Knife crime amongst young people is a problem across the whole of London and in its continued effort to tackle this issue locally, Barking and Dagenham Council launched the Responsible Retailer Scheme in the borough.



The London-wide initiative is part of the shared commitment of the Mayor’s Office for Policing & Crime (MOPAC), the Metropolitan Police Service and London Trading Standards to the reduction and prevention of knife-related crime in London.



The east London council launched the scheme in partnership with Barking and Dagenham police in May this year and within three days of visits, 14 retailers that sell knives and other bladed items signed up to the Responsible Retailer Agreement.



Four local shops also agreed to stop selling knives and these were Chadwell Handy Store and the three B&M stores in the borough.



The purpose of the agreement is to promote the responsible selling of knives and to prevent people under the age of 18 from acquiring them.



The council’s Trading Standards Service is encouraging all businesses that sell knives and other bladed items to refresh their staff training records and make sure that they:



1.    Assess the age of the buyer

2.    Challenge anyone they think is under 25 and ask for an ID

3.    Check the ID carefully to the ensure the customer is over 18



Officers are also asking business owners to update their shop layout, so knives are kept out of sight from young people.



Councillor Margaret Mullane, Cabinet Member for Enforcement and Community Safety said: “We know there is an issue with knife crime amongst young people, so it is extremely important that we all work together to tackle the issue, and this includes families, schools, shops and the wider community.



“I’d like to encourage all businesses to sign up to the scheme and make sure that our young people don’t get their hands on any kind of bladed items.”



Chief Inspector Chris Nixon, Dep. Lead Neighbourhood Policing Team – East Area said: “The whole community need to come together to prevent knife crime affecting our young people.  This programme is a positive step by the retail sector to limit availability of knives to young people and reducing knife crime in the Borough. 



“We will continue to work in partnership with Council, the Retail sector, and the wider community to prevent knife crime.”



The council’s Trading Standards Service operate a ‘zero-tolerance’ approach on underage sales of knives and have programmed test purchase visits throughout the year. If a business is caught selling knives or bladed items to children, the council will not hesitate to prosecute.



If businesses would like more information on the Responsible Retailer Scheme, they should contact the council’s Trading Standards Team by emailing tradingstandards@lbbd.gov.uk.