Knife crime an ongoing concern after the Clapham Common stabbing

There is growing concern about knife crime in London after five people were arrested after a man was stabbed in south London on Sunday 7 July.

An air ambulance was sent to the scene along with police, who found a 35-year-old man with stab wounds in the Clapham Common area.

And according to recent data, London and other metropolitan areas in England and Wales are seeing a worrying rise in knife crime.

The latest statistics show that knife crime remains heavily concentrated in urban areas, with the Metropolitan Police Service and West Midlands Police reporting significant proportions of total crime.

Knife crime continues to affect metropolitan areas, with the Metropolitan Police Service accounting for 29% of all crime.

This focus underlines the ongoing challenge these areas face in tackling knife violence.

Comparing data from December 2022 to December 2023, the Metropolitan Police saw a steep 20% increase to 14,577 offences.

However, it is worth noting that despite this significant increase, levels for the Metropolitan Police were still down on the pre-pandemic year ending March 2020, which saw 14,680 offences.

Lambeth and Croydon have consistently reported high incidents of knife crime over the years.

Lambeth in particular had the highest peak in 2015 and remained the top borough in 2016.

Boroughs such as Hammersmith & Fulham, Kensington & Chelsea, Kingston Upon Thames and Richmond Upon Thames have shown significant reductions in knife crime, indicating successful intervention measures.

The problem extends beyond the use of knives in violent crime to the possession of these dangerous weapons.

Police recorded offenses for “possessing a bladed or pointed article” were slightly higher in the year to December 2023, with 27,672 offences, a small increase on the 27,463 in December 2022.

In particular, the number of possession offenses in the year to December 2023 is 19% higher than in the year to March 2020 (23,264 offences) and 92% higher than in March 2017.

The increase in knife crime and property crime requires a multi-pronged approach to address the root causes and mitigate the impact.

Community involvement, youth programs and preventive measures are essential to reduce the appeal and accessibility of knives. In addition, continued support for law enforcement to conduct targeted operations remains essential.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has announced that London’s Violence Reduction Unit (VRU) will invest £1.4m in local community groups who specialize in early intervention to tackle knife crime.

The VRU, which was set up by the Mayor, will provide funding for around 40 community projects that provide interventions and support and diversionary activities for almost 25,000 young Londoners in high crime areas.

The new investment comes as London’s VRU secured £7m of funding from the Home Office for a range of programs and initiatives to tackle all forms of violence in the capital.