MORE than £435,000 of funding has been awarded to the Staffordshire Commissioner to support efforts to prevent knife crime and keep communities safe.
The money was awarded by the Home Office to enable Staffordshire Police and its partners to build on existing initiatives.
Staffordshire Commissioner Ben Adams said the funding was about prevention as much as enforcement:
"Although knife crime accounts for less than 1% of all crime in Staffordshire, it has devastating impacts on individuals, communities and families.
"This funding will help us strengthen work already taking place between Staffordshire Police, local authorities, and our wider partners to keep our communities safe.
"This is not just about enforcement. We know that the most effective way to prevent crime is for organisations to work together, share information, understand local concerns, and address the root causes of violence.
"The funding will enable us to take a targeted, evidence-based approach, focusing resources where data and local insight show they can make the greatest difference."
As part of national efforts to halve knife crime by 2034, activity will be delivered in specific areas across Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent.
The funding will support the development of local problem-solving plans informed by police data, partner intelligence and community feedback.
Chief Inspector Scott Gidman, from Staffordshire Police, said:
"We fully recognise that delivering lasting change in local communities cannot be achieved by police alone, and this is why initiatives like this are so important for local people and businesses.
"By adopting a similar multi-agency approach, we were able to work collectively with our partners to reduce overall crime by 4% in targeted areas across Staffordshire last year, with notable reductions in serious violence and knife crime.
"We’ll be using a similar data-led approach with this new funding, allowing us to focus proactive efforts on targeted policing and partnership action in the areas that will benefit from it the most."
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