Knife crime in West Yorkshire has risen by 60 percent from September 2018 with studies suggesting it is linked to council cuts.

The APPG, all-party parliamentary group on Knife Crime studied budgets for youth services from 2014 to 2018 and found that the four areas that were hit by youth spending cuts were also the areas that saw some of the biggest knife crime rises.
MP, Sarah jones, who chairs the APPG which is made up of MPs and peers said ‘’we cannot hope to turn around the knife crime epidemic if we don’t invest in young people.’’

Kirklees council have held many charitable events and awareness talks for young people to get involved and make a change to this issue. Youth services have pushed for more funding but have constantly been declined.

Knife crime has been target at youths from the ages as little as 7 years old. The children’s charity Barnardo’s who are in support of this cause and the research behind I say the figures are ‘alarming but sadly unsurprising’. They have recently called for the central government to ‘’work with local authorities to ensure they have enough funding to run vital services.’’

The university of Huddersfield has many safety measures and services in place for those who require the support or need help with dealing with issues like knife crime and gang related issues.
One of the ways that the University provides support is through ‘The big white wall’ which is a virtual page where students can post about any ideas, issues, or thoughts they may have for the university to take on board and take action on.