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NEWS I 03
Student arrested after alleged attack during examination
by Chris Flynn
by Jazz Dicker
waterfrontnews@swansea-union.co.uk
waterfrontnews@swansea-union.co.uk A FEMALE student was been arrested following an incident during an exam in which a man suffered injuries to his hand. The alleged incident happened earlier this month in the sports hall. A South Wales Police spokesperson said: “A 24-year-old woman was arrested on suspicion of assault following an incident at Swansea University sports hall at around 3pm on Tuesday, January 10.” “A 67-year-old man suffered injuries to his hands during the incident. The woman has been released on bail pending further enquiries.” The incident follows a busy January exam period for university invigilators. On the first day exams, three students were found in possession of notes and there were 10 cases of unfair practice throughout the exam period. These students now face an allegation of unfair practice. The penalties imposed on students vary but the main punishments involve the student’s marks for the session being cancelled for each module. According to recent figures, unfair practice is on the rise within the university. Assistant registrar, Jane LewisNormand has said: “The university takes all forms of unfair practice seriously and every effort is made to ensure that students are made aware of the regulations and procedures. “The university employs trained invigilators who oversee the conduct
Election Notice by Alicia Nugent
waterfrontnews@swansea-union.co.uk STUDENTS are being encouraged to nominate themselves for the upcoming Students’ Union elections which will determine the new fulltime officers for the next academic year. From February 9th to the 23rd, those interested can apply to be part of the officer team which maintains the union and provides vital support and services to students. During this time, students are able to pick up a nomination form from the union reception, and must obtain twenty signatures from fellow students who pledge to show their support. Campaigning will begin on March 15, and candidates will then be eligible to receive votes in the elections which will be held from March 20-22. Outgoing union president Luke James said: “We want to see new faces running to be full-time officers, putting forward new ideas to ensure
Hendrefoelan Christmas crime spree
MULTI-PURPOSE: The sports hall is used for exam across the examination periods in January and May. of the examinations. “The invigilators ensure that examination regulations are adhered to and that no student gains an unfair we continue to be a radical but relevant campaigning voice for Swansea students. “Everyone in the union is working hard to make sure these are the most successful and well-co-ordinated elections we have ever held.” For the first time this year, students will be able to vote to elect a sports officer, a decision that was passed in a referendum which took place in December. The six other vacancies that are available for next year include president, international officer, education officer, welfare officer, women’s officer and the societies and services officer. The union is looking to hold an open surgery on February 2, where potential candidates will have the opportunity to speak to staff to find out further information about how the elections operate and the roles that they are interested in fulfilling. Tom Upton, Services and Societies Officer invited potential candidates to shadow him for a day to experience how hectic the role, published in the monthly society newsletter. Last year’s election saw almost two thousand students vote for their fulltime representatives and potential candidates are encouraged to talk to the current officers to understand what they do on a day-to-day basis.
advantage over other students.” In the academic year of 2008-09, there were only eight incidents of unfair practice and in 2009-10 this
rose to 26 incidents. Last year it rose again to 32 incidents of unfair practice.
Ex-student killed whilst working in Afghanistan by Chris Flynn
waterfrontnews@swansea-union.co.uk A FORMER Swansea University student has died while on service in Afghanistan. Captain Tom Jennings, 29, studied Marine Biology at the university before joining the Royal Marines, transferring later to the Special Boat Service. He was on an operation in the south of Kabul when a land mine came in contact with the vehicle he and another officers was travelling in, killing Mr Jennings instantly.
RAF Squadron Leader Anthony Downing, 34, died from his injuries later in hospital. Mr Jennings is the highest ranking Marine to lose his life in the conflict that has lasted 10 years. The Ministry of Defence said: “He displayed empathy and a broad cultural understanding that ensured he was highly valued by the Afghans as well as his Royal Marine brothers. “He was devoted to his wife and their two young sons whose loss cannot be portrayed in words. “The Royal Marines have lost a brother, they have lost their world.”
BRAVE SOLDIER: ex-student Tom Jennings was killed in Afghanistan
APPROXIMATELY 10 flats in Hendrefoelan student village were broken into over the Christmas break. It has led to a campaign for improved security by the police in response to the crime spree. Fresher’s Representative, Tom Edwards, is campaigning for more security on the village, including changing the locks on the doors so that they lock automatically. Burglary victim Callum Gallagher said: “I’m really frustrated, because obviously there isn’t anything I can do about it and security aren’t doing anything about it when they are here.” Another student, Jordan Lubrani, said: “I’m paranoid that I’m going to be broken in to.” Charlotte Britton, Swansea University students’ union welfare officer is helping to push through tightened security. She said: “I’ve been working with the head of Residential Services and the Police to sort out security in the village. “We’re looking into changing the doors that don’t automatically lock when pulled shut, and we regularly go round with the Police reminding students how important it is to keep things locked.” PC Katryna Evans said: “We’re working with the security department to ensure that students feel safe in their home environments. “Burglaries are unusual and the chances are very low if you take the security measures.” The police campaign, dubbed Operation Hand, was carried out to raise awareness of the dangers in leaving houses and rooms unsecured when students are not in. Police visited every building in the village, spot-checking to see if students had left their front doors or windows open. Police also urged students to lock up their bikes even when students were in their residences. Tracker bikes seem now to be the main weapon in catching those who steal bikes in Swansea- a lot of belonging to students. The scheme has already been successful and has led to the arrest and conviction of a prolific bike thief. John Owens, 49, appeared at Swansea Magistrates at 13th January 2012 was sentenced to a six week suspended sentence and various rehabilitation programmes. But students have also been left frustrated that a notice was left on the security office front door over Christmas saying they would not be present on the village for four days. The head of the university’s commercial services, Paul Robinson, said: “A security service, including regular patrols, is operated at Hendrefoelan student village 365 nights a year. “Signage may have indicated when there was a limited daytime office service but our normal security service was provided throughout the Christmas period.”