Nottingham's night-time heroes in blue vests
For most students wherever you are, nightlife is an important part of the student experience: making new friends, exploring new places and having a break from studying. However, nights out can very quickly turn sour when, for example, a wallet goes missing, a phone battery dies, or friends have disagreements and split off from a group.
Here in Nottingham, your donations to our Cascade fund are helping vulnerable students stay safe on the night streets by supporting a fantastic student-led project called the Nottingham Night Owls.
Night-time heroes
The Nottingham Night Owls are a group of student volunteers who give up their evenings to help students during nights out. Thanks to your generosity, these Owls are out helping students in need to get home safely, providing them with information and necessary supplies: water, first aid, food, contraception and blankets. They even go one step further - picking up the litter and mess left behind by students, helping to keep the city clean and improve student reputation! Your support makes projects like this possible.
Thanks to your support...
So far during their shifts, The Nottingham Night Owls have achieved:
- 880 hours of volunteering support
- 1,390 items of litter collected
Students for students
Armed with rucksacks of supplies and smiling faces, 3-4 volunteers (of mixed gender) make up the ‘Night Owl’ patrols. Positioning themselves outside popular student venues, the owls assist students wherever required. The patrols are supported by two members of the executive committee who are on call in the office.
One volunteer, Jess Salisbury, Psychology student describes her experiences:
“Hearing about all the students that’ve been helped in difficult situations on their nights out keeps you really motivated and proud of the service. It’s very unique and exciting to be part of such a new project, especially when you feel supported by everyone in doing so.
Volunteering with Night Owls doesn’t only equip you with the knowledge of how to deal with a range of difficult situations, but it also facilitates a safe environment for you to really put those skills to good use to benefit others.
I’d encourage everyone to get involved. It’s a unique support service and a great way to help out fellow students.”
Changing behaviour
The benefit of Nottingham’s Night Owls is being well-acknowledged across the student and local community, even making local BBC news. Susannah Naybour, one of the student leads on the project, has felt overwhelmed from the positive responses received since initiating the project.
She recalls an anonymous letter and donation from a student whose girlfriend was cared for by the Owls on a night out. After the Owls found the young girl in a vulnerable position, she was given food, water and a warm place to wait while her phone was charged and her boyfriend contacted. Her boyfriend’s letter explained how his behaviour has completely changed since this incident, and how he’s now much more aware of the welfare and safety of others during a night out.
Earning a reliable reputation, many night time establishments in Nottingham have also agreed to phone the Night Owls if a student has been asked to leave the club, or is seen in a vulnerable situation.
As their fans feedback on Night Owl’s website: “Not all heroes have capes; some have baby blue high Vis vests.”
Building a parliament of owls
Excitingly, the project’s aims extend far into the future. As Susannah tells us, “We cannot see a time where the student nightlife in Nottingham will subside; there will always be students in vulnerable situations”. The ambitious team aspires to continue recruiting volunteers until they reach a size that enables them to run patrols every night of the week during term time.
The impact of the Nottingham Night Owls is truly admirable. To put it into perspective, if each patrol were to help just one vulnerable student get home safely each night, this would result in 360 students avoiding the risk of violent crime, sexual assault and injury. Imagine what the numbers might look like if multiple students are helped each evening.
Join our Cascade panel – and help more projects like this
The project’s ability to train volunteers and run these caring shifts has been possible thanks to your generous donations to Cascade.
We’re also looking for volunteers to sit on our Cascade Grants Panel. Your contribution will involve electronically reviewing Cascade grant applications three times a year to help determine which projects will be awarded funding. We estimate that for each round of funding it will take approximately 6 hours to read through and rank the applications; however this can be fitted around your schedule.
“Being on the Cascade panel is a real joy. The fund encourages an ‘outside the box’ way of thinking and exposes students to very different experiences. I feel privileged to have attended the University and being part of the panel is my way of giving something back.”
Volunteer Cascade panel member, Sue Bucknall, BA in Psychology
If you would like to give your time to our Cascade Grants Panel please contact Rachael Green, Head of Volunteering on: rachael.green@nottingham.ac.uk / +44 (0)115 74 84987
Once again, thank you for all of your support towards Cascade. Your collective donations have seen over £1.7million invested into projects that not only provide our students with life-changing experiences, but also help us tackle some of the world’s most important challenges.
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