York students kept safe at night by new partnership
North Yorkshire Police are joining forces with student volunteers.
It's hoped a new partnership will help students at York's universities stay safe at night, when they return to the city.
North Yorkshire Police are starting to go on shift with student volunteers on the York Nightsafe team.
The students' union volunteer group believes it's the first in the country to partner with officers this closely.
The Nightsafe scheme is aimed especially at providing support and assistance to students who end up alone after a night out.
It was set up around ten years ago, in response to the number of river deaths that happened with students in York.
Student volunteer Jodie Hutchinson said: "People just get separated, sometimes it's no-one's fault. Having had your lot of fun in first and second year, it is nice to go out and help people, and make sure people feel safe."
Asked why he gives up his time to be part of the scheme, volunteer team leader Chris Oldnall added: "Aside from looking absolutely great in the orange jacket, for me it was a case of wanting to give back!
"I can't speak for everyone here, but I've had one or two of those kind of nights, where I'm very lucky that I've had friends who can look after me, or make sure I got home safe, but I'm aware not everyone has those kinds of friends."
The team is hoping that as well as being able to escalate incidents more easily that need police support, the partnership will free up police time, as officers can refer more minor incidents to the Nightsafe team.