Leicester College News

Leicester College & Leicestershire Police working to tackle knife crime

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Leicestershire Police is teaming up with one of the biggest colleges in the country to deliver knife education lessons as part of a week of activity.

Hundreds of students at Leicester College, which has three campuses in the city, will learn about the dangers of knife crime as well as the consequences of carrying a knife.

They will hear what support is available to them and how the police, along with other agencies, can help break a cycle of dangerous behaviour.

They will also hear first-hand accounts from a knife victim’s family about the devastation left behind by their loved one’s death.

Sergeant Amanda Boswell is helping to deliver knife crime lessons throughout the week alongside college staff.

She said: “It’s fantastic that Leicester College is on board with this. We want all schools and colleges across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland, to follow this lead.

“Our aim is to educate young people that carrying a knife doesn’t make them any safer, in fact, statistically, it makes it far more likely that they could receive a serious injury themselves.

“It only takes a second to end a life – whether you mean to or not. It isn’t just the victim’s life which is wasted but the perpetrator who faces a lengthy sentence in prison, spoiling the end to any plans they had for their future.

“We want to prevent this from happening and divert young people onto a far more productive path. That’s why weeks like this are vital in helping to get the message across.

“We firmly believe that using a multi-agency approach, working with educators, health officials, peer education schemes, community safety partnerships, together we can tackle knife crime.”

Last month education watchdog, Ofsted, published a report about safeguarding young people from knife crime. It said that “no single agency, including schools, can solve knife crime on its own.”

The report made a number of recommendations, including improved information sharing between schools and other agencies about young people, and the inclusion of safeguarding issues, including knife crime, into the curriculum.

In addition to the talks, officers will also be taking knife arches into various parts of the college which young people can voluntarily choose to go through.

Sergeant Boswell added: “This is very much being used as another tool to engage young people and start a conversation about knife crime in general.”

Verity Hancock is Principal of Leicester College which has nearly 19,000 students in total.

She said:

“It is important to educate all of our students about the impact of knife crime. By working collaboratively with local agencies, we can highlight the seriousness of knife crime and the impact it can have on themselves and others.  At Leicester College, we are committed to helping all of our students, to help keep themselves safe.”

Superintendent Shane O’Neill, the force’s knife crime spokesman, said: “We are already developing a safer school protocol to ensure greater links between our officers and education leaders. There is some evidence which shows exclusion can be a contributing factor to crime levels but if we can help improve standards of behaviour and teach young people the situations that put them at greater risk of offending, we can prevent some from being sucked into knife crime.

“I am delighted that Leicester College is being so proactive. Knife crime isn’t something we can ignore.”

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