Leeds Student Article sparks Council Petition

Peter Self, a third year POLIS student, created the online petition to the Council. Here he explains why:

“The park is unsafe. We all know that. I feel that the latest attacks on University students by gangs of masked youths are the last straw. There’ve been a series of horrific attacks in recent years: anything from violent muggings to sexual assault and rapes. Although these attacks are few and far between, they do still happen. There have been far to many incidents in Woodhouse Moor to not take action.

The Police are trying their best. However, we cannot rely on the Police to make sure the park is safe 24/7 as cuts to the police department and manpower shortages would make this impossible. Something more needs to be done.
This is where the Council can step in. They need to implement further provisions such as CCTV and strategically placed park lights. This is what the e-petition is for.

What I really want is for the petition to make the council listen. For years, as long as I’ve been at university, the common gripe of most students is Woodhouse Moor is too dangerous, and the council won’t do anything about it. The safety of thousands of students and local residents walking through the area is paramount and I think it is the council’s responsibility to implement further measures.

I am also hoping that the petition will educate people about the dangers. It is foolish and stupid to walk through that park at night, there is no excuse for wanting to take a short cut when at the end of the day your life could be in danger.

There isn’t a set number of signatures needed for the petition. Ideally, 10,000 – more if possible. I urge students to visit the site and sign up immediately.”

To look at and sign the petition, click here