Gang violence ‘is top concern for third of London parents’

A half-term firebreak is not being planned, the Government said (Nick Ansell/PA)
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Anna Davis @_annadavis9 September 2021

Parents in London are more worried about youth violence and gangs than anywhere else in the country, new research suggests.

The survey data was released to mark the launch of a commission to stop the “conveyor belt” of vulnerable children falling into the hands of gangs and criminals. It was set up by former children’s commissioner Anne Longfield.

The poll shows that half of Londoners with children think the Government should prioritise addressing youth violence and crime — the highest rate in the country. Some 67 per cent also think there has been an increase in youth violence in the last 10 years, which is more than any other area.

Ms Longfield’s year-long independent Commission On Young Lives aims to prevent children becoming involved in county lines, gangs, knife crime and serious violence. She believes the pandemic has provided new opportunities for the criminal exploitation of children who are vulnerable as a result of greater exposure to domestic violence, parental mental health problems and addiction issues during lockdown.

She said: “What comes out loud and clear in London is youth violence and gangs is top of the concerns for more than one third of parents. That is a huge amount of parents who are carrying the weight of that concern across London.”

She said as children’s commissioner she was able to identify the sheer scale and nature of dangers to children and to raise the alarm, adding: “It’s a huge problem but it is unfinished business. There is a need for a more robust response. I couldn’t do it in my previous role to the level and depth needed.”

The commission is hosted and supported by the Oasis Charitable Trust, which also runs an academy chain.

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