News and views from Journalism students at De Montfort University in Leicester
Remembrance Day is this Sunday and it is important that we commemorate the sacrifices of those who have given their lives for our freedom since the beginning of the Great War 105 years ago.
De Montfort University students told Luke Williamson what Remembrance Sunday means to them.
By Samantha Johnston and Megan Livingstone
University students have a reputation for being excessive alcohol consumers, however recent studies have contradicted this stereotype.
First year student Khairi, 19, studying Creative Writing and English Literature at De Montfort University in Leicester, said that not only does he not drink alcohol for religious reasons, but also because he does not like the feeling of not being in control.
“I don’t want to be taken advantage of,” he said.
Khairi said other students in his flat who do drink are ‘respectful of his choices not to drink,’ and that he did not feel left out during Freshers’ Week or any other events within the university – but the link to alcohol with activities within some societies has made him hesitant to join them.
Another first year student, Alex Clayton, 18, studying Education said: “I’m not bothered by the lack of consideration to include non-drinkers within university events as my non-drinking habits are a personal choice.
“I also feel comfortable in my choices and not pressured to involve myself in drinking with my flat mates.”
Research conducted by the National Union of Students (NUS) has shown that in recent years one in five university students (21%) are completely teetotal, not consuming any alcohol, and 70% of students only drink to fit in with their peers.
In addition to this, studies carried out by the NHS show that 16-24-year-olds that choose not to drink alcohol has risen from 18% to 29% in the past 10 years. Binge drinking rates among students have also declined, falling from 27% to 18%.
This fall in students’ drinking habits has meant that there may be an economic threat, to local bars and pubs. The manager of Soar Point, a popular student bar on the DMU campus, said: “More food and less alcoholic drinks are being served. This is due to the rise in non-alcoholic options, such as coffee and smoothies.”
An employee of The Bowling Green, another popular student pub, added: “There has been a definite decrease in new students drinking at our pub – I blame the growing university debt.”
Despite all this, the NUS study showed that 79% of students believe that drinking alcohol is part of university culture and is something they want to take part in.
First year student, Marina Themistou, 19, studying English Literature and Drama, identifies as a ‘heavy drinker’. She said: “I don’t feel pressured to drink.”
She “enjoys the social aspect of it as well as the feeling”, showing that even though there is a rise of non-drinking young people, this does not mean that alcohol is no longer a big part of the university experience for some students.
Hello and welcome to the first ever DMUFC Weekly Blog!
This is where you can find all of the news surrounding the club, including all fixtures and results, news about upcoming socials and the charity events the club are running.
DMUFC Badge
Here Luke Williamson, a first year Single Hons Journalism student – and centre half for the DMU fourth team, rounds up the week’s news.
We start with last week’s results, and it was a pretty good return for the club with the third and fourth teams picking up wins.
The highlight of the week was at Beaumont Park in Beaumont Leys, the home of DMU. Last Wednesday, DMU fourth team took on local rivals, University of Leicester’s fourth team.
The fourth team were on the right side of a dominant win, powering past the University of Leicester fourth team 4-2, including an extraordinary free kick from Ben Bates to give the fourths their first three points of the season.
The first team picked up a very credible draw away at Loughborough Seconds, the game finishing 1-1.
The seconds suffered a defeat at the hands of local rivals University of Leicester, falling to a 1-2 loss at home whereas the third team were victorious at Beaumont Park, cruising to a 3-0 win over Birmingham City University Thirds.
Away from the pitch, the club remain busy raising money for a great cause.
Movember is underway and every member of DMUFC are growing their facial hair to raise money to support men through prostate cancer, testicular cancer, mental health issues and for suicide prevention.
This is a cause close to all of us at DMUFC and we urge everyone to help us reach our goals and help support all dads, sons, brothers and mates all over the world.
The club recently surpassed their goal of £1000, and are looking to raise even more over the next few weeks.
Wednesday doesn’t just mean match-day, it’s also the day of Social. So, if you want to come along, whether you’re a member of a team or not, you can.
We meet at Locker Room Sports Bar and Lounge on Belvoir Street, before eventually heading to the Student Union.
We also occasionally host Sunday Socials where it’s not all about the booze. We meet to watch the Sunday football and it’s a great place to get to know some more of your teammates away from the pitch.
There is also a DMUFC radio show where our chair and vice-chairman sit down and recap the week from a DMUFC perspective and, of course, play some timeless bangers, at 11am on Sundays.
This week, two teams are in action on Wednesday with the First and Second teams hosting Oxford Brooke’s Firsts and Anglia Ruskin Firsts respectively in 3pm kick-offs.
The Fourth team’s game has been moved to Monday 11th November, where they face Coventry Fourths in a 7:30 kick-off at Beaumont Park.
If you want to keep in the loop with everything that goes on with DMUFC, then make sure you follow our Twitter page, @DeMontfortFC, where you’ll be able to find out all of the details about upcoming fixtures and results and much more.
By Ben Sanderson
There will be a fireworks display at The Crow’s Nest pub to commemorate Guy Fawkes Night tonight.
The display will start at 6pm and will last for an hour.
It will be a large display, taking place in a car park outside the pub in Glenfield Road, Leicester, which shall be emptied of cars for the event, so that traffic can be blocked from the area of the display.
The Crow’s Nest pub
The Crow’s Nest has decided to press ahead with its fireworks display because the weather forecast for the afternoon is clear, despite numerous cancellations of other displays scheduled for tonight due to earlier forecasts of bad weather.
Manager Ray Cooper said: “I’ve spent thousands on this.
“There will be a barbecue and two DJs for entertainment.”
Admission for the event is free and customers will be sectioned off from the large fireworks display for safety reasons.
Glenfield Road, where The Crow’s Nest is
Mr Cooper revealed: “This is one of the biggest fireworks displays in the whole of Leicester. We’re expecting a lot of people to attend.”
A number of other Bonfire Night events were cancelled due to forecast bad weather owing to heavy rain this morning, but Mr Cooper and his staff believe theirs can go ahead because the weather was supposed to be clear from 3pm onwards.
The Wishes 4 Kids charity event scheduled to be at Ilston-on-the-Hill tonight was one such event that has been cancelled, with people particularly disappointed because of how much money the event was expected to raise for charity.
According to the Leicester Mercury, last year’s event raised £17,500 for charity.
The fireworks display is the main event at The Crow’s Nest tonight, which also is offering entertainment from 5pm until late.
The Crow’s Nest is at 1 Glenfield Road, Leicester, LE3 5QW. Follow @thecrowies on Facebook for more details.
By Shaikha Rahimi
Two former US Congressmen are coming to De Montfort University tonight to talk to students about the future of American politics.
Luke Messer, former Republican Congressman for Indiana’s Sixth Congressional District, has effectively enacted legislation that addressed issues such as education, foreign affairs, and taxation. Mr Messer is currently leading a public policy advocate.
Nick Rahall, former Democrat Congressman for West Virginia’s Third Congressional District, served on numerous committees such as the Infrastructure and Public Works Committee. First elected in 1976, Mr Rahall is identified with the distinction of being the youngest-elected in the history of West Virginia.
Mr Messer and Mr Rahall were invited to talk to DMU students and a wider audience about the challenges in American politics. The two former Congressmen and DMU Emeritus Professor Philip Davies will be sharing their insights with the discussion opening up to questions and answers from the audience.
The event has been organised by the Congress to Campus UK programme and is co-ordinated by the Eccles Centre for American Studies at the British Library and the Rothermere American Institute at the University of Oxford, with support from the British Association for American Studies and the US Embassy London.
The event will take place from 7-8pm in the Hugh Aston building. Parking will be available in the main visitor car park.
