News / Together for Change
Focus on youth violence as Yvette Cooper visits Bristol
Leaders of organisations working at a grassroots level to prevent youth violence outlined the need for a different approach to create systemic change.
“We keep talking about a criminal justice problem, but actually it’s a social justice problem,” said Martin Bisp, co-founder of Empire Fighting Chance, speaking to shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper during a roundtable discussion on Wednesday.
Hungerford Community Centre in Brislington provided the backdrop for the session that saw the veteran Labour politician and Clare Moody, the party’s police & crime commissioner candidate, along with Bristol’s Labour group leader Tom Renhard, meet with leaders of youth organisations.
is needed now More than ever
Many spoke of the tragic loss of life to youth violence in the city.
Leaders of organisations working at a grassroots level to prevent youth violence outlined the need for a change in approach to create systemic change
Cooper outlined Labour’s ambition for a ‘young futures’ programme – similar to the party’s Sure Start initiative launched under Tony Blair’s government, but for teenagers.
She said it would focus initially on knife crime prevention due to the urgency of the issue and sought input from those working at a grassroots level as to how it could best make a difference.
Speaking about some of the root issues underpinning a rise in youth violence, Desmond Brown, co-founder of Growing Futures, said: “Whole families have been disenfranchised, have lost hope and that is being played out by our young people. Also, we victim blame our young people for a society that adults have created.”
Brown, and others, spoke about the prevalence and disproportionately of school exclusions, a “massive problem” that leaves young people vulnerable to exploitation.
He added: “One of the biggest problems is there is a scattergun approach in our city to funding around serious youth violence.
“What we need is organisations that are working to work collaboratively, but also to be recognised for the work that they’ve done and actually build on the community.”
Charmaine Lawrence of Full Circle @ Docklands youth centre (far left) speaks about importance of youth centres
Charmaine Lawrence, the CEO of Full @ Circle Docklands youth centre, spoke about the difference youth centres can make to the lives of young people.
She said: “We grew up poor in a poor area but because we had a youth club, I was able to feel valued, feel empowered. Today I am running the same charity that put me on my path so I wanted to show the difference a well-supported youth club can make to a young person’s life.”
Bisp added: “Fundamentally, if you don’t have you don’t have an equal society, you don’t have equal access to your city, then that does drive youth violence
“Inequality is a huge driver of youth violence. If we want to tackle it, we can’t do it individually. We all do great jobs but we are never going to be enough, we’re not going to solve violence – if you want to solve youth violence, systemic change comes from looking at inequality.”
Yvette Cooper announced Labour would be running a consultation through the summer about the ‘young futures’ programme
Addressing the group, Cooper said a Labour government would make it a mission to respond to the “awful increase in knife crime and the devastation that it’s having, particularly on young people, but also on families and communities”.
She stated this would include much stronger action around online knife crime sales and child criminal exploitation, as well as stronger early intervention and prevention, as part of the wider ‘young futures’ programme.
The shadow home secretary also asked the group what is needed to turn things around.
She announced Labour would be running a consultation through the summer about the ‘young futures’ programme.
Labour is also promising to invest an additional £360m into neighbourhood policing, with Cooper adding: “Neighbourhood policing should be the cornerstone of our approach to tackling crime and disorder. Yet under the Tories, it’s been utterly decimated, with 10,000 fewer officers on the streets.
“Labour will get police back out protecting our local communities, with guaranteed patrols in our town centres and new measures to tackle drug dealing gangs.
“Communities can only thrive when people feel safe. That’s why Labour will prioritise neighbourhood policing, with 13,000 more neighbourhood police and PCSOs back on the beat in our communities.”
All photos: Ellie Pipe
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