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A knife crime DVD that was funded by County Durham Foundation has won it's creators a prize in national competition. The work has earned the members of Ferryhill L.A.D.D.E.R Centre youth group a £1,000 joint first prize in a national crime-fighting competition. Members will be attending the National Crimebeat Awards ceremony in London to receive their award.
Kelly Holmes who is youth development worker with the centre said, "At the time the project was started, knife crime was not in the public eye as much as it is now, following the series of stabbings in London. But what the younsters' research did show was that teenagers in rural areas are just as likely to carry a knife as those in inner-city areas, although maybe not for the same purpose. A lot of youngsters around this area carry knives to go hunting, to skin rabbits. They were'nt aware that it was illegal to carry them around in the street. But they are just as lethal as any knife caried by a gang member."
The grant of £6,100 was used to purchase 2 computers and to bring in
a media company to work with young people so that they could produce a DVD
on the subject of street crime, in particular knife crime. It also enabled
the group to bring in a web design company who worked with centre users and
young people to set up a website for the centre.
The young film-makers organised interviews for the DVD and planned and directed most of the filming. The documentary-style film includes interviews with both the victims and perpetrators of knife crime as well as interviews with a local police inspector. The idea for the project came about when a young person pulled out a knife at the centre to re-enact a scene from a movie. The youth group members were shocked and the police were called to the centre immediately to confiscate the weapon. Kelly adds,"the young person who pulled out the knife had not meant to use it as a threat... but knives are lethal and illegal weapons and we had to inform the police."
The young people at the centre used the incident to create something positive
that will make young people aware of the laws on carrying a knife. A total
of 150 children and young people have benefitted from the project and have
been given the opportunity to raise any issues they have with knife crime
and to discuss the consequences.
Through
the project, the children have gained confidence whilstinterviewing people
from different agencies including the local police. They have also learnt
a variety of new skills including media, filming, editing and web design.
Veronica Birchall club secretary, commented;
“The young people opted in and out of different stages
in both projects and have all made some effort towards them with some providing
just ideas and others committing their spare time to the projects. I
think that as the DVD rolls out and people notice the depth of the feelings
of the young people it will inform people that the youth themselves have fears
about street crime and knife crime in particular.
"Can I thank you for making this project possible - we really appreciate
the opportunity to showcase what we realise is a growing problem and being
able to show the consequences of.”
.
