This week in Cambridge, Trinity got flack for taking down students’ LGBT+ rainbow flags, colleges were found to be paying illegal wages to student bartenders, and one gardener had an (almost) explosive discovery.

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Rainbow flags under fire
Not content with being one of two colleges not to fly the rainbow flag for LGBT+ History Month, Trinity has also gone to the lengths of telling students to remove tiny flags from their windows. One porter allegedly told the LGBT+ officer that the College “don’t want to be putting things in people’s faces”. Trinity policy prohibits “posters or notices” from display in students’ windows, but enforcing this as well as not flying their own flag isn’t a great look.

Students barred from legal wages
This week Varsity revealed that Emmanuel College pays student staff just £3.63 per hour to pull pints at its bar. The minimum wage for 18 to 20-year-olds is £5.60 per hour. But, of course, they shouldn’t complain – workers do also get £5 bar credit per shift, a truly generous gift from a College with a £32.6 million surplus last year.

Robinson’s unwanted attention
Last weekend, controversy erupted as bar staff at Robinson College shut down a BME open mic night, allegedly because other students complained about the performances. Then, on Thursday, the College was the site of a banner drop protest against its high rent charges which was shut down swiftly by the porters (and the wind).

Uni grilled for its role in strikes
Cambridge came under fire for its role in the national pensions row which has provoked staff strikes at 61 universities. Analysis of leaked documents by an LSE professor, Michael Otsuka, accused Oxford and Cambridge for favouring their own finances ahead of the security of their staff’s pension arrangements. Meanwhile, new legal advice means that some supervisions may be cancelled due to upcoming strikes, which start on Thursday.

Disabled students’ struggles
A Varsity investigation has lifted the lid on the Disability Resource Centre, and how it is struggling to cope with the rise in disabled student numbers, with an average annual rise of 10-15%, according to its chief. The number of students disclosing mental health conditions to the University also tripled from 2011-16.

A hidden homeless reality
This week we published an article featuring the plight of Cambridge’s homeless women who have to navigate life on the streets often with especially poor hygiene, security, and with fewer shelters they feel safe to visit. “You really have to toughen up. Make yourself known to the people in outreach straight away… Also, get yourself a weapon.”

Kettle’s Yard reopens
After a renovation lasting over two years and costing £11 million, Cambridge’s flagship modern art gallery, Kettle’s Yard, has reopened with an exhibition Actions. The image of the world can be different. You can read the Varsity review of the exhibition, which features work by Khadija Saye, a victim of the Grenfell fire, here.

Explosive horticulture
Wolfson College was on high alert on Tuesday after a gardener discovered what looked like an unexploded grenade in the president’s garden. Students were evacuated from the library and nearby accommodation while bomb disposal experts were called. Thankfully, it turned out just to be a practice grenade.

Modern romance
Are you a Disney fan? Do you like cheesy crisps? Was your RAG Blind Date unsuccessful? One singleton may have a St John’s May Ball ticket for you, according to a new post on Crushbridge which has garnered serious attention. Competition is surely stiff, but fill out the form and the anonymous lady may find you take her fancy.

Happy birthday Toope you
This Wednesday, the 14th, was not only a day of romantic excitement for many couples, but also a day of celebration for Cambridge’s new vice-chancellor, Stephen Toope, who turned 60 years old. Read Varsity’s interview with him here, and dance away your Week 5 blues by watching him singing the synthpop Eurythmics classic Sweet Dreams below.

Collecting past and present
Switchboard, Varsity's radio show, is live at 12:30 on Cam FM, speaking to two students who have been trying to lead rubbish-free lives, and uncover some treasures in the Cambridge University Herbarium, and we take a behind-the-scenes tour of the University Library. Don't miss out! (But if you do, you can catch up online.)

Got a story that could be covered here or reported elsewhere by Varsity? Let us know:news@varsity.co.uk