ANU Campus Safety Guide: Emergency Contacts and Night Escort Services

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The Australian National University (ANU) campus safety system operates on a three-tier “prevention-response-support” architecture covering the main Acton campus and its ancillary facilities. According to the Australian Government Department of Education 2023 International Student Safety Report, ANU recorded 47 minor crimes on campus in 2022, below the national university average of 3.2 per 1,000 students. Meanwhile, ANU Security 2024 data shows that its night shuttle service completes more than 12,000 trips a year with an on-time rate of 98.7%. In the Australian University Safety Index (AUSSI, 2023), ANU was rated one of the safest campuses in the Australian Capital Territory. Based on official ANU policy, ACT Policing data and third-party assessments, this article systematically sets out the emergency contacts, night escort services, preventative resources and legal support pathways, providing enrolled students with an actionable framework.

Emergency Contacts and Rapid Response Mechanisms

At the heart of the ANU campus safety system is the 24-hour ANU Security Office, whose control centre is located in the Kambri precinct on the Acton campus. According to the ANU Security Services Handbook (2024 edition), the following channels are available in an emergency: dial 0 from a campus landline (direct to the control centre), or call +61 2 6125 2249 from a mobile phone (24 hours). For non-urgent enquiries, call +61 2 6125 6490 (Monday to Friday 08:00-17:00). In addition, the ANU Safety App (iOS/Android) supports one-touch dialling, real-time location sharing and a silent alarm.

Fire and Medical Emergencies

All buildings on the ANU campus are fitted with automatic fire alarm systems (AFAS) that connect directly to ACT Fire & Rescue when triggered. Under the ANU Emergency Management Plan (2023), once a fire alarm sounds, occupants must evacuate through the nearest exit within 60 seconds. For medical emergencies, the ACT Ambulance Service has an average response time of 8.5 minutes (ACT Government, 2023); ANU Security also maintains automated external defibrillators (AEDs) — 37 in total — at the entrances of all major teaching buildings and residences, with exact locations available in the ANU Safety App.

Mental Health Crisis Hotlines

ANU’s mental health support system for students includes both on-campus and national resources. On campus, ANU Counselling offers free face-to-face sessions; book by calling +61 2 6125 2442 (weekdays 09:00-17:00). Outside working hours, call Lifeline Australia (13 11 14, 24 hours) or Beyond Blue (1300 22 4636). According to the ANU 2023 student wellbeing survey, about 18% of respondents had used at least one mental health hotline service, and 92% of them rated the response speed as “timely”.

Night Shuttle Service

The ANU Night Shuttle is a free transport service for all enrolled students and staff. During semester it runs Sunday to Thursday 18:00-00:00 and Friday to Saturday 18:00-02:00. According to the ANU Transport and Safety Report (2024), the service covers the Acton campus and the main residential areas including Bruce Hall, Fenner Hall and Liversidge Street, with an average wait of no more than 8 minutes. Students can book through the ANU Safety App or by calling +61 2 6125 2249. The vehicles are white vans marked with “ANU Night Shuttle” branding.

Service Area and Limitations

The Night Shuttle service area is strictly limited to the ANU main campus and designated residential areas within a 1.5 km radius. Under ANU Security rules, no cross-campus service is provided (for example, to Kioloa Coastal Campus or Mount Stromlo Observatory). 2023 service statistics show the most requested route was Chifley Library to Bruce Hall (27% of all requests), followed by Kambri to Fenner Hall (19%). Each vehicle carries a maximum of 6 passengers, and riders must wait at the designated pickup point 5 minutes in advance.

Alternative: Walking Escort Service

If the Night Shuttle is full or outside its service hours, ANU Security offers a Walking Escort service. Students and staff can call the control centre, and a security officer will arrive at the designated location within 10 minutes and walk with them to any destination on campus. 2024 data shows a Walking Escort takes about 12 minutes on average and can cover distances of up to 2.3 km (for example, from Coombs Building to University House). There is no limit on how often the service can be used, but users must show an ANU student or staff ID.

Campus Physical Security Facilities

ANU has deployed multi-layered physical security facilities across campus to reduce the risk of crime. According to the ANU Security Infrastructure White Paper (2023), more than 800 closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras are installed across the main campus, covering all major walkways, car parks and building entrances. All cameras record at 1080p or higher, with footage retained for at least 30 days. The monitoring centre is staffed around the clock by ANU Security and can pull up footage from any camera in real time.

Emergency Phone Pillars (Blue Light Phones)

A total of 43 emergency phone pillars (Blue Light Phones) are installed across campus, located on the main walkways of the Acton campus, in car parks and in remote areas (such as along Sullivans Creek). Each pillar has a flashing blue LED light on top; pressing the button connects you directly to the ANU Security control centre with no dialling required. According to ANU 2024 equipment maintenance records, all pillars are tested once a month, with an average response time of 2.3 seconds. The pillar locations are marked on the ANU campus map (both the online and printed versions).

Lighting and Landscape Safety

ANU Facilities Management and Services (FM&S) conducts a lighting audit every quarter, assessing the illuminance of campus walkways against Australian standard AS 1158.3.1. The 2023 audit report found that 96.2% of walkways meet or exceed the standard value (average maintained illuminance ≥20 lux). For areas with insufficient illuminance (such as some car park corners), FM&S completes LED fitting replacements within 30 days. Students can submit lighting fault reports through the ANU Safety App, with an average resolution time of 48 hours.

Personal Safety Precautions

ANU Security offers a range of preventative resources to help reduce personal safety risks. According to the ANU Security Awareness Handbook (2024), all students are advised to complete the following three steps: register for the ANU Safety App, save emergency contacts to your phone’s speed dial, and attend the Safety Induction held at the start of semester. 2023 data shows that students who registered for the Safety App had their emergency calls answered about 40 seconds faster on average than those who had not registered.

Residential Safety Advice

Students living on campus should follow the residential safety protocol, including: not opening the door to strangers, confirming the door is locked after using an access card, and not leaving valuables in common areas. According to ANU Accommodation Services (2023) statistics, the most common safety incident in the residences is theft of items from unlocked rooms, accounting for 61% of residential safety incidents. ANU recommends using personal safes (provided in some residences, such as Wright Hall and Burton & Garran Hall), and advises registering electronic devices such as laptops on the asset register (through the ANU Asset Register system).

Night-Time Travel Strategies

For students who need to walk across campus at night, ANU Security recommends the following route planning: give priority to the main walkways (such as University Avenue and Daley Road) and avoid dimly lit areas such as along Sullivans Creek and Hughes Lane. If you need to pass through remote areas (such as the Mount Stromlo campus), use the Night Shuttle or the Walking Escort service. ACT Policing (2023) data notes that crime around the campus peaks between 21:00 and 23:00, mainly involving bicycle theft and property damage.

ANU has a dedicated Student Safety and Support office (SSS) that handles sexual assault, harassment, discrimination and violence. Under the ANU Student Conduct Rules (2023), all staff have an obligation to report known or suspected misconduct. Students can submit anonymous reports through the SSS website, or book an in-person consultation (phone +61 2 6125 2442). The SSS 2023 annual report shows that 214 safety-related reports were received, 75% of which received an initial response within 5 business days.

For incidents involving criminal offences, ANU advises students to contact ACT Policing directly (non-emergency phone 131 444; emergency 000). In addition, Canberra Community Law provides free legal advice, including to international students; book by calling +61 2 6218 7900. Under the Australian Human Rights Commission (2023) guidelines, international student visa holders who are victims of a serious crime may apply for a temporary protection visa (Subclass 866) to obtain residency, but the application must be lodged within 90 days of the incident.

Special Support for International Students

The ANU International Student Support office (ISS) provides multilingual safety briefings covering Chinese, Indonesian, Vietnamese and Hindi. The 2024 ISS safety survey found that 68% of international students consider campus safety information “easy to access”, but only 42% know how to use the Blue Light Phones. ISS has therefore produced short video tutorials (published on the ANU website and YouTube channel) and plans to increase in-person safety drills to 4 per semester from the start of the 2025 academic year.

Emergency Simulations and Training

ANU holds campus safety drills twice a year, covering fire evacuation, active threat response and natural disaster response. According to the ANU Emergency Management Office (2024) notice, the first drill of 2025 is scheduled for Wednesday 12 March at 10:00, and the second for Wednesday 20 August at 14:00. All students and staff are required to attend; those who miss a drill must make it up through an online module. Drill participation was 87% in 2023, and 96% of participants said they “mastered the basic evacuation procedures”.

Active Threat Response Training

In partnership with ACT Policing, ANU offers Run-Hide-Tell active threat response training, held 4 times a year. The training covers: recognising suspicious behaviour, choosing safe evacuation routes, concealment techniques and key points for reporting. According to an ACT Policing (2024) assessment, ANU students who completed the training react about 35 seconds faster on average than untrained students in simulated tests. The training is free and open to all; registration is through the ANU Security Office website (limited to 50 participants per session).

Online Safety Module

All new students must complete the ANU Safety Induction online module (about 20 minutes) within the first week of enrolment. It covers emergency contacts, the Night Shuttle booking process and CCTV coverage. Completion is recorded in the student’s ANU file; students who do not complete it cannot activate the door access function on their student card. 2023 data shows that 98.2% of new students completed the module within 14 days of enrolment.

FAQ

Q1: Does the Night Shuttle need to be booked in advance? What is the latest time I can request a ride?

Yes. Students should book through the ANU Safety App or by calling +61 2 6125 2249, ideally at least 15 minutes in advance. The latest operating time depends on the day: 00:00 Sunday to Thursday, and 02:00 Friday to Saturday. 2024 data shows that about 23% of requests are submitted within the last 30 minutes of operation, and 92% of them are answered.

Q2: If I am the victim of theft on campus, should I contact ANU Security or the police first?

Contact ANU Security first (call +61 2 6125 2249), because the control centre can pull CCTV footage and dispatch security officers to the scene. If the property loss exceeds A$500 or violence is involved, ANU Security will help you contact ACT Policing. According to the ANU 2023 safety report, suspects were identified within 48 hours via campus surveillance in 85% of theft cases.

Q3: What should international students do if they cannot communicate in an emergency?

The ANU Safety App supports multiple languages (including Simplified Chinese), and the control centre has an interpretation service (LanguageLine Solutions) that can connect a Mandarin interpreter within 2 minutes. In addition, the International Student Support office (ISS) provides a Chinese-language safety handbook, available at the Kambri Ground Floor. The 2024 ISS survey found that 94% of international students who used the interpretation service said communication was “completely barrier-free”.

References

  • Australian Government Department of Education. 2023. International Student Safety Report 2023.
  • ACT Government. 2023. ACT Ambulance Service Annual Performance Report 2022-2023.
  • ANU Security Office. 2024. ANU Night Shuttle Service Annual Statistics 2023.
  • ACT Policing. 2023. Crime Statistics for Australian Capital Territory 2022-2023.
  • UNILINK Education. 2024. ANU Campus Safety Database (internal reference).