The University of Nottingham and Students’ Union are aware of reports by students in cities across the country of alleged incidents of spiking – either in drinks or by physical means. 

We are extremely concerned by these reports - no one should feel unsafe on a night out. We are working closely with Nottinghamshire Police and the city’s nightlife venues to monitor, review and learn from incidents and experiences in the city centre. We have contacted them about the specific concerns raised and will continue to liaise with them to actively tackle societal problems and challenge behaviours.

Nottinghamshire Police are encouraging anyone who believes they have experienced or witnessed such an incident to make contact with the Police immediately so that they can investigate at the earliest opportunity. 

Superintendent Kathryn Craner of Nottinghamshire Police has said:

“We are currently investigating reports of individuals suspecting that their drinks have been spiked. Linked to this a small number of victims have said that they may have felt a scratching sensation as if someone may have spiked them physically. Consequently, we are actively investigating all these reports. 

“We are treating all of these incidents very seriously and are working with licensed premises and our partner agencies including the University of Nottingham, Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham City Council and East Midlands Ambulance Service in undertaking thorough investigations. 

“We have a dedicated group of officers currently carrying out CCTV enquires at various venues where we have received such reports. Our enquiries into these incidents are ongoing but we understand people may be concerned about incidents like this and want to reassure the public we are working incredibly hard to investigate. 

“We have arrested a 20-year-old man on suspicion of possession of class A and class B drugs and cause to administer poison or noxious things with intent to injure, aggrieve and annoy following a report of an incident on Lower Parliament Street, Nottingham city centre, on 16 October 2021.

“This arrest comes as part of our ongoing investigations into alleged spiking reports in the city.

“The man has now been bailed with conditions as we continue to investigate.” 

“What we need is that if any person experiences such an incident whilst on a night out that they or their friends make contact with us immediately in order that we can investigate at the earliest opportunity and secure evidence quickly. 

“We do not believe that these are targeted incidents; they are distinctly different from anything we have seen previously as victims have disclosed a physical scratch type sensation before feeling very unwell. This is subtly different from feelings of intoxication through alcohol according to some victims.” 

Nottingham is generally a safe place to live and study but, as with any city, incidents can happen. While Police are investigating these reports, we encourage all students to be additionally vigilant and to follow their advice to report any suspicions immediately for investigation and support.  

For more information, please visit the University’s Safety in The City webpages and Spiked Drinks - Nottinghamshire Police.

If you need support or are affected by anything mentioned in this statement, there are many services available to you, including Nottingham Nightline, Victim Support UK and TogetherAll. You'll find details of all of these on the HealthyU webpages and don't forget you can also use our Report and Support tool.