Student Safety Campaign Starts

5 September 2016, 06:30 | Updated: 5 September 2016, 06:33

A campaign has been started by Police Scotland at the start of the academic year to give students advice on how to keep safe.

The drive is aimed at almost 500,000 students starting at or returning to colleges and universities this month.

Officers are working with student associations to promote keep safe messages and ensure students start their university careers in the right way.

Safety tips include using privacy settings on social media, using a different password for each online account and not leaving parties or a night out with strangers.

Chief inspector Scott Tees said: "For many, becoming a student is a life-changing and life-enhancing experience - that's why Police Scotland wants to ensure you have a safe and enjoyable time during your studies.

"Our campaign is to raise awareness amongst students about the importance of keeping safe throughout student life.

"We would hope that students will take a few minutes to download our Police Scotland student safety guide, which contains useful tips on how to stay safe, be that on campus, at home or socialising both online and in person.''

Alastair Sim, director at Universities Scotland, said: "We want all of our students, from home and overseas, to enjoy their higher education experience to the full.

"Universities take their responsibilities for the safety of all students incredibly seriously and we encourage all students to note Police Scotland's helpful safety advice as the new academic year gets under way.

"We hope all students and staff in our university communities will continue to look out for one another on campus, at home and online.''