Creation of a Safe Space at the University
What it is
A participatory method for turning a recurring need — "students have nowhere to just be, connect and co-create" — into a real, dedicated space on campus. It sets out why the space matters, the principles it should follow, what it should offer, and the practical steps to get there.
The point is not a room handed down from above, but a space students design, use and look after themselves — a visible, everyday expression of belonging.
When to use it
- A group keeps returning to the need for a safe, welcoming physical space.
- You want a concrete, visible outcome people can point to and improve over time.
- You want students to design and own the result, not have it imposed top-down.
How to implement it
From a shared observation to a student-owned space, in four moves.
- Listen
Name the gap
Start from what students actually said is missing, and connect it to the challenges you already work on.
You produce- A clear, shared statement of the need
- Frame
Agree the principles
Define what the space must be: safe by design, accessible, inclusive of all identities, flexible and student-led.
You produce- Guiding principles for the space
- Design
Design what it offers
Decide the co-creation areas, rest areas, and inclusion & safety features the space should have.
You produce- A concrete spec: zones, furniture, signage, features
- Act
Move to action
Find a low-cost room, check it against the principles, take a package proposal to leadership, and secure a small, sustainable budget.
You produce- A staged action plan & a proposal to leadership
A concrete prototype that often grows out of earlier dialogue. It builds on your themes and feeds your action and sustainability plans.
- Building Community — where the need for the space often surfaces
- World Café — to co-design what the space should offer
- Action & Sustainability Plans — to fund it and keep it going
Safe Space Design Canvas
Use this canvas to design a student space that is safe, accessible and inclusive. Print it at A3, or fill it in together.
The need
In students’ own words — what is missing, and why does it matter across your themes?
Safe by design
How will the space stay free from harassment and judgement? What behaviour is expected?
Accessible to everyone
Step-free access, furniture heights, sensory needs (light, noise, signage).
Inclusive of all identities
How will it welcome all genders, sexualities and backgrounds?
Co-creation areas
Movable furniture, a projects wall, facilitation materials.
Rest & informal areas
Quiet seating and a small kitchen corner — comfort beyond the cafeteria.
Safety & info features
Visible signposting to support services; gender-neutral and multilingual signage.
Candidate rooms
Which underused rooms could be repurposed at low cost?
Budget & upkeep
A small, sustainable budget line and a rotating student upkeep system.
Make it last
How the space becomes a lasting legacy, revisited as needs change.
How to facilitate a session
A guide to running a co-design session that turns the need for a safe space into a concrete, staged proposal.
1 Prepare
- Invite students (especially those who named the need) plus a couple of staff who can help take it forward (about 5–15).
- Allow 1.5–2 hours. Bring the canvas, and floor plans or photos of candidate rooms if you have them.
- If you can, visit one or two possible rooms beforehand.
- Agree a facilitator and someone to capture decisions and photograph sketches.
2 Run the session
- 10 minName the need — revisit what students said is missing, and why it matters.
- 20 minPrinciples — agree what the space must be: safe, accessible, inclusive, flexible, student-led.
- 30 minWhat it offers — sketch the zones: co-creation, rest, and safety/info features.
- 20 minWhere & how — look at candidate rooms and check them against the principles.
- 15 minMake it real — a small budget, an upkeep rota, and who takes the proposal forward.
- 10 minClose — agree the package to present to leadership and the next date.
3 Follow up
- Turn the canvas into a one-page proposal with a sketch and a candidate room.
- Present it to leadership alongside your other proposals, as one package.
- Set up the student upkeep rota once a space is agreed.
- Revisit the space periodically and invite feedback.
4 Running it online
- Co-design on a shared whiteboard with a simple room layout you can rearrange.
- Share photos or a video walk-through of candidate rooms for everyone to react to.
- Use quick polls to agree the principles and priorities.
- Prefer privacy-respecting tools; keep the board for the follow-up proposal.
Example of implementation from the Labs4Change project
In our 5th Living Lab, we applied a participatory co-design methodology, building directly on the gap identified during the 2nd session — captured by the student quote, "Apart from the cafeteria, students do not have a space to co-create and feel themselves" — to translate this observation into a concrete spatial proposal. Through open co-creation discussions we established five guiding principles (safe by design, accessible, inclusive, flexible and student-led) and defined specific functional requirements, from movable furniture for World Café sessions to gender-neutral signage and quiet rest areas. The key outcome was a staged action plan: an accessibility audit of underused rooms near the Department of Education, presenting the proposal alongside the existing Action Plan to university leadership as a package, and securing a sustainable budget line through in-kind contributions. This yielded a clear commitment to a rotating student maintenance system and positioned the space as a lasting legacy of the project.
The process is ongoing. The impact will be measured through the students' engagement with the process.
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Resources & references
- Reference CHESS Action Manual — Change Hubs for Ecosystemic Social Solutions (2025) On turning diagnosis into concrete, student-led change.