‘I have seen the impact of violence on families’

A NUMBER of speakers said ‘arresting our way out of the problem’ was not the long-term solution since that is often about reacting after violence.

But the £4.02m of so-called ‘surge’ money awarded by the Home Office to West Yorkshire Police last year to tackle violent crime has still come as a welcome boost out on the ground.

Detective Superintendent Chris Gibson, one of the officers leading the work, told the audience: “I’ve seen firsthand the impact of serious violence on families, young people.”

He said each of West Yorkshire’s five districts faced different challenges when it comes to violence, with Leeds, Bradford and Kirklees seeing the effects of an increase in activity by organised crime groups.

The additional funding has allowed the force to run Programme

Precision and Operation Jemlock, which focus on organised crime and knife crime respectively.

Jemlock has resulted in 2,238 arrests being made, 144 weapons being seized and 4,156 pieces of intelligence being submitted since April 2019.

According to the force’s own figures, it has meant 196 fewer crimes involving knives and 474 fewer robberies.

Superintendent Damon Solley, another of the lead officers, told delegates: “Each and every one of those represents one less victim.”

The Home Secretary recently confirmed further ‘surge’ funding for 18 police forces, including West Yorkshire, to continue the enforcement work.

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