Rise in stabbing wounds
MORE YOUNG PEOPLE AND CHILDREN TREATED FOR ‘SHARP OBJECT’ INJURIES
THE number of children and young people being treated for stab wounds has increased across West London
Data obtained by the Gazette has revealed that people aged from 10 to 19 are the most affected by knife crime.
Across the boroughs in West London, youngsters were the age group most frequently admitted to hospital following an assault with a sharp object in 2016/17.
Out of 25 people from Hillingdon who were admitted to hospital with stab wounds in 2016/17, 10 of them were aged between 10 and 19, representing 40% of all victims in the borough.
The number is the highest on record in the past five years.
While six people aged 40 to 49 were treated over the same period in Hillingdon, young people were the most likely to be admitted to hospital following an assault with a sharp object.
This pattern is continued across west London, with 10 young people admitted to hospitals in Harrow over the same period, making up 36% of the 28 FIREARMS – fake or otherwise – are a daily problem in Hayes, according to the Hillingdon Police Twitter account.
Hillingdon Borough Police tweeted a picture of what looks like a revolver (pictured right) on a car seat on Friday October 13.
The tweet said: “This is what police officers are dealing with on a daily basis in Hayes.
“Another one off the street in an attempt to keep people safe.”
The gun in the photograph does not appear to be a genuine firearm, but rather a plastic replica.
However, as police from Barnhill also tweeted: “The trouble is an officer won’t know until it’s been safely disarmed and inspected.
“Looks real enough out on the streets.”
Crime figures for 2016/17 showed increases in knife and gun crime in all west London boroughs, despite an amnesty in February 2017. admissions for stabbings in the borough.
In both Ealing and Hammersmith & Fulham, 30% of admissions for stabbings involved people aged 10 to 19.
Out of 60 admissions for stabbings in Ealing, 18 were people aged between 10 and 19, while nine young people were among the 30 admitted across Hammersmith & Fulham.
In both boroughs, the number of admissions for this age group was at its highest level for at least five years.
In Westminster, seven out of 24 admissions last year (29%) involved people aged between 10 and 19, although the number of admissions was down from 12 in 2015/16.
In Harrow and Hounslow, there were between one and five admissions of under 10s for stab wounds. The exact number was not disclosed in order to prevent identifying victims.
The NHS figures show that young victims of serious knife crime are making up the biggest age group, with the number of admissions up on previous years.
Across England, there were 4,351 admissions to hospital as a result of assaults with a sharp object.
A total of 83 firearms were handed in during the amnesty, including an AK47 and a shotgun.