Students in Manchester hold protest and boycott clubs over spikings

Hundreds of people have marched through the centre of Manchester as part of a boycott of nightclubs, demanding spikings be taken seriously.

Dozens of local Instagram pages have been created to spread the news of the campaign, amassing thousands of followers.

It comes after hundreds of cases including drink spiking and injections were reported in recent months.

The boycott and protest have come after young women in Fallowfield and the city centre have reported having their drinks spiked.

Meanwhile, police are investigating after three women fell ill at Ark nightclub on Deansgate Locks in September.

Some clubs decided to shut their doors in support of the boycott, both The Venue and 42nd Street nightclubs stayed closed.

A post on 42nd Street’s social media accounts read: "After careful consideration, we have decided we are going to close next Wednesday 27th October.

"This is not a decision we have taken lightly, particularly as we have a lot of staff who rely on their income from 42s. As such, we will still be paying our staff for the night, despite being closed.

"Everyone has the right to feel safe on a night out, it is important our staff and customers know that we take their safety very seriously.

"This is not a knee jerk reaction, we have consistently put our customers and staff at the forefront of our identity.

"We support the “girlsnightinmanc” initiative to improve the safety of people on a night out."

Women from various other university cities including Nottingham, Bristol, Leeds and Bournemouth will stay in on Wednesday night as part of the Girls Night In campaign, focused on "spreading awareness and challenging clubs" to keep people safe.