Knife Crime- What is Being Done to Protect Young People?

by Alex Porter

Poster from the West Midlands Police

Knife crime, why has it increased in recent times? Recent figures have revealed that the number of fatal stabbings in England and Wales last year reached 285,  and was the highest number since 1946 when records began. So far this year, it is thought that ten teenagers have been killed in knife attacks and half of them have occurred in London. More recently two 17 year olds were killed over one weekend - a boy in Cheshire and a girl in East London. An individual linked with one of the crimes has been charged with possession of a bladed article and another has been arrested.

One way police and local charities have tried to reduce the number of deaths from knife crimes, is by introducing pupils in schools in areas that have been affected by the crimes, instruction on how to reduce bleeding and how to deliver first aid to a knife crime victim. This is  because they are now more likely to find themselves experiencing some sort of violence in these areas. Pupils are also being taught what they should do if someone has been stabbed and how to communicate correctly and clearly to the emergency services. The charity that is mainly behind the scheme is ‘Street Doctors’ which uses role play and visual props to explain the science behind blood loss. The scheme is operating in 16 cities around the UK, including London. In addition to this, head teachers in London are inviting police to lead assemblies on knife crime to teach children to be more aware about the dangers of it. The official charity of Crystal Palace football club, ‘The Palace for Life Foundation’ is also trying to help others become more aware of the crime and to try and comfort those who may have been affected by it. Experts with a youth, sport and social care background are mentoring those who have been affected by knife crime and offering them support.

The Government is split over how to cover the issue of knife crime as senior cabinet ministers have argued recently about the best way to tackle attacks. Senior ministers have  also accused the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Philip Hammond of being unable to see the huge importance of the matter, as he has stated that there will be no more money available for police funding. The Home Secretary, Sajid Javid has ordered more funding for policing, and this also challenged The Prime Minister´s belief as she initially said that there wasn’t a link between the increase in knife crime and the drop in police numbers. Due to the concern raised by Sajid Javid, Philip Hammond has now agreed to meet and discuss police funding with him. The Metropolitan Police Commissioner, Cressida Dick has also spoken out about the situation last week and has said that there is some sort of link between a lack of policing and knife crime and has stated that increased funding is necessary.

A London School In Blackheath, has introduced ‘no-notice searches’ occurring once a fortnight with metal detecting ‘wands’ to check that no knives have been let into the grounds of the school. The headteacher, of the school has said that if a pupil has been found with weapons on them, they will be permanently excluded, as the school cannot take any risks. The charity ‘Street doctors’ has also announced that there have been 14 known knife cases where children have used their preventative training and seven of these cases involved young people helping themselves or others after a stabbing has happened which proved that the training was beginning to be effective.

In Stoke-on-Trent there are a lot of gang problems and knife crime rose by 23% in Staffordshire last year. In December, some residents in Stoke were believed to be too scared to leave their homes because of 7 stabbings that occurred within two weeks. A Birmingham school is also currently campaigning to raise awareness of knife crime with help from ‘Street Doctors’, and has posted a video on FaceBook where pupils from the school read out the names of stabbing victims and use the tag #SwapaKnifeforaLife to try and get messages across to others.

As local communities and schools strive to save and protect people from knife crime, the Government appears to remain ‘stuck in a loop’ which means that they cannot find effective solutions to solve knife crime and the wider issues surrounding it nationally, at this current time.