Statement from the University of Nottingham Students’ Union Trustee Board.

Last year Karnival went through changes in response to The Charities Act and new fundraising legislation. Changes were made to the processes and safeguarding requirements to protect not only those who carry out fundraising activities, but those people Karnival come into contact with as part of those activities. Karnival being reinstated last year was on the condition that they followed safeguarding policies.

Following an investigation into Karnival Rag Raids the Students’ Union and the Karnival Executive Committee are taking action to resolve serious concerns over compliance with safeguarding and health and safety requirements associated with their activities, as required by The Charities Act. The investigation found that the systems put in place had not been followed, and safeguarding requirements, as set out for all student groups, were not fulfilled on numerous occasions.

With the breaches to the safeguarding and health and safety policies and the potential risks, the Chief Executive, supported by the Board of Trustees, has ceased Rag Raids. 

Ismail Sadurdeen, Chair of Trustees and the Students’ Union President said:

“The safety of our students is paramount and in the event of something happening on any of our activities we need to be confident that we’ve followed all safeguarding checks.

The failures and learnings have been identified and the Karnival Executive Committee and the  Students’ Union Officers and staff are now working together to review and improve the training, support and the policies for all Karnival activity.”

The Karnival Executive Committee commented:

“While the news that RAG raids will cease comes as a huge disappointment to us all, we are now looking forward to the future and are working to improve and expand Karnival. We aim to develop a more sustainable model for our group that includes activities that can engage more students than ever.”

Karnival continues to make a huge contribution to many charities through its fundraising activities and to the local Nottingham community through its volunteering activities, as well as being a significant part of a great student experience for those who get involved. The Karnival Executive Committee thank the charities who they partner with and look forward to redeveloping and continuing the relationships. The volunteering activities that Karnival support and lead on, such as Kontact, will continue with the support of the Students’ Union Volunteer team.