Inquiry into street party that woke up neighbourhood

An investigation is under way into a street party in Nottingham attended by more than 100 people that kept families awake.

Footage showed police at the scene in Rolleston Drive in Lenton on Friday evening, and many young people stood outside.

Robia Shah, a mum of one, said she heard noise from outside, and people urinating in the street.

A University of Nottingham spokesperson said they opened an investigation at a private property in Lenton and were working with the police to support their probe into anti-social issues in the area.

Shah said was woken up by the noise, adding: "It was so loud, it was unbearable, especially at that time of night.

"I looked out the window. I could see over 100 people gathered, just walking up and down the road, and just making lots of noise and drinking. One or two were urinating on the wall."

She said her family had thought about moving out of the area.

"[I feel] very scared and threatened," she added. "It just makes you feel unsafe in an area where this is going on."

Kate Loewenthal said residents told her they saw people drinking and urinating in the street, and that several calls were made to the police.

"It's really hard to get to the police anymore," she told the BBC.

She said officers were outnumbered when they arrived at the scene.

"I think the attitudes that people were facing when they tried to speak to anybody were really poor," Loewenthal added.

Asked if she thought about moving somewhere else, she said: "That's like a red rag to a bull for me, because why should we move from our homes that have been our homes, many of us, all of our life?

"There are elderly residents who lived here for 70 years, they raised their families here.

"I shouldn't have to move. The council and the police should be doing what they can to stop these offences happening at night and the university should be taking much stronger action against the students when they're involved."

Another neighbour, who wanted to remain anonymous, said he saw many people out in the street drinking, with bottles smashed and cans thrown around.

"While this was going on, there were taxis coming in, taxis going. The road was blocked," he added.

A first-year student told the BBC he "sincerely" hoped this was not going to be a general occurrence.

He said he noticed "increasingly loud noise coming outside my bedroom window".

"At one point, I looked out and thought it must be at least 100 people stood outside," the student added.

"There were smashed bottles on the ground the morning after."

A spokesperson for the University of Nottingham said neighbours should report to their community engagement team should they have any concerns.

Some of them were spotted on Rolleston Drive on Wednesday morning, knocking on properties to advise students about their bins.

"The overwhelming majority of students are good neighbours, and we encourage them to be an active and positive part of the communities in which they live," said a university spokesperson.

"Instances of anti-social behaviour will not be tolerated, and we clearly communicate our expectations around the standards we expect our students to uphold, both on campus and out in the community, throughout the academic year.

"When we have evidence of behaviour that falls short of our expectations, we take immediate action under our internal disciplinary processes which include warnings, fines, suspensions and exclusions."

A spokesperson for Nottingham Trent University said they had a security presence in areas with a high number of students, and they would meet with residents to hear their concerns.

Liz Gaskin, the neighbourhood police inspector for the area, said they would support the community if needed and confirmed officers attended on Friday evening.

"However, noise is very much a council matter," she added. "There is an anti-social behaviour policy in place, where incidents, such as student house parties involving unruly behaviour including noise, is investigated by them.

"Of course, if any crime is found to be committed, then residents can expect a robust response from us. We will simply not tolerate it."

Nottingham City Council said it understood the frustration this was causing in the community, adding it was working with partners to address the concerns.

Additional reporting by Asha Patel

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