Statement from the SRUC Principal on drink spiking

_{A number of recent cases of spiking have been reported.}

As you have no doubt seen in the media, city nightclubs are being boycotted following a series of spiking cases across the UK.

Reports of drinks being spiked and – in some cases – people being injected with needles, is horrifying.

In Scotland, the Girls Night In group is encouraging women to stay away from these venues tonight (28 October) as they campaign for a greater degree of customer protection.

Both SRUC and SRUCSA, our students’ association, are fully behind all measures to protect the health and welfare of our students.

While we appreciate that many young people, especially those living away from home for the first time, enjoy going out and socialising, we encourage them to take care and to look out for each other.

We will always offer our full support to students who have been the victim of spiking.

Finally, as an institution, we will not tolerate any behaviour that seeks to cause deliberate harm to our students. Any student found to have spiked or endangered anyone else will have their studies at SRUC terminated.

We realise, too, that some students are being coerced into joining societies – some with a strong focus on drinking – which have no affiliation with SRUC or with SRUCSA.

The coercion of students to participate will not be tolerated and, if they feel that they are being pressured, they can, in confidence, contact their campus student support team.

The health and welfare of all members of the SRUC community is a shared responsibility for us all, so I would like to encourage everyone to look out for each other and to stay safe.

Professor Wayne Powell
Principal and Chief Executive

Posted by SRUC on 28/10/2021