The Met recorded 16,789 knife and sharp instrument offences in 2024 – up 16% from 14,482 the year before reports Clara Margotin, Data Reporter
(Credit – Met Police)
Police in London recorded significantly more knife crime offences last year, figures show.
A knife crime prevention charity welcomed the efforts made so far by the Labour government to tackle this type of offence across England and Wales, but warned “there is much more to do”.
The government has a “mission” to halve knife crime over a decade.
Home Office figures show the Met Police recorded 16,789 knife and sharp instrument offences in 2024 – up 16% from 14,482 the year before.
It means there was a rate of 188 such offences per 100,000 people in the area last year, which is above the national average of 90 per 100,000.
Knife crime offences have increased across England and Wales in recent years, but remain just below levels seen before the Covid-19 pandemic.
Police forces in the two countries logged 54,587 knife crime offences in 2024 – up 2% from 53,413 in 2023, but just 1% below the 55,170 recorded pre-pandemic in the year to March 2020.
However, possession of an article with a blade or point offences have increased significantly over the same period.
There were 28,150 such offences recorded in 2024 – 21% higher than the pre-pandemic figure of 23,264.
It was also nearly double the 14,450 recorded in 2016-17.
Patrick Green, chief executive of The Ben Kinsella Trust, said these statistics show the “considerable challenge” the Government faces in its effort to tackle knife crime.
He welcomed the “decisive steps” taken so far to make knives less easily accessible, especially to youths, but warned there remains “much more to do”.
Reacting to the increasing number of possession offences, he said: “We must intensify our efforts to prevent individuals from carrying knives in the first place through prevention and early intervention programmes.
“To this end, the government must reinvest in youth services, which have endured £1.2 billion in cuts since 2010.
“Without these vital positive activities and role models, we inadvertently create an environment where knife crime can flourish.”
Sir Andy Marsh, chief executive of the College of Policing, said: “Knife crime can destroy lives, fracture communities, and disproportionately blight the lives of the young and disadvantaged.”
He said tackling this type of crime should be “one of policing’s top priorities”, and added the College of Policing created a practical toolkit aimed at helping officers address local crime efficiently, including knife crime.
“Our toolkit will help officers, supervisors and senior leaders respond to knife crime, so they should be confident in tackling the problems in their community, knowing they are using interventions that work,” he said.
A Home Office spokesperson said: “Knife crime has a devastating impact on families and communities across our country.
“Our mission to halve knife crime over a decade will be delivered through tougher enforcement and stronger prevention.”
They said the government is working on reducing knife crime through various methods, including enforcing Ronan’s Law to stop knives from being sold illegally online, recruiting more police officers, and developing a Young Futures programme to help identify and support vulnerable children before they are drawn into crime.
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