trisher The infection rate was rising in most of these towns and cities well before the university term started.so I do not think students can be blamed for the rise.
Leicester and Nottingham had tighter measures introduced in July several weeks after the university term had ended and months before the new term started. In the North west the new restrictions came in in early September.
As for student lie-ins. DS is a university lecturer, online lectures have to be attended in real time and I understand that there are facilities for interaction between students and lecturer. then there are seminars and tutor group meetings that are done on the university equivalent of Zoom, which again expect students to be present when they happen. Then there is course work which has to be completed to deadlines. Not meeting deadlines mean marks are deducted.So long lie-ins and all day parties are unlikely.
Give a thought also the lecturers having to deal with the complications of putting all their lectures on screen. It is a lot more difficult than simply reading a lecture on screen. Over the summer the universities have been acquiring new computer systems to meet the varying needs of online teaching, lecturers are having to teach themselves how these, often complex systems work and integrate. OK if you are technically minded but some, who are less technical are close to breakdown, living alone and struggling to understand the new systems and with little or no IT support because IT people are busy installing and getting these new systems up and running and often do not fully understand all the new systems themselves.
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