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Alcohol could be restricted at Hugh’s formal hall

Recent proposals by St Hugh’s to ban students from bringing their own alcohol to formal hall have caused discontent among much of the student body. 88.8% of students who replied to a survey conducted by the JCR stated that the measures would damage their experience of formal hall.

Recent proposals by St Hugh’s to ban students from bringing their own alcohol to formal hall have caused discontent among much of the student body. 88.8% of students who replied to a survey conducted by the JCR stated that the measures would damage their experience of formal hall.
The college asserted that the changes would “enhance the quality of the experience for everyone present, and address the issue created by a small number of students bringing excessive amounts of alcohol into Formal Hall and thereby creating difficulties for the serving staff.”
If the ban is enforced, hall staff will instead provide students with two glasses of wine or non-alcoholic fruit punch. To reflect this change, however, the college will have to raise the price of a formal hall ticket from £7.25 To £10.40.
Of the 170 students who replied to the JCR’s survey, the overwhelming majority were opposed to the changes. 91.4% replied that they were against the proposed measures, whilst 85% believed that the changes would not address poor behaviour effectively.
Incoming freshers are also unenthusiastic about the changes, with 80.8% of new students saying that they prefer the existing system. Overall 55.4% of those who replied to the survey went so far as to say that if the booze ban is implemented, they would not attend formal hall at all.
A third-year St Hugh’s student, speaking to Cherwell this week, said that the proposed changes to pricing are particularly unfair. He said, “The problem is that they’ve priced it at £9 for a bottle of wine, with no choice about the matter at all.”
The student also remarked that the proposed changes took him by surprise, saying, “Formal hall was sometimes rowdy before, but we never got any warning about it: if the college had made the situation clear, we might have changed our ways.”
When asked if he would stop attending formal hall in protest at the changes, the student said, “I probably will go, but not as often as before.”
Another student condemned the proposal, saying, “It has annoyed almost everyone here. Far fewer people will go to formal hall as a result.”
St Anne’s College introduced a similar change last year, banning students from bringing their own alcohol to formal hall and limiting the amount they can buy from the college.
Andrew Mawer, a fourth year medic at St Anne’s, told Cherwell  that the change did not have a particularly negative effect, saying, “I didn’t really find any problems  with it myself: I’m a bit of a lightweight, and I find that three quarters of a bottle is enough.”
He added that there was an adverse reaction when the changes were introduced, but that this soon evaporated, saying, “We talked about boycotting formal, but nothing ever actually came of it.”

 

The college asserted that the changes would “enhance the quality of the experience for everyone present, and address the issue created by a small number of students bringing excessive amounts of alcohol into Formal Hall and thereby creating difficulties for the serving staff.”

If the ban is enforced, hall staff will instead provide students with two glasses of wine or non-alcoholic fruit punch. To reflect this change, however, the college will have to raise the price of a formal hall ticket from £7.25 To £10.40.

Of the 170 students who replied to the JCR’s survey, the overwhelming majority were opposed to the changes. 91.4% replied that they were against the proposed measures, whilst 85% believed that the changes would not address poor behaviour effectively.

Incoming freshers are also unenthusiastic about the changes, with 80.8% of new students saying that they prefer the existing system. Overall 55.4% of those who replied to the survey went so far as to say that if the booze ban is implemented, they would not attend formal hall at all.

A third-year St Hugh’s student, speaking to Cherwell this week, said that the proposed changes to pricing are particularly unfair. He said, “The problem is that they’ve priced it at £9 for a bottle of wine, with no choice about the matter at all.”

The student also remarked that the proposed changes took him by surprise, saying, “Formal hall was sometimes rowdy before, but we never got any warning about it: if the college had made the situation clear, we might have changed our ways.”

When asked if he would stop attending formal hall in protest at the changes, the student said, “I probably will go, but not as often as before.”Another student condemned the proposal, saying, “It has annoyed almost everyone here. Far fewer people will go to formal hall as a result.”

St Anne’s College introduced a similar change last year, banning students from bringing their own alcohol to formal hall and limiting the amount they can buy from the college.

Andrew Mawer, a fourth year medic at St Anne’s, told Cherwell  that the change did not have a particularly negative effect, saying, “I didn’t really find any problems  with it myself: I’m a bit of a lightweight, and I find that three quarters of a bottle is enough.”

He added that there was an adverse reaction when the changes were introduced, but that this soon evaporated, saying, “We talked about boycotting formal, but nothing ever actually came of it.”

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