UCLan students volunteer as Campus Safety Champions during pandemic
Students at the University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) are protecting each other against the spread of coronavirus by volunteering to become Campus Safety Champions.
More than 30 students from a variety of courses have signed up to the initiative currently being rolled out across the Preston Campus. Their role is to assist fellow students and staff to follow University guidelines around social distancing by reminding them about one-way systems, when to wear face masks, pointing out hand sanitisation points and offering directions when needed.
Staff from The UCLan Centre for Volunteering and Community Leadership along with colleagues from across the University are running the project, with the aim of helping the student volunteers to build confidence and leadership skills.
"It has been nothing but rewarding and I’ve enjoyed helping out in any way I can. Despite the current predicament we are all in, volunteering has given me a positive start to the new academic year because I feel like I’m making a difference by supporting other students."
— Second year psychology student and Campus Safety Champion Kira Cauldwell
Second year psychology student Kira Cauldwell has already committed more than 50 hours over the last five weeks to working as a Campus Safety Champion.
She said: “It has been nothing but rewarding and I’ve enjoyed helping out in any way I can. Despite the current predicament we are all in, volunteering has given me a positive start to the new academic year because I feel like I’m making a difference by supporting other students.”
Kathryn Huskisson, volunteer support assistant within the Centre for Volunteering and Community Leadership, said: “It’s heartening to see students so willing to support their peers during this difficult time. As well as raising awareness of the new guidance to help keep everyone as safe as possible, the skills they are developing through this work will be valuable in any job role.”
"It’s heartening to see students so willing to support their peers during this difficult time. "
— Kathryn Huskisson, volunteer support assistant within the Centre for Volunteering and Community Leadership
In addition, the University is also offering a range of free food and drink items in Preston campus refectories on weekday evenings and weekend mornings for both colleagues and students.
UCLan Chief Information and Infrastructure Officer Michael Ahern added: “We’ve extended timetables to allow for some socially distanced face-to-face teaching and appreciate that people are going the extra mile to make things run smoothly. This is our way of supporting colleagues and students during this challenging time, as well as thanking them for continuing to follow government restrictions.”