Cleveland Police launch emotional campaign to tackle the issue of young people carrying knives

The campaign – Carrying a Blade Doesn’t Give You an Edge – centres around a smashed mobile phone on the ground, showing unanswered messages and calls from a boy’s mother.

It hopes to pull on the heartstrings of parents and carers whose lives can be filled with worry for young teenagers often involved in violent crime.

The campaign follows on from the original launch of Carrying a Blade Doesn’t Give You an Edge in October 2023 and will continue to raise awareness of the support available to young people aged 11 to 24-years-old who feel scared or pressured into carrying a knife as well as the dangers associated with being in possession of a blade.

From August 2023 to the end of July 2024, 186 young people aged 24 and under, were victims of a crime involving a knife or a bladed weapon in the Cleveland Police area.

At least 258 of those suspected to be involved in crimes involving a knife or a bladed weapon were aged between 14 and 24, accounting for 32 per cent of all identified suspects for crimes involving a knife or a blade.

Whilst 63 young people were caught carrying a blade between August 2023 and July 2024, which is over a third of all charges for carrying a knife or bladed weapon.

Assistant Chief Constable Richard Baker said: “Since the launch of our knife crime campaign last year we have seen a drop in offences when compared to other areas across the country. It is good to know that we are moving in the right direction, however we still have a long way to go, and we will continue to do everything we can to reduce knife related crime much further.

“From August 2023 to the end of July 2024, when compared with the same time period in the previous year, we have seen a 10 per cent decrease in the number of offences involving a knife or bladed weapon. While this is a positive step forward, numbers are still far too high with too many young people getting hurt, so we really need to work together with our partners and the public to further reduce knife related crime.

“We hope the latest phase of our campaign captures the emotion of parents and carers to think about who their children could be associating with, whilst also enforcing the message of the devastating impact knife crime can have on families and loved ones.

“It must not be forgotten that carrying a knife or other bladed weapon is a serious criminal offence and if convicted, can seriously damage a young person’s future.

“We want young people to stop and think about how they would feel if they seriously hurt or even killed someone. It is a myth that carrying a knife or blade provides you with protection – the reality is that it makes you more susceptible to harm.”

More information on what Cleveland Police are doing to tackle knife crime and how you can seek help to move away from carrying a knife, can be found here Carrying a blade doesn't give you an edge | Cleveland Police