From 19–25 May 2025, The Ben Kinsella Trust and Axon joined forces for the third annual Knife Crime Awareness Week. Knife Crime Awareness Week shines a light on efforts being made by public safety, civilians and community groups to end knife crime. The goal of the week is to demonstrate that knife violence can be prevented through technology, policy and community engagement.

2025 programming

A key piece of this year’s Knife Crime Awareness Week programming was a 90-person reception hosted by The Ben Kinsella Trust and Axon in the House of Commons. The event was sponsored by Margaret Mullane MP, and among the attendees were two government ministers — Policing Minister Diana Johnson and Safeguarding Minister Jess Phillips, and 12 MPs.

At the reception, Leanne Lucas, a survivor of the 2024 Southport Stabbings, launched “Let’s Be Blunt,” a campaign “to end knife crime through practical, everyday actions that can make a real difference in our homes and communities.” The reception also featured remarks from Patrick Green, CEO of The Ben Kinsella Trust, and Fabio Ferreira Lourenco, a youth ambassador.

Throughout the week, The Ben Kinsella Trust also delivered online sessions to youth workers, parents and carers—equipping them with tools to have life-saving conversations about knife carrying.

Building momentum across the country

Across the UK, police forces and community organizations hosted events focused on awareness and prevention:

• Brent Council, London: Parenting workshops hosted by Brent Council and CVS Brent paired firsthand stories with insights from Met officers to deliver realistic, actionable prevention strategies to families.

• Merseyside Police: Everton in the Community and Merseyside Police showcased an immersive knife crime VR project geared towards young people.

• West Yorkshire: The regional Violence Reduction Partnership rolled out its Virtual Decisions VR programme across schools.

• Lancashire: Local apprentices transformed 127 surrendered knives into a memorial bench now installed outside Blackburn Cathedral—a lasting reminder of the lives saved through amnesty bins.

• Bristol: The “Empty Shirts, Lost Childhoods” exhibition featured more than 100 decorated school shirts in the Lord Mayor’s Chapel, offering young people a platform to express their experiences with loss and hope.

• Primary schools nationwide: OpenView Education released free PSHE lesson packs to help teachers lead age-appropriate conversations about personal safety with younger students.

Keep the movement going

Knife Crime Awareness Week is all about bringing people and technology together to protect more lives in more places. To get involved:

• Take the Let’s Be Blunt pledge.

• Register for Knife Crime Awareness Training through the The Ben Kinsella Trust.

• Discover how Axon technology solutions like Axon VR and TASER 10 support safer, more transparent policing.

Change can happen, and it starts with all of us.