Lincolnshire Police to receive £190,000 from Home Office to combat knife crime

Lincolnshire Police has secured the funding from the Home Office Homicide Prevention Fund, of which some will be used to provide specialist training to officers and staff, teaching them more about tracking and deterring serious violent crime.

The force will now be teaming up with the University of Lincoln over the next 15 months to use focus groups and in-depth interviews to understand people’s views, fears, and experiences with knife crime, as well as engaging with vulnerable communities in the county to attempt to identify and target the people and places at the highest risk of serious violence.

A pilot of this programme will then commence at three secondary schools in Lincolnshire, before the findings are examined by experts.

All of this work will form part of Lincolnshire Police’s Think Sharp initiative, a prevention project which aims to reduce knife crime, weapon-based offences, and homicides.

Detective Superintendent Suzanne Davies, serious violence reduction lead at Lincolnshire Police, said: “I am really pleased to be able to work with the University and young people so that together we can reduce knife crime and homicides in Lincolnshire.

“This additional funding means that we can work in a different way; we have all seen the devastating impact these offences have on families and I would much rather prevent knife crimes and deaths than investigate them.”

The year’s work will culminate in the roll out of the Think Sharp scheme in December 2023.

Dr Anthony Ellis from the University of Lincoln said: "The University is really pleased to be working with Lincolnshire Police on this important new project aimed at reducing serious violence across the county."