Limerick students warned they could face sanctions after RAG week 'chaos' in city centre

A spokesperson for the University of Limerick said they received no complaints about off-campus incidents on Monday. File picture: Dan Linehan

Students in Limerick have been warned they may face sanctions if they take part in anti-social behaviour off-campus.

It comes as a large house party took place on Monday in College Court, close to the University of Limerick.

A video seen by the Irish Examiner shows close to a hundred revellers gathered in the back garden of a property, while about two dozen can be seen on the roof of the house, with one shown letting off a flare. A spokesperson for the University of Limerick (UL) said they received no complaints about off-campus incidents on Monday.

However, they added that UL’s code of conduct covers off-campus behaviour. 

“While UL cannot be a responder to off-campus incidents, which are the jurisdiction of An Garda Síochána and other relevant agencies, any student who has been officially reported, investigated and found to have broken the UL Code of Conduct will face sanction,” they added.

UL has recently recruited a student community engagement liaison officer, who took up their post this week. Their role will see them engage with residents on a community liaison framework, that has been developed to directly address reported incidents of anti-social behaviour. 

“This is a pilot post and the intention is for the appointed individual to work with all stakeholders to develop a more long-term approach to managing issues in line with stakeholder needs and university regulations,” the spokesperson added.

Residents living in Limerick city centre complained about the “chaos” left behind by revellers on Monday night. Broken glass, empty bottles and rubbish were left scattered around Cruise's Street after party-goers allegedly kicked over a series of bins.

It comes as the Technological University of the Shannon (TUS) Moylish Campus held the first day of its Raise and Give week this week. However, TUS Student Union said events held in the city centre were not affiliated with the college or the union.

Áine Daly, the TUS union president, said they encourage their members to have respect for the communities they reside in. Ms Daly said RAG week was about raising and giving and that a lot of their students stand as “great examples of giving back to the community".

She added that students from UL, MI and TUS were enjoying the events for the week and "getting back to some sort of normality after the pandemic over the last two years".

“We strongly discourage any sort of anti-social behaviour with our members and ask that they be safe when they're out with their alcohol consumption and look out for one another,” she added.

Róisín Burke, Mary Immaculate College’s (MIC) Student Union president, also said the events that are taking place this week have not been organised by MIC’s student union.