Northumbria Violence Reduction Unit to invest £7m on reducing serious violence

The Northumbria Violence Reduction Unit has announced it will invest over £7m in the next 3 years to make an impact on reducing serious violence.

This builds on the positive work to date which has seen serious violence levels reduce with a 9 per cent drop since November as well as hospital admissions caused by assaults with sharp objects down by 11.5 per cent in Northumberland, Tyne and Wear.

As it embarks on its fourth year, the Violence Reduction Unit will continue to focus on providing community-based interventions in areas of most need, engaging young people to reduce their risk of being involved in crime and working with the whole family to tackle issues of violence.

Kim McGuinness, Northumbria Police and Crime Commissioner, said: “I have made a commitment to ‘Fight Poverty, Fight Crime’, as sadly, we know that large proportions of violence occur in areas where poverty is most prevalent.

“We cannot just arrest our way out the problem – instead we must address the underlying causes, educate young people and prevent individuals from re-offending.

“Through the Violence Reduction Unit we are committed to doing just that and with this guaranteed investment over the next 3 years; we can target more individuals at risk of becoming a victim or before they are drawn into crime.

“I will continue to lobby Government for vital funding that will allow us to truly make a difference in our region.”

Steven Hume, Northumbria Violence Reduction Unit Director, said: “In order to tackle serious violence, you need to have a long-term strategy and this investment will provide us with some certainty over the next 3 years to continue delivering such vital work in our region.

“We are committed to reducing serious violence and vulnerability and have made significant progress to date but this is a long term approach and there is more work to be done.

“That is why we are taking such a radical approach in tackling the root causes of violent crime and addressing the offending behaviour of those causing the most disruption in our communities.”