Statistics…damn statistics.
I don’t think the fresh look actually debunks the figures but it does challenge us to think a bit longer and harder about what we can glean from them.
The first thing to point out is based upon the methodology that the researchers are using to gather evidence. If the methodology is the same across the country, Wrexham still seemingly scores badly by the criteria used. Essentially, in comparison with other Universities and within a given radius, there are lots of social problems.
The second thing to point out is that none of this may impact upon the student fraternity if they stay close to campus. Unfortunately, students are not glued to the campus and they may well choose to lodge in the town, the villages or the estates. Hence it might be useful to ask the student body to get a feel for what problems that they have encountered but the experience, it would seem, will vary according to where the students lodge.
regardless, we should not be complacent about this and clearly much more needs to be done