Reductions in violence and crimes with knives are hailed

AUTHORITIES PRAISED FOR A PROACTIVE APPROACH

A CRACKDOWN on serious violence and knife crime has started to show results, according to new figures.

The Home Office confirmed that serious violence across the Leicestershire Police area, which includes Rutland, is reducing as the force and the police and crime commissioner (PCC) were hailed for a proactive approach.

The most recent figures show serious violence offences have fallen by 12.1 per cent, while violence against the person offences have seen a 6.1 per cent decrease.

The Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland PCC works collaboratively with the police’s Violence and Complex Crime Unit’s Prevention Team and the Violence Reduction Network (VRN) to prevent and reduce serious violence and knife crime.

Together, the partners use data, evidence and targeted work to change behaviour, funding activity in schools and other youth settings and working with vulnerable groups to improve safety and reduce knife-carrying.

Significant funding has been invested in projects that target young people at so-called “reachable” moments in their lives, in places where they are more likely to accept support – including A&E departments, police custody and on the streets in the places where they gather.

The PCC, Rupert Matthews, pictured, has also supported key changes within the force to deliver a more robust response to violent crime.

Through Wider Offender Management, the force identifies those at greatest risk of harm from knife-carrying while officers are informed about habitual knife carriers so they can disrupt their activities and engage and divert them from offending further.

To support prevention, the agencies deliver Knife Crime Awareness – an education package delivered by Leicestershire Police covering what knife crime is, why people carry knives and where to access more information or to report.

The force routinely reaches 10,000 students a year through the scheme.

Mr Matthews said: “Serious violence and knife crime tears families and communities apart and we know these issues aren’t going to disappear overnight.

“This is why we have put our minds and resources together to deal with the complex and multi-layered issues that drive some young people down the wrong path where they can be harmed or harm others.

“Every life lost is a tragedy. By using evidence and data, we are targeting our work towards the people and places that need it most – and what we are doing is really working.

“There is much more to do, but Leicestershire is already held as a beacon of good practice nationally and we will continue to learn lessons from what we do well and what we could do better to build on this platform to ensure many more young people get the urgent help they need.”

In other work, the partners fund awareness campaigns including Lives Not Knives – a universal campaign that runs all year round to discourage knife carrying among young people – and Live Safe, an online resource for young people and their parents/carers on issues relating to young people’s safety.