Students take part in immersive Party Safe workshop to boost spiking awareness

Held on campus, the high‑energy 90‑minute workshop combined a live DJ environment, a powerful lived‑experience story, and hands‑on Action Labs to help young people understand how to recognise, prevent and report spiking. The session encouraged students to build confidence in responding to concerns, adopt harm‑reduction strategies, and look out for themselves and their friends on nights out.

Students also engaged with a range of stalls, where campus and community partners offered practical advice on wellbeing, personal safety and the support available locally. The stalls ensured that every participant left with a clear understanding of where to turn if they or someone they know ever needs help.

Police and Crime Commissioner Clive Grunshaw said:

“Through my Lancashire Violence Reduction Network, I am committed to making sure young people across our county feel safe, supported and listened to. Events like Party Safe show the real difference we can make when we bring partners together with a shared purpose: giving students the knowledge, confidence and practical tools to protect themselves and each other.

“Everyone deserves to feel safe on a night out, and workshops like this make that clear, working to prevent people becoming victims whilst officers tackle offending in the nighttime economy. The immersive format, the lived‑experience stories and the honest conversations they spark give young people a deeper understanding of risk and how to respond if something doesn’t feel right.

“A big focus of my Police and Crime Plan is stopping harm before it happens, and that means investing in initiatives that empower people and strengthen our communities. I’m proud of the work my Lancashire Violence Reduction Network is doing with local partners, and I’m grateful to the students who took part. Their engagement shows just how important this issue is, and why we will continue delivering programmes that help keep people safe.”

Fay Sherrington, Director of Student Services at Edge Hill University added:

“We want our students to feel confident and safe, whether they are on campus or socialising elsewhere. Working with partners such as CounterSpike and the Lancashire Violence Reduction Network helped us deliver an engaging workshop that raises awareness of spiking and gives students practical knowledge they can take away and apply in social settings and beyond.”