People can also be searched without reasonable grounds if a senior officer believes there's a risk of serious violence in a particular area. From , the number of stops fell sharply across England and Wales, especially in London, primarily because of concerns that the measures unfairly targeted young black men, wasted police resources and were ineffective at catching criminals.
Theresa May, as home secretary, led efforts to drive down the number of stops, but there's anecdotal evidence from police that young people are now more inclined to carry knives because of growing confidence they won't be stopped.
The statistical basis for that is far from clear - but Scotland Yard, with the mayor of London's support, has begun increasing the use of stop and search again. Since , police numbers have decreased by almost 20, Prime Minister Theresa May has said there is no "direct correlation" between the rise in knife crime and a fall in police numbers, but the issue is contested.
In , a Home Affairs Committee report said police forces were "struggling to cope" amid falling staff numbers and a leaked Home Office document said they had "likely contributed" to a rise in serious violent crime. Sentences for all kinds of violent crime have been getting tougher, particularly for knife crime. The Ministry of Justice tracks the penalties imposed for those caught carrying knives and other offensive weapons in England and Wales.
Public anxiety about knife crime, legislative changes and firmer guidance for judges and magistrates have led to the stiffer sentences, although offenders under 18 are still more likely to be cautioned than locked up. Additional research by Ben Butcher. This piece was originally published in January , but is updated regularly to include the latest statistics. On a knife edge: Rising violence in London. Image source, AFP. One in four victims were men aged For the Crime in England and Wales publication, figures for homicides involving a knife or sharp instrument can be found in the Crime in England and Wales: Other related tables table F3.
For the year ending September , there were homicides involving a knife or sharp instrument recorded by the police. This force reviewed their recording of knife or sharp instrument offences in December This revealed that they were under-counting these offences. Following this review, there has been a sharp increase in the number of knife or sharp instrument offences recorded by GMP from January to September compared with previous quarters.
Previous data have not been revised and the data are therefore not comparable. Due to this, data from GMP have been excluded from the table. For the year ending December , data will be available in the next publication which will be released on 23 April. A meta-analysis could not be conducted due to the heterogeneity and types of studies included within the review, therefore a statistical estimate of effect for each risk factor could not be produced.
A narrative synthesis was conducted, which may have resulted in unreliability, lack of transparency, and potential reviewer bias as conclusions are based on subjective interpretation [ 40 ].
However, due to the substantial heterogeneity in populations, outcome, and methodology, a narrative synthesis was the most appropriate methodology for this review. Although we included grey literature, publication bias is likely to be present, particularly as many studies included within the review conclude positive results. Studies suggesting no association with risk factors and youth violence might by underrepresented within this review.
With regards to the studies included within the review, qualitative interviews investigating gang membership used a chain referral method to recruit participants. This would have inherent bias as only a specific group of individuals are likely to be included within the analysis, potentially only identifying the same risk factors.
Self-reported questionnaires were also utilised, which may have resulted in erroneous recall. However, due to the sensitive nature of the topic, these methods may be most appropriate to ensure individuals provide honest and accurate information. The identification of risk factors such as ACEs and poor mental health is in line with previous knowledge as a relationship exists between trauma and involvement within weapon-related crime. For example, multiple studies have highlighted the effect of childhood trauma on adolescent and adult health, psychological and physical [ 36 ].
Areas of high crime, violent incidents, low socioeconomic status and the relationship with youth violence have also previously been highlighted within previous worldwide research [ 3 ].
However, contrasting previous literature, no significant association was found between gender and youth violence. Reports have suggested females play secondary roles within violent crime and gang activity [ 10 ], which may suggest the characteristics of gangs are evolving and research needs updating. Although many risk factors mentioned within this review have been previously identified, they have not yet been collectively analysed.
Therefore, compared to previous literature, this review highlights the interconnected nature of risk factors for weapon-related crime and the necessity for a holistic preventative approach. As no clear association was found between gender, ethnicity and weapon-related crime, policy makers should avoid targeting individuals based on stereotypes in these areas.
This may also reduce discrimination within policy efforts, ensuring a holistic approach to mitigate youth violence. Individuals with ACEs and mental health issues should be targeted within prevention strategies as results suggest these groups are at high-risk for future involvement within violent crime. Thus far studies investigating this outcome have been very heterogeneous and mixed in quality, further research is necessary in order to aid the design of interventions and to aid policymakers.
To prevent individuals in areas of deprivation using violence as a method to improve social status, it is essential for policy makers to target areas of deprivation when tackling gang crime. Strategies should be aimed at improving employment skills, self-esteem, and also community involvement to increase social cohesion at a young age given the influence of ACEs, acting to prevent future formation of gangs as well as improve the quality of life for the adolescent population.
Youth violence is an increasing public health issue within the UK and London in particular. This study collected information regarding risk factors from a wide range of sources, uniquely examining them within a UK setting.
The review demonstrates the importance of stability for an adolescent during times of vulnerability with each risk factor eroding this sense of security. Although it is important to recognise not all adolescents with these risk factors will commit crimes or engage in gangs or violent behaviour, the identified risk factors can act as warning signs that captures young people before they become victims of violence.
This provides essential evidence on which individuals are at high-risk, directing public health interventions to target those most vulnerable to effectively reduce youth violence. The papers analysed within the review are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request. National Center for Health Statistics. Adolescent Health.
Office for National Statistics. The nature of violent crime in England and Wales: year ending March World Health Organisation. Youth Violence. Crime in England and Wales: year ending March NHS England. Whose Justice? Google Scholar. Home Office. Densley J. Ganging up on gangs: Why the gang intervention industry needs an intervention. Brit J Forensic Pract.
Available from. Article Google Scholar. BBC News. Alexander C. Serious Violence Strategy. Nowell L, et al. Thematic Analysis: Striving to meet the Trustworthiness Criteria. Int J Qual Methods. The Ecological Framework. Gough D. Weight of evidence: a framework for the appraisal of the quality and relevance of evidence. Res Papers in Educ. Campbell M, et al. Synthesis without meta-analysis SWiM in systematic reviews: reporting guideline. Smith I. Being tough on the causes of crime: tackling family breakdown to prevent youth crime; Wood R.
Race Class. Clement M. Teenagers under the knife: A decivilising process. J Youth Studies. Smith DJ, Ecob R. An investigation into causal links between victimization and offending in adolescents. Brit J Sociol. Hayden C. Child Family Social Work. Gender inequality in the risk of violence: material deprivation is linked to higher risk for adolescent girls. Emergency medicine journal : EMJ. Densley JA, Stevens A.
Briggs D. Ethnic and Racial Studies. Psychological and behavioural characteristics that distinguish street gang members in custody. Legal and Criminological Psychology. Denying humanness to victims: How gang members justify violent behavior. Falshaw L, Browne K. Adverse childhood experiences and violent acts of young people in secure accommodation.
Journal of Mental Health. Special Issue: The impact of violence on children at home, community, and national levels. Barlas J. Weapons carrying in British teenagers: The role of personality, delinquency, sensational interests, and mating effort. Journal of Forensic Psychiatry and Psychology. Alleyne E, Wood JL. Gang involvement: psychological and behavioral characteristics of gang members, peripheral youth, and nongang youth. Aggressive behavior. Hansen K. Education and the Crime-age Profile.
Masculine discrepancy stress, substance use, assault and injury in a survey of US men. Injury Prevention. Greenfield EA. Child abuse as a life-course social determinant of adult health. Lightowlers CL. Critical Social Policy. Childhood trauma and chronic illness in adulthood: mental health and socioeconomic status as explanatory factors and buffers. Front Psychol. Child and adolescent females who present with sexually abusive behaviours: A year UK prevalence study.
Special Issue: Female sexual offenders. Public Health England. The mental health needs of gang- affiliated young people. McDaniel DD. Risk and protective factors associated with gang affiliation among high-risk youth: a public health approach. Campbell M. Lack of transparency in reporting narrative synthesis of quantitative data: a methodological assessment of systematic reviews.
J Clin Epidemiol. Download references. You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar. SH conducted initial research during planning stages of the review and developed the research question and inclusion criteria. SH was the primary reviewer for paper inclusion and quality assessment of papers. SH conducted the thematic analysis and narrative synthesis, interpreted results, and was the primary writer for the systematic review.
TB provided help during planning of review and designing systematic review, including identifying search terms and using WHO ecological model for analysis. TB was involved in interpretation of data and helped categorise study findings into categories of the ecological model. Also contributed to multiple drafts of systematic review. EA provided WOE method for paper analysis offered second opinion when uncertain. EA also contributed to multiple drafts of the review, providing extensive feedback.
AK was the second independent reviewer of papers for review inclusion, playing a key role in acquisition of studies. RP: oversaw design of the review, outlying search strategy and was involved in analysis through suggestion of thematic analysis; offered interpretations of studies and how findings should be categorised according to ecological model and contributed to drafting and editing of review throughout process. All authors have read, edited, and approved the submitted version of the systematic review.
Correspondence to Sara Haylock. Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. Copy and insert the string into the search bar. Table provides list of all studies included, providing information on location, study design, sample size, and participants. A summary of key risk factors identified are also shown. Further quantitative results can be found within the papers referenced.
Table of SWiM checklist used as guidance to report methods of the narrative synthesis conducted. Includes where information can be found in manuscript by page number.
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