Shock interactive map lays bare our knife crime crisis & reveals most dangerous hotspots – is YOUR town deadly zone?

AS kids are stabbed astatine schoolhouse and machete brawls instrumentality spot successful the streets, our shocking interactive representation lays bare the existent grade of Britain's weapon transgression crisis, and reveals conscionable wherever successful the state is safe.

With blades wreaking havoc connected our towns, countless lives person been mislaid lately - including Sheffield pupil Harvey Willgoose, 15, who was fatally stabbed astatine school.

While London is typically regarded arsenic the 'knife transgression capital', with incidents involving a weapon soaring by 58 percent successful conscionable 3 years, according to caller figures, the occupation is rife crossed the full of Britain.

It seems hardly a time passes without an incidental involving a blade, but immoderate of the astir precocious illustration cases successful caller times see the execution of three guiltless schoolgirls successful Southport, Merseyside astatine the hands of acold slayer Axel Rudakubana, 18.

And conscionable this week successful Ammanford, Wales, a 14-year-old schoolgirl who wanted to beryllium a "celebrity" was found blameworthy of trying to execution 2 teachers and a pupil.

Shock stats laid bare

As showcased successful our caller interactive representation below, the astir caller information released by the Office for National Statistics covering the twelvemonth up to September 2024 has revealed the areas astir affected by weapon transgression wrong England and Wales.

Unsurprisingly, London comes retired arsenic fig 1 successful the database of information hotspots, with 16,521 superior offences involving a leaf recorded by the Metropolitan police.

This is compared to 13,957, 11,517 and 10,489 successful the 3 preceding years.

However it's a overmuch much wide contented than galore whitethorn believe, and 1 impacting the full country.

The 2nd worst deed country for weapon transgression is the West Midlands, with the latest figures showing 4,930 offences recorded.

Just past period "adored" 12-year-old Leo Ross was stabbed to death connected his mode location from schoolhouse successful a Birmingham park, and a 14-year-old was arrested.

In 3rd spot is Greater Manchester (4,930), followed by West Yorkshire (2,318).

In 5th is South Yorkshire (1,629), followed by Essex (1,532), Merseyside (1,241), Sussex (1,186), Avon and Somerset (1,683) and Lancashire (1,189).

'Most unsafe spot to live' revealed

But portion the superior came retired with the worst weapon transgression stats, London has the lowest recorded enactment offences successful the UK.

Meanwhile, Cleveland successful North East England continues to person the highest level of unit and enactment transgression recorded per 1,000 colonisation - connected apical of being the most unsafe place to unrecorded wide successful the country.

The astir caller figures amusement it recorded a ratio of 126.5 crimes per 1,000 radical wide successful the past year.

In 2nd spot was West Yorkshire (115.9) and 3rd South Yorkshire (107.9).

The Met, successful examination recorded 105.7 per 1,000 population.

Cleveland covers areas including Middlesbrough, Hartlepool, and Stockton-on-Tees.

A spokesperson for Cleveland Police told The Sun successful December: “Cleveland Police faces important challenges with precocious levels of transgression and request for policing services resembling that experienced by overmuch larger metropolitan forces. 

“The request connected the unit is further challenged owed to respective of our areas experiencing precocious levels of societal deprivation creating immoderate of the astir analyzable policing challenges faced by immoderate constabulary force."

'He was a bully son'

While it's a nation-wide issue, the latest information has of people laid bare the accelerated emergence successful the capital's out-of-control weapon problem.

The surge has been truthful large that the step-mum of Jodie Chesney, 17 - stabbed to decease successful a London parkland successful 2019 - told The Sun Labour has betrayed weapon transgression victims by giving Mayor Sadiq Khan a knighthood.

Knife deaths successful caller months see 14-year-old Daniel Anjorin who was killed connected his mode to schoolhouse successful a brutal sword onslaught successful Hainault successful May past year.

Similarly, Kelyan Bokassa, besides 14, was fatally stabbed connected a autobus successful Woolwich past period connected his archetypal time backmost to class.

His devastated parent Mary, 50, fought backmost tears arsenic she recalled the time she ever dreaded — but knew would come, and conscionable hours earlier his death, helium gave his mum a hug she volition ne'er forget. 

She said: “He played with the canine and past helium caught the autobus to Woolwich to spot his societal worker. That was the past clip I saw my son.

"He was a bully lad — helium was polite, caring and precise kind."

'I garbage to judge this is the norm'

Between September 2020 and September 2021 instances of superior weapon transgression recorded successful the superior was conscionable 10,489 - though this was astatine the tallness of the lockdown.

The erstwhile 12-month period, anterior to the pandemic, had seen figures astatine 13,599 and erstwhile to that - successful betwixt September 2019 and September 2020 - astatine 15,048.

But past year's surge means figures are present supra pre-Covid pandemic numbers for the archetypal clip - and astatine their highest for astatine slightest 15 years, erstwhile ONS records chopped off.

This is contempt Khan launching The London Knife Crime Strategy successful June 2017 to combat the emergence - with figures having risen consistently for 3 years up to that point.

Quoted successful the strategy, the politician said: "In London, dozens of families person been bereaved; galore much person seen their loved ones severely injured.

"Over the past decade, we person seen weapon transgression peak, trough and highest again successful London. I garbage to judge that this is the norm."

'No kid is calved a killer'

Referring to the existent issue, erstwhile EastEnders prima Brooke Kinsella, MBE, who acceptable up the Ben Kinsella Trust to assistance conflict knife crime after her member was stabbed to death, said:  “The Labour Government has pledged to chopped weapon transgression by 50 per cent implicit the adjacent 10 years.

"I desperately anticipation they succeed.”

Pastor Lorraine Jones-Burell mislaid her lad Dwayne Simpson, 20, to weapon transgression successful Brixton successful 2014.

The campaigner, who was fixed an MBE, antecedently commented: “Unless thing is done, much lives volition beryllium lost.

"I americium calling connected the Government to state a authorities of exigency to tackle weapon crime.

"They request to respond to this with a higher level of value and humanity... No kid is calved a killer."

Regarding weapon crime, a Met spokesperson told The Sun: “Tackling unit remains a precedence for the Met, and we cognize that reducing weapon transgression relies connected combined enactment with communities and different agencies crossed London.

“We are wholly committed to taking weapons disconnected London’s streets, redeeming lives and bringing those liable for weapon transgression to justice.

"If you person accusation astir those who transportation knives to intimidate radical successful your community, delight stock what you cognize with constabulary oregon anonymously with Crimestoppers."