing team dedicated to supporting university students has received positive feedback from both students and colleagues.

Four officers – two PCs and two PCSOs – provide advice and assistance to students and staff across the campuses at the University of Nottingham and Nottingham Trent University.

Launched in 2023, the policing team help students by equipping them with useful information on a string of topics, including: 

• Personal safety
• Burglary prevention
• Cycle safety
• Vehicle safety
• Staying safe online
• Reporting harassment and hate crime

The officers also promote cohesion and support students who may be more vulnerable to crime within the community.

The partnership is part of a drive to enhance student support and safety, reduce crime in student areas, and promote safety while building trust between the police and university populations.

PC Nick Lewis and PCSO Paula Hipkiss have become familiar faces with University of Nottingham students, while PC Alex Leggett and PCSO Martin Fisher are focused on supporting those studying at Nottingham Trent University.

PC Alex Leggett and PCSO Martin Fisher

Superintendent Chris Pearson, area commander for City Division, said all four officers had been receiving positive feedback from the two universities, as well as from students and parents.

He said: “We’ve really wanted to break down barriers and build relationships with our student communities.

“A lot of the work has been around attending the Welcome Week fair, sharing crime prevention advice and supporting anyone who has become a victim of crime.

“We’ve taken a really proactive approach to crime prevention. That’s the key agenda. But where crime has taken place on campus or in student communities, the university policing team have worked really closely with the universities to solve those problems.

“I think a lot of students assumed the policing team would constantly be looking to enforce the law, but their role is actually focused on crime prevention and supporting victims of crime – whether that be a burglary at student accommodation or a bike theft.

“I feel very enthused by the positive feedback we’re starting to receive and we need to continue building those relationships as we move into year two.

“We’ve also sought to introduce international students to British policing. That’s been really important as many come from places where the policing culture is very different to what it is here.”

PC Nick Lewis, who previously worked as a response officer, outlined his day-to-day activities working with the University of Nottingham to keep students safe.

He said: “Genuinely, no two days are the same. It depends on what’s happening on a day-to-day basis within the university.

“I have a working list of active cases where students are involved with the police – for example, victims of a burglary or witnesses to a crime.

“I have regular meetings with students who might be asking for advice or wanting to report a crime.

“Often I meet with the university’s security team on matters such as bike thefts in an effort to try and identify offenders. I actually arrested a bike thief on campus recently as a result of that partnership working.

“The collaborative approach has been brilliant and it’s nice to learn the feedback has been really good.”

Brydie Adams, Head of Community Engagement at the University of Nottingham, described the policing team as “an exceptional asset to our institution”. She said:

“Their presence has had a demonstrable positive impact on our community, and they consistently go above and beyond in supporting the safety and wellbeing of our students both on campus and out in the wider community, something which feedback has shown is also particularly reassuring for their parents.

“The team has independently developed a highly effective and proactive approach to their roles and the relationships they have developed with our students in particular are exemplary. I am immensely proud to have these colleagues as part of our Community Engagement team.”

Wayne Cliff, Student Community Liaison Manager at Nottingham Trent University, added:

“The Nottingham Trent University (NTU) policing team over the last 12 months has evolved into a bespoke partnership, working with a shared vision of supporting students both on and off campus.

“Officers work collaboratively side by side with their university colleagues on campus and in the community to enable a seamless approach to support, safeguarding, prevention of crime on campus, safety in the nighttime economy, and the impact of violence on women and girls with an emphasis of working with the Nottingham Trent students’ union, its societies, statutory and the third sector to promote cohesion within the community.”