Parents who have sent their teenagers off to university have expressed concern after a growing number of sexual fetish-related societies have cropped up across British campuses.
Groups promoting alternative sex practices have been documented at a host of universities, including Anglia Ruskin, York, Keele, Portsmouth, Sheffield, Nottingham and Warwick.
Anglia Ruskin's "Kinkster Society" has described itself as “a vibrant and inclusive community dedicated to exploring and celebrating the diverse world of fetish and kink”.
The rise in the number of fetish groups on British campuses has been linked to the growing number of young people participating in practices such as bondage and sadomasochism, also known as BDSM.
The rise in fetish groups at British university has been linked to the growing number of young people engaging in BDSM
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A survey conducted by the American Kinsey Institute and dating app Feeld found that 56 per cent of Gen Z respondents reported having BDSM fantasies, compared to just 31 per cent of those from the Gen X group.
Although the purpose of the kink groups differs between societies, the University of York's Fetish Society has driven a more hands-on approach.
The society has put on "Japanese rope bondage” classes for its members, some of whom are 18 years old.
Ahead of the event, the group told its members that there was “no need to come with someone as you can find one at the event, or self-tie".
A mother who recently sent her daughter off to Anglia Ruskin voiced concerns over its Kinkster Group
|ANGLIA RUSKIN STUDENT UNION
A mother who recently sent her daughter off to Anglia Ruskin voiced concerns over its Kinkster Group, telling The Times: "I would expect universities to have sexual health stalls for those who wanted information and I am grateful for this, but promoting fetish and potentially dangerous and abusive sexual practices crosses the line.
"You don’t expect to send your child away at 18 [for them to be] faced with this in freshers’ week.
“Students at that age are still vulnerable when they are away from home for the first time."
The fearful parent added that she was "shocked at how badly this university has failed in their duty of care in allowing the promotion of these sexual practices".
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Family Education Trust communications and public relations officer Lucy Marsh also warned that student unions were promoting "dangerous sexual fetishes as normal".
She told The Times: “Most first-year students are just 18 and leaving home for the first time, so they are vulnerable to grooming by older adults, especially when they are trying to fit into a new community away from their families.
“Teenagers shouldn’t be encouraged to take part in risky sexual activities which seek to degrade and humiliate participants.
"Students may be officially adults, but they are still very young and do not have a fully developed perception of risk as they are still adolescents.
“Parents do not send their child to university expecting them to be approached by people trying to normalise BDSM and ‘kink clubs’.”
Anglia Ruskin's student union said that societies which engage in "unsafe, discriminatory or non-consensual" are strictly prohibited, adding that they have "received no complaints" about the Kinkster Society.
The ex-president of the University of Nottingham's Kink Society Erin Cranson said there were "misconceptions" surrounding the fetish-related groups.
She told Impact student newspaper: "The most common misconception I'd say is that people think it's a sex society.
"But, in actual fact, it was a gathering of around 80 to 90 members to meet and discuss their shared interest in a 'safe' setting."
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