National Knife Crime Awareness Week runs until 25 May and is a chance to raise awareness, educate and take action to stop knife crime.
Knife crime assemblies are taking place in schools in Slough this week, and year-round, through the Stay True to You initiative, led by Storry Group.
Parents can find great resources on the Stay True to You website, where there are videos designed to help them, carers and extended family members to understand some of the issues and to give practical advice on how best to engage and have a good conversation, even on tricky subjects.
The videos cover: personal safety, knife crime, exploitation, online harm and cyber-bullying, signs and symptoms that something is wrong, how to have challenging conversations and signposting to services that can help.
This week, the Ben Kinsella Trust will also run an online training session for council youth workers and practitioners, alongside our youth justice team.
The sessions will discuss how to tackle serious youth violence and knife crime, and the important supportive role that communities have in preventing young people being criminally exploited. It will enable workers to learn more about the influence of social media, the signs and stages of exploitation, and how everyone can play a part to prevent young people being affected by knife crime.
Councillor Ishrat Shah, outgoing lead member with a responsibility for public protection, recently attended a knife crime assembly at Langley Heritage Primary.
She said: “Slough stands against knife crime and the damage it does to communities. We had the amazing Knife Angel sculpture visit us in 2023 and artwork created from it by the Art Classes Group is still being used to educate young people throughout Slough.
“Having attended an assembly for young pupils, I can see the value in them and how important it is to have these conversations at an early stage.
"All of us in the community, including parents, have a responsibility to show young people the right path and stop them getting involved in knife crime.
“I urge all parents to visit the Stay True to You website and look at the resources aimed at them. It could be invaluable.
“Tackling knife crime is not something which can be solved alone, we all need to play our part. Talking about it and raising awareness to prevent others from getting involved in knife crime will always be a positive.”
Mike The Hyype has been performing at Slough schools all year with his song Lingo, which has an anti-knife crime message.
Nationally, the Ben Kinsella Trust has found that knife crime has increased by 87% in the last 10 years and in the 12 months leading up to March 2024, 57 young people under 25 were murdered with a knife or sharp object. 17 of them were under 16.
A report produced by the Ben Kinsella Trust, titled Keeping Young People Safe, surveyed nearly 10,000 young people and highlighted the powerful impact of early intervention and education delivered through the Trust’s Choices & Consequences workshops:
- the belief that carrying a knife offers protection dropped from 24% to just 5%
- 73% of those who had considered carrying a knife pledged never to do so
- 89% of all attendees pledged never to carry a knife.
Rhiannon Dineen, Youth Justice Case Practitioner in Slough Youth Justice Service and founder of Communities Against Violence (CAV), has also this week attended a parliamentary event to discuss the issues around knife crime and the work she is involved in.
Slough Youth Justice Service has been involved in co-ordinating several community action days locally, with the aim to raise awareness around knife crime and how we all need to come together.
Rhiannon’s commitment to empowering communities, supporting vulnerable individuals, and fostering a safer, more resilient society is key to the support she provides to young people and families in Slough Youth Justice Service.
On her wider community work through CAV, she said: “We at CAV believe that real change begins at the grassroots level, and by working hand in hand with local partners, families, and young people, we aim to address the root causes of violence and exploitation.
“Through targeted educational programmes, proactive outreach, and meaningful collaboration, we work tirelessly to prevent violence before it starts.
“Our mission is to inspire hope, build resilience, and open up new pathways for young people ensuring they are equipped to lead safe, fulfilling lives, free from harm and fear.”
The awareness week is run by the Ben Kinsella Trust. Find lots of advice and resources on the Ben Kinsella Trust website.
Photo: Lee Barefoot, community engagement manager for Storyy Group, Councillor Ishrat Shah and Mike the Hyype.