A knife crime police squad shouldn’t have to exist…but here we are

The kind of crime you think will never happen to you or someone you know.

I was invited by the Assistant Chief Constable of Nottinghamshire Police to see the work their dedicated knife crime unit is doing every day.

I joined them for a normal Friday afternoon policing the city centre and suburbs.

Leaving the police station, I was advised it would be recommended to wear a stab vest for the operation we were heading out on, and quite frankly, I was more than happy to oblige if it meant going home safely.

The issue I found the most challenging is the ages of the people involved in all of the stops and searches made by the team that day.

They were all of a similar age to myself. Some younger. Some older. I’m 22, and can honestly say I’ve never considered carrying a knife or weapon of any kind on my person.

Yet, after going out with the officers, I couldn’t help but think perhaps I’d been naive on nights out.

Bearing in mind we were policing the city at 3pm on a Friday.

If this is what’s happening in broad daylight, what’s happening after dark when people are drinking, arguing, and letting their guard down?

It made me question an awful lot; the casual way I plan my nights out, the assumptions I make about where’s safe and where isn’t, and the belief I’ve held that knife crime is something that happens elsewhere.

The truth is, it’s happening here. It’s happening on the same streets I walk, my family walk and among people not much older or younger than me.

What stuck with me wasn’t just the arrests or the weapons found. It was the sheer normality of it for the people involved.

Some of those stopped barely blinked at the sight of officers in stab vests - or if they did react, it was to run.

A 15-year-old was flagged as a “known knife carrier” with 42 pieces of intelligence to his name.

That is an absolute tragedy in my eyes.

How have we got to a position where a teenager who hasn’t even sat his GCSEs yet is known to carry machetes?

Another man, standing with teenagers, was caught with a lock knife tucked casually into his back pocket.

I didn’t even know what a lock knife was. It wasn’t shocking to any of these people stopped. It was routine; as simple as you or me picking up our phone, keys and wallet.

That’s what scares me most, not just the danger itself, but the way it's become embedded, expected, almost accepted.

It’s something some individuals carry, just in case someone else is.

This is, of course, the most ridiculous reason to take a weapon out with you. You’re just upping the ante to a point where one of you will have to make a move - and take it from someone who sits in Crown Courts week in week out - it never ends well for anyone.

Nottinghamshire Police’s Knife Crime Team are clearly working hard, and their results speak for themselves.

They’ve made a real dent in the numbers, and I have huge respect for the bravery of these officers to do what they do.

But the fact that such a unit even needs to exist is the most damning indictment of where we are right now, and something has to change.

Behind every blade seized is someone who decided it was worth carrying.

Someone who felt the need to bring a weapon out into the world, into our parks, our streets, our clubs.

We have a serious issue with knife crime in this country, and from what I’ve seen, Nottinghamshire is setting an example for other forces.

We need more of these teams tackling this plague on our streets across the UK, or in reality, we will just have to accept knives becoming a normal part of our lives.

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George Icke is a Reporter for LBC. LBC Opinion provides a platform for diverse opinions on current affairs and matters of public interest.

The views expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official LBC position.

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