A new website, www.saferstudent.org.uk, will be launched on Thursday 8 November at 10am, in the Ferguson Room of the University of Glasgow College Club. Rector Greg Hemphill, of BBC's Chewin' the Fat, Glasgow City Councillor Gordon Matheson and Strathclyde Police Chief Superintendent John Wilson, will launch Glasgow's first Student Safety website.

This new online resource has been created by the Central and West Community Safety Forum. The Forum is a multi-agency grouping, including representatives from Strathclyde Police, Glasgow City Council, the Universities of Glasgow, Strathclyde and Glasgow Caledonian and the College of Food Technology, collaborating for the first time.

Councillor Gordon Matheson said, "Glasgow City Council warmly welcomes the launch of www.saferstudent.org.uk. Students make a tremendous contribution to the economic and cultural vitality of Glasgow. I am confident that the information on this website will help Glasgow's students to have a safe as well as a happy stay in the friendly city."

Strathclyde Police Divisional Commander, Chief Superintendent John Wilson said, "I am confident that this initiative, being the first Student Safety Website produced in Glasgow, will be an enjoyable and effective way for students to keep themselves and their property safe, and ensure that their student years are indeed some of the best years of their lives."

Sharon McNeish, Head of Student and Staff Support, University of Glasgow, commented: "Over the years we have enjoyed wide-ranging collaboration with a number of bodies and institutions in an effort to increase safety awareness and ensure that appropriate measures are in place and responsive to ever-changing patterns of risk."

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Media Relations Office (media@gla.ac.uk)

For further information, contact:

Crime Awareness Panel, secretary, 0141 532 3010

Cheryl Downie, Strathclyde Police Media Representative, 0141 532 2164

Glasgow City Council, Councillor Gordon Matheson, 0141 287 5480

University of Glasgow, Head of Student and Staff Support, Sharon McNeish, 0141 330 4541

University of Strathclyde, Director of Student Affairs, John Martin, 0141 548 4931

Glasgow Caledonian University, Assistant Director of Student Services, George McAleese, 0141 331 3880

First published: 7 November 2001