Walking home alone at night

Family are against me walking home alone at night. They demand i get the bus back after I’m out with friends at a bar but I don’t listen to them. I’ve walked back home many times at 10pm or 11pm on my own and the streets are empty as heck, and I’ve never experienced a dodgy situation. Also, walking home saves time and money. As I’m quick with walking, I don’t need to rely on public transport that takes forever stopping everywhere and spend £2 on a journey. It’s a win win!

I understand that walking home alone at night can be a stressful situation for others. I do consider the risks and I am cautious of my surroundings all the time. I am also a 26 year old girl, and should be able todo what I want. If I choose to walk after a night out, I will do as a please.

Reply 1

Ciel.

Original post

by Anonymous

Family are against me walking home alone at night. They demand i get the bus back after I’m out with friends at a bar but I don’t listen to them. I’ve walked back home many times at 10pm or 11pm on my own and the streets are empty as heck, and I’ve never experienced a dodgy situation. Also, walking home saves time and money. As I’m quick with walking, I don’t need to rely on public transport that takes forever stopping everywhere and spend £2 on a journey. It’s a win win!
I understand that walking home alone at night can be a stressful situation for others. I do consider the risks and I am cautious of my surroundings all the time. I am also a 26 year old girl, and should be able todo what I want. If I choose to walk after a night out, I will do as a please.

it doesn't make you brave. you're just being dumb. 5 minutes with the wrong person can ruin your life forever. why would you risk that

Reply 2

De Montfort University

Official Rep

Original post

by Anonymous

Family are against me walking home alone at night. They demand i get the bus back after I’m out with friends at a bar but I don’t listen to them. I’ve walked back home many times at 10pm or 11pm on my own and the streets are empty as heck, and I’ve never experienced a dodgy situation. Also, walking home saves time and money. As I’m quick with walking, I don’t need to rely on public transport that takes forever stopping everywhere and spend £2 on a journey. It’s a win win!
I understand that walking home alone at night can be a stressful situation for others. I do consider the risks and I am cautious of my surroundings all the time. I am also a 26 year old girl, and should be able todo what I want. If I choose to walk after a night out, I will do as a please.

Hey!

Not sure if this is just a vent or if you’re looking for advice, but I totally get where you’re coming from, being a student can be a financial struggle, and public transport isn’t always convenient. It’s definitely easier said than done sometimes!

That said, I would still recommend trying to get some form of transport home where possible, just to stay on the safe side - even if the bus adds on an extra 20 minutes and for the sake of £2. However, if you do decide to walk, I’d really encourage you to take a few extra precautions - things like sharing your live location with someone, letting a friend or family member know when you’re setting off and roughly how long you’ll be, or even giving someone a quick call while you’re walking (that’s what I do — if my boyfriend hasn’t heard from me within a certain time, he’ll give me a ring, or just stay on the phone with me, whilst I walk back. I even do this with him when he's been out somewhere at night and he's walking back to my accommodation)

You mentioned you're usually out with friends, do any of them walk the same way as you? If so, maybe you could walk part of the journey together for a bit of extra safety or just add a stop on the uber and split the fair

If you’re walking around your campus area, it's also a good idea to save your university's security team number in your phone, just for that extra bit of peace of mind if you ever need it quickly.
Personal safety alarms are another option too, they're small but can make a big difference if you ever feel uneasy.

These are just some of the things I personally do and suggest especially to some students who have moved out for their first time and have questions about safety and unfortunately the older I get, the more I hate walking around at night, especially if I am alone. I completely understand how it feels, you should be able to do what you want and It can be frustrating when family seem overprotective, but at the end of the day, it’s only because they really care about your safety, especially with some of the devastating news stories you hear nowadays

-Maddie, Third year Health and Well-being in Society student at De Montfort University

(edited 10 months ago)

Reply 3

University of Salford Student Rep

Official Rep

Original post

by Anonymous

Family are against me walking home alone at night. They demand i get the bus back after I’m out with friends at a bar but I don’t listen to them. I’ve walked back home many times at 10pm or 11pm on my own and the streets are empty as heck, and I’ve never experienced a dodgy situation. Also, walking home saves time and money. As I’m quick with walking, I don’t need to rely on public transport that takes forever stopping everywhere and spend £2 on a journey. It’s a win win!
I understand that walking home alone at night can be a stressful situation for others. I do consider the risks and I am cautious of my surroundings all the time. I am also a 26 year old girl, and should be able todo what I want. If I choose to walk after a night out, I will do as a please.

Hi @Anonymous#1

I feel your pain. I totally get where you are coming from, too, as a fellow female student who is a speedy walker who dislikes spending money on transport when I can walk home, and it is great that you feel safe doing so. I can see Maddie has given you some great advice, like Maddie says, often families tell you to do these things because they care and worry about you, but I know how frustrating it can be!

At the end of the day, it is your choice, but I would advise you that if you can’t walk home the whole way with your friends, to instead let someone know you are heading home and let them know when you get home safely: my friends and I all do this. You can share your live location on apps such as WhatsApp, and some universities have schemes where you can get a walking buddy places or even fund transport, so it is worth enquiring at your university.

If I have been out and for example had a drink and/or I am unfamiliar with the area then I will get public transport or an Uber home to ensure I get home safely as I know if I have been out for drinks my reactions might not be as fast as usual - even just for crossing the road.

Again, I know we shouldn’t have to, but I always have my mobile phone and keys to hand so that if I ever feel unsafe or come across an emergency situation I can easily get help/get into my home.

Best wishes

Lucy 😊
(Official Uni of Salford Student Rep)

Reply 4

hallamstudents

Official Rep

Original post

by Anonymous

Family are against me walking home alone at night. They demand i get the bus back after I’m out with friends at a bar but I don’t listen to them. I’ve walked back home many times at 10pm or 11pm on my own and the streets are empty as heck, and I’ve never experienced a dodgy situation. Also, walking home saves time and money. As I’m quick with walking, I don’t need to rely on public transport that takes forever stopping everywhere and spend £2 on a journey. It’s a win win!
I understand that walking home alone at night can be a stressful situation for others. I do consider the risks and I am cautious of my surroundings all the time. I am also a 26 year old girl, and should be able todo what I want. If I choose to walk after a night out, I will do as a please.

Hi there,

I know how you feel and it can be a pain paying for transport when we should feel safe walking home at night.

However, I really would recommend trying to get public transport, or an Uber home as much as you can. As unfair as it is, it can be unpredictable walking home alone so I really would try and find another way home as often as possible.

As others have said, if you go out with people who live near you, splitting a taxi shouldn't be too expensive so this would be worth doing. Even paying £2 for the bus is worth it just to make sure you are safe.

You could also talk to your uni about this as sometimes the SU organises ways of getting home at night for their students to make sure everyone is safe.

If you do walk home alone, please try and make sure people have your location or call them just so you have that extra bit of comfort knowing they know where you are.

I hope some of this helps,

Lucy -SHU student ambassador.

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