Students selling sex to fund studies

The prospect of crippling debts coupled with more relaxed social attitudes have encouraged dozens of undergraduates to take up escorting. Some are even selling sex from within their student halls.

The situation in Edinburgh was today compared to that of a third world country by the independent Lothians MSP Margo MacDonald. Student debt has soared in Scotland in recent years despite the Scottish Government resisting the introduction of tuition fees.

Scottish students graduating last year owed an average of almost 6000 to the Student Loan Company, but research by the National Union of Students (NUS) Scotland shows that more than half were forced to top that up with commercial loans of up to 12,000.

Kelly Temple, NUS Scotland's Women's Officer, said: "Of the women students I have spoken to who have gone into the sex industry to finance their degrees, many are worried about it damaging their future careers and are embarrassed to talk openly about it. As one woman told me, 'I went into education to not have to make choices like these'. Poverty is a key factor.

"We need to ensure that women who work in the sex industry are not demonised or vilified, as this is a problem which has more to do with social inequality."

Student sex workers who spoke to the Evening News said the practice was widespread and growing.

One 20-year-old escort, who is studying at Edinburgh University, said: "A city like Edinburgh is very expensive, especially if you're an English or Welsh student (who have to pay tuition fees]. Rents are high, nightlife costs over the average and degrees themselves are expensive.

"It's a relatively easy, time-efficient way to make money. It's only going to get worse when student fees are hiked up thousands a year."

One senior Edinburgh University employee said student escorts were now much more common.

She said: "I certainly know students who work in the industry. I'm aware of a number of girls who make money through selling sex. Some are quite open about it."

Ruth Morgan Thomas, a board member of the charity Scotpep, which works with Edinburgh prostitutes, said: "The time-saving element is very attractive to students. It's much more time-efficient than working in a bar or waitressing."

MSP Margo MacDonald, who has long campaigned for prostitutes' rights, said: "It can be hardly considered a social advance if the only way students can keep out of debt is to sell sex. I thought this happened in third world countries, not Scotland."

For Anna*, having a one-night stand is very to different to the way her fellow students experience them.

A casual encounter after one too many slammers down the union might be relatively normal for students looking for adventure, but for Anna it is a means of buying an education. Instead of pouring cups of coffee or pulling pints, Anna has a night job offering sex for sale.

Since starting her arts degree at Edinburgh University a year ago, Anna, who lives in student halls, has juggled her studies with upmarket escorting.

The 20-year-old, an attractive and petite blonde, says: "Most people find me attractive. When I first saw an ad for escorting it looked like a pretty legitimate business. I met the owners and they seemed very professional.

"They explained they hire the 'right sort' of girls to wine and dine businessmen. I was totally broke, so I thought 'Why not?'" Under the impression she was free to end the nights with a simple peck on the cheek, she took her first job.

"I was a bit naive when I signed up, although I did have my suspicions. For me, it was a bit of a sliding scale. I started off doing one thing but after a few dates I was having sex. I felt surprisingly OK about it.

"I've never been the conservative type, I'm a bit outgoing and I've had a few one-night stands. If I'm totally honest, I didn't feel sleeping with these guys was that different. It wasn't every night, they were well-off and well groomed."

After starting during the first year of her degree at an English university, she planned to give up after switching to Edinburgh. Soaring debts dictated otherwise.

"It was a real struggle," she says. "I envied Scottish students that had their tuition fees paid. I always felt like I was smashing open the piggy bank whenever I wanted to go on a night out. I had about 6000 worth of debt.

"I'll admit I do like buying designer clothes and make-up - looking good was fundamental when I worked for an agency - but I couldn't afford luxuries in this city. Now I don't have any debts.

"There is a network for escorts up here and I got really lucky in that I met someone who'd been in the trade for a few years. She told me about the make-up of the area and how to build up a list of regular clients."

Anna visits hotels or clients' homes, although she says she knows a couple of girls through escorting network who operate from their university bedrooms.

"There's more paranoia as a student. You're wary that another student will spot you out and about with two or three different men in a week and will start to gossip. I also have a bit of an irrational fear that a client might get too involved with me and could post something on my Facebook, or something like that."I have told only one non-escorting mate about what I do and they're supportive."

Working two or three nights a week, she makes anything up to 800 in a night, allowing her to fund her studies and shop at Jenners and on Multrees Walk.

"More importantly, I have plenty of time to study," she says. "If I was working in a cafe or restaurant I'd have to put in a lot more hours to make anywhere near the kind of money I make. I don't need the amount of cash I now have, but the time and the little luxuries make the university experience a lot better for me.

"I don't have a moral issue with selling sex, I don't have a boyfriend, so I don't feel like there's anything stopping me.

"I'm terrified of anyone in authority finding out what I do. I don't want to be kicked out of uni and I'm sad to say there is a stigma on the ground, even if you do work in the more 'glamorous' side of things."

Fellow student Melanie*, a pretty 21-year-old brunette studying at Napier University, tells a similar story.

"There are no jobs. Getting a part-time position in a cafe or a restaurant is even harder than it used to be. Before I tried escorting I handed out literally dozens of CVs to bars and didn't even get a call back."

The arts student, who shares a flat with a girl friend, recalls: "I was at a party which was quite glam. I do hang out at events which I guess could be classed as quite upmarket. There was one guy who was pretty good looking and clearly well-off. I wasn't that bothered but he sort of hinted that he'd pay me for my 'company'.

"I didn't have a job, I didn't have much money, and to be honest I found the whole thing a bit of a turn-on. He stuck to his word and gave me 300.

"When I woke up the next day I had an 'Oh my God, what did I do?' moment, but it was like getting over a hangover. The feelings of shame pretty much disappeared the day after. The guy treated me absolutely fine. I've met a few people since then and I now have a small amount of regulars. I am picky about who I see.

"My flatmate knows what I do and she's OK with it. I actually give her a bit of money because she is essentially my safety net when I'm working. She might as well take it because, the way the law looks at things, she's essentially committing a crime just being in the house."

'I didn't feel guilty'

PROSTITUTION only exists because men are willing to pay for the services.

Here one of them, David*, 35, a waiter, explains why he has been regularly using escorts, or high-class prostitutes, for the past two years.

"People tend to stereotype guys who use escorts as freaks or geeks that can't get sex unless they pay. My experience couldn't be further away from that idea.

"I first decided to give escorts a try two years ago. I hadn't dated anyone in a while and after talking to escorts in chatrooms I got curious. A lot of girls were advertising their services. They had field reports, which are basically reviews, and I was a single guy. I thought 'Why not give it a go?'

"One girl in particular grabbed my eye. She seemed like an independent businesswoman rather than an escort, and she looked much happier than a parlour girl or a street worker.

"I didn't have sex the first time. She put on a show and did a striptease, then gave me a massage. I found it refreshing. The first time I was naturally apprehensive, but I didn't feel guilty afterwards. I felt like she was happy doing what she was doing.

"Next time I went to an escort I had the full service and I've probably seen five or six different girls now. I go for an hour and during the time they seem like your lover and you can have a good chat. I'd give them the money, usually around 100, then we'd act out a fantasy.

"I wasn't that confident when it came to women before, and seeing escorts helped me. I didn't have many girlfriends before and would never have approached a woman in a club, but escorts seem to be able to see the best in everyone. They're good with people and make you feel at ease.

"I met my girlfriend at a networking event for escorts and clients in Edinburgh. We got on well and decided to go on a date like any normal date. Just because she was an escort and I saw escorts didn't make it any less romantic. She's still an escort now and I don't really have an issue with what she does. I think that, if you love someone, it doesn't matter what they do.

"I've told about five of my male friends what I get up to, but I don't think I'd tell female mates. I don't think they'd understand. I'd be very uncomfortable with my mum or sister knowing because there's such a stigma attached to it."

* Names changed to protect identity

POLICE 'WON'T TURN A BLIND EYE'

POLICE chiefs today promised action would be taken against prostitutes found soliciting on the streets of the Capital.

Chief Inspector Denise Mulvaney, who is in charge of policing for north Edinburgh, said officers "never turn a blind eye" to sex workers seeking kerb-crawling clients.

She said: "We take a pragmatic approach in terms of dealing with street sex workers. Officers employ a system of warnings and cautions, which end with them being charged.

"As an alternative to the criminal justice system, we can put the sex workers into a scheme run by Sacro to try to resolve drug issues, housing and employment problems. If they are not willing to engage with Sacro then the criminal justice option will be pursued."