Hundreds of students at the University of Manchester have been angered by the University’s latest measures to stop the spread of the Coronavirus.

Metal fences were put up around halls of residence on the Fallowfield campus on Thursday morning without giving warning to the students.

Hours later, during a protest on Thursday evening that gathered hundreds of students, the barriers were torn down and distorted, one of them was left with a sheet that has the words “paid, blamed, caged”.

“They promised us a safe campus, they made us come here, yet they continue to blame the students for the spread of the virus.

“We are paying more than they paid last year yet we have no access to subsidised bars, we have no access to communal spaces, and now they are locking us all from our green spaces,” said a student protesting with a loudspeaker.

Apart from blocking off most entrance points around the halls, the university also disabled the cards that allow students to enter buildings other than their accommodation.

The university said the measures were intended to prevent non-residents from accessing the site and students would still be able to leave their flats subject to ID checks.

But after the protest the University apologised for the concern and distress caused to the students and said the fences would be removed on Friday morning.

The anger has been exacerbated by a host of flooded flats caused by a cracked radiator pipe. As a result, some students have been forced into sleeping on the floor in flats that are not overwhelmed by water.

Students have expressed their anger on social media with captions like “I want my money back”.