Students have called for the return of condoms to Keble JCR’S welfare stash, after a hundred were stolen in first week. The condoms were taken from the sports cupboard, and have not yet been replaced.
In a JCR meeting, Keble’s JCR welfare reps, Andy Paine and Ellen Peihl, reported, “Stolen condoms. This is theft – they cost money.” In the meeting it was also reported that “Some [condoms] have been pidged to people with notes, which is unacceptable, but [there have been] no complaints yet.” The welfare team stated that if there are any complaints about the anonymously pidged condoms, “the deans will likely get involved.”
One JCR member told Cherwell that the notes accompanying the pidged condoms were “quite insulting”.
Keble’s welfare reps declined to comment to Cherwell.
James Newton, Keble’s JCR president, told Cherwell, “Their disappearance is a shame. We buy the condoms so that everyone in college has easy access to free contraception and to see them gone is a bit depressing. Buying condoms takes up a hefty part of the Welfare team’s budget, meaning that we as a JCR are out of pocket for no real good reason.”
He continued, “If whoever it was wanted condoms and had asked we would have given them plenty – even if they wanted 30, 40, or 50, I’m sure that would’ve been fine. But whoever needs hundreds of condoms is either having an absolutely great time or (more likely) doesn’t know how to use them properly.”
Newton stated that, because nobody had complained about the notes alongside the pidged condoms, “we can’t act upon any of them and since we brought it up with the JCR they have stopped.”
One Keble fresher told Cherwell, “I don’t quite know how anyone can possibly dream of getting through 200 condoms. It’s clearly either somebody vastly overcompensating for a lack of success, or just a practical joke that’s stealing from our JCR budget.“
They added, “Some members of the JCR seem to think that there are multiple culprits due to the assortment of sizes that have been pinched. If it is just a joke, we’d quite like our condoms back.”
Another Keble student commented, “Having free condoms is great, but it’s vital that they’re easy to get hold of. College contraceptive provision should be readily available at any time of day or night, so as to deter students from risking unprotected sex.”
