Lenton residents have pleaded for students to show more “respect” to families after four students were fined £10,000 each for breaking coronavirus rules.
The four individuals have been dealt with the maximum value fine and face expulsion from Nottingham Trent University after being suspended.
When Nottinghamshire Police officers attended their property on Kimbolton Avenue, Lenton, they were initially told that all the attendees had left.
But after further inspection, officers found more than 30 students hiding in upstairs bedrooms, bathrooms and even in the basement.
It is the latest instance of students at both Nottingham universities flouting the latest coronavirus restrictions with house parties, and fierce criticism is growing from the wider community.
At an unconnected party in Lenton, seven students were given fixed penalty notices for hosting a party to celebrate negative test results.
Further incidents have included two students in university accommodation receiving fixed penalty notices of £200 – 15 students were warned by the police.
In September, a University of Nottingham student was fined £10,000 for hosting a house party in Lenton.
One local resident, who asked not to be named, said students need to think about how the continuous partying is causing disruption to families – as well as posing a threat to people’s lives during the pandemic.
“It affects the children most as they are back to school now,” she said to Platform.
“They should respect that families live around here.
“If you want to have a party then that is fine, but keep it indoors.”
Mo Ahmed, a 33-year-old father to a 3 and 5-year-old, explained how students’ attitudes towards local residents have changed in recent years – including one experience of facing verbal abuse from students.
He said: “A couple of years ago a house across the road knocked on our door and said ‘we’re going to have a party, is that alright?’
“I said that was fine, because they had told us and as long as the noise was down after 10pm that would be ok.
“Fortunately the children can’t hear too much noise [as they’re at the back of the house], but I can hear it clearly from my bedroom.”
He added: “There was one time I came out about 11.30pm and asked a house to keep the noise down.
“I explained that I’ve got kids that keep waking up because of the noise, but they responded aggressively.”
When pressed on whether the man felt intimidated living around students, he said: “Sometimes when there are parties, yes.”
Last Friday night, leading into Saturday, there were 18 reports of parties – half of those were believed to be student parties.
On Saturday, a further 25 reports about gatherings had been made to Nottinghamshire Police.
Katie Meynell, Assistant Chief Constable of Nottinghamshire Police, said: “This needs to stop.
“The claims that police presented as a barrier to the students’ fun are astounding.
“How many fines do we have to give before the message is understood?
“We do not take pleasure in handing out fines and would much rather be in a situation where students could enjoy themselves but the reality is that if people do not follow the Covid-19 restrictions, more people will die.”
She added: “The majority of students are following the rules but there obviously is a significant number of them who feel as though they can show blatant disregard for the safety of those around them.
“We have demonstrated that we will take action where necessary and I’d like to thank the Community Protection Officers for spotting the party and engaging with the occupants at the house in Lenton.
“The students were given the opportunity for the situation to end with a warning but instead decided it was appropriate to lie to officers.
“This behaviour will not be tolerated and I urge those who are considering to host parties to think again.”
A spokesperson from NTU said: “We have been notified by Nottinghamshire Police that they have imposed £10k fines on NTU students.
“On receipt of that notification we immediately launched an investigation, and each student has been suspended pending the outcome of our investigation.
“Any student who is found to have breached our disciplinary regulations can face a range of sanctions, up to and including expulsion.
“We have repeatedly made clear to all students that they – like everyone – have a crucial role to play in limiting the spread of this virus.
“We know that the vast majority of our students respect the guidelines and advice.
“We will not tolerate any breaches, and where we have evidence of any breaches, we will always take immediate action under our disciplinary processes.”
Kate Loewenthal, who is Chair of the Residents Association in Lenton, said: “I would say that I’m shocked – but I’m not really.
“I talk to people in our community who are in tears over the phone because they’ are scared of going into another lockdown.
“It’s just that sort of thing when you ask yourself what would it take to stop them?”
Platform attempted to contact the individuals under investigation but received no response.
By Matt Lee
Images: Matt Lee / Platform