We’re always working to improve the experience for our students, and we’re proud to be launching an amazing new initiative to further support those who are most vulnerable when on campus.
Earlier this year, Laura Howard, a member of our University’s Disabled Staff Network, attended a meeting with Campus Support & Security (CS&S) to discuss the needs of our disabled staff and students. Laura provided invaluable feedback by communicating some of the issues disabled people face on campus, their concerns, and safety risks.
The CS&S team responded to the concerns Laura raised with an initiative that will see our most vulnerable disabled staff and students have access to free SafeZone watches. The watches utilise the SafeZone app, which is designed to speed up potential response times when you need urgent help, and allow users to safely and discretely alert security when they need assistance.
Paul Greenlees, Deputy Head of CS&S, said: “Our team was keen to identify a solution to make disabled staff and students feel safer and more protected on campus. Working with SafeZone, we recognised the benefits of an alert watch in this process. We are thrilled to finally launch this initiative and enhance the experience for vulnerable members of our University community.”
When asked how this would impact those with disabilities, Laura shared: “I don’t think it’s overstating things to say these watches will be a lifeline for a lot of our disabled staff and students. Unlike the SafeZone app, the watch can be pressed discretely and having a safe, easy way to alert security when we need help has already led to students reporting that they’ll feel safe to come back on campus.
It’s not just abuse and harassment though. There are a million things that can go wrong when you’re disabled on campus, from being trapped in fire alarms, to wheelchairs breaking down, to getting trapped in disabled toilets. Because of this there’s always a feeling of vulnerability when you’re out and about on campus alone. Being able to quickly and easily alert security when this happens has done so much to make us feel safer when we’re at the uni.”
Laura had high praise for CS&S colleagues and the work they’ve done to introduce this initiative: “They have gone above and beyond to support us, and they have a seemingly unlimited amount of time for disabled staff and students. Not satisfied with just getting the watches, they also came to a dedicated training session on supporting disabled staff and students. When they learned at this session that some disabled people at UoM had previous negative experiences with security they reached out to the disabled PGR, Staff, and UG networks. They ran a series of feedback sessions on how they could improve and so in their own words “disabled people would have a name and a face they could come to if they felt unsafe”.
They haven’t stopped there though, they’ve updated every one of their fire alarm drills to include evacuating disabled people, given us a tour of the office so we can learn how security works, and bought a number of spare wheelchairs in case anyone’s broke down on campus. The team have enthusiastically embedded disabled access into all their practices.”
How do I request a SafeZone watch as a student?
The Disability Advisory and Support Service (DASS) have a number of watches for our most vulnerable disabled students as part of their support plan, please email dass@manchester.ac.uk to discuss your needs. The Advice and Response team are also able to issue watches to students as part of individual safety plans.
Download the SafeZone app
The SafeZone app is currently being used by 5000 students to help keep them safe on campus. If you haven’t already downloaded the app, it’s completely free, and quickly puts you in touch with on campus first aiders, security, or emergency response teams when you need them. Click here for more info.