Nottinghamshire Police are calling for more young people to give up knives in an attempt to understand why they feel the need to carry them.
A partnership between Nottinghamshire Police, Nottingham Trent University (NTU) and the Queen’s Medical Centre A&E department is researching the reasons knives are carried.
Temporary Chief Inspector Mark Stanley of Nottinghamshire Police said: “We want to understand why our young people in the city feel the need to [carry knives], and how can we reassure them that there is no need to do that, but equally how we tackle those young people who do carry knives.”
He said they were hoping to inform those who carry knives that the city is safe, and that they have no need to carry weapons.
“We’d like to highlight that knife crime has not changed, there is no significant increase – it’s a very low number, but the impact of knife crime on the individuals involved is very high.”
– Temporary Chief Inspector Mark Stanley of Nottinghamshire Police
The calls come after the death of Joshua Bradley – a 19-year-old boxer who was stabbed on Thurland Street in February.
Through research at NTU’s criminology department, the partnership have found that there are two types of knife carrier; those who don’t feel safe, and feel the need to protect themselves – and those who feel they need to carry a knife because of peer pressure.
By working with partners across Nottinghamshire, the force hopes to change attitudes towards carrying weapons and to emphasise that the city is a safe place to live, without the need of a knife.
“This is something we as the police service want to deal with, this is something we should always be addressing, and we should always have a greater understanding of the threat posed by the possession of knives.”
To report someone you suspect has a knife in public, contact Police on 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.
