Waltham Forest Council is prioritising a mission-based approach to tackle knife crime, with a focus on young black men and boys who are disproportionately affected. Analysis of local data and insight showed that rates of knife injury are consistently higher among young people in the borough than in comparable boroughs, with black boys and young men significantly more likely to be victims, according to the Knife Crime Mission report.
The approach aims to create a shared understanding of the complexities of knife crime in the borough and implement a targeted response to keep young people safe.
While Waltham Forest has lower rates of serious violence than comparable boroughs, rates of knife injury among young people are higher, with young black men and boys being significantly more likely to be victims. The council's mission-based approach will focus on two core pillars:
- Working as a system to keep young people safe
- Mobilising a shared community response
Through engagement events and workshops, the council has worked with partners, services, communities and young people to identify two system areas to prioritise for early action:
- Targeted support for young people most at risk of violence as they transition into adulthood. The council will
combine data and intel across services to identify this group of at-risk children and young adults and work across partners to leverage and target shared resources at those who need it most.
- Responding to violence in locations where risk is greatest, by strengthening how the council works with partners and communities. Serious violence among young people tends to be concentrated at certain times and locations, such as around schools and town centres. The strategy involves building on an existing multi-agency problem-solving model to target two locations where the risk of violence is greatest, mobilizing existing resources including youth practitioners and VCS partners to reach into neighborhoods and build resilience, intervening early before violence occurs and responding swiftly and proportionately when it does.
The council will also launch a visible safety campaign co-designed with residents and partners, empowering communities to have an active and shared role in keeping people safe across the borough – reinforcing that building safer neighbourhoods is everyone's responsibility. The visible safety campaign will be co-designed with residents and partners, empowering communities to have an active and shared role in keeping people safe across our borough
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