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Teens 'want to walk the streets without worrying about knives'

Martin HeathBuckinghamshire political reporter
News imageWycombe Youth Action Group photo inside a large historic church with ornate painted walls, a vaulted wooden ceiling and a stained-glass window behind the group. Eleven people are gathered around a uniformed police officer kneeling at the front. Most of the group are wearing matching white T-shirts featuring a red crossed-out knife symbol and the text “NO KNIVES”. The group is positioned on a red carpet in front of the altar, with floral arrangements, religious artwork and church furnishings visible in the background. A person in dark clothing stands at the far right of the group. Natural light filters through the stained-glass window, illuminating the scene.Wycombe Youth Action
Members of Wycombe Youth Action put the song together

A group of young people who recorded a song about knife crime said they wanted to be able to "walk the streets without worrying".

Wycombe Youth Action, from Buckinghamshire, hope Redirect will be heard across the country and inspire more efforts to tackle knife crime.

The group worked with music producer Stevoss to create a video for the song.

It said it wanted to counteract the "negative messages" that "put young people in a state of fear so they feel they need to carry knives".

From its opening shot of a hearse, Redirect tackles the issue head on, with its lyrics: "There's too many men who's lost their minds.

"And there's too many men that's died on the roadside."

Gideon, an established artist who worked on the track, said: "The lyrics really speak volumes where it's all first-hand experience.

"So every lyric, every note, really means something and we just hope that everyone can really listen to the message."

Young Majorr, 19, said: "I've known a lot of boys who've never wanted to use a knife but they've just been dragged into things.

"We're trying to reverse a negative message which is just embedded in this youth culture and show there's still a positive escape."

News imageWycombe Youth Action A group of people wearing matching white anti-knife-crime T-shirts stand beneath a brightly coloured graffiti mural in a covered public walkway. Several members of the group hold placards displaying a red crossed-out knife symbol and the words “NO KNIVES”. One placard reads “WHERE IS THE LOVE” with a circular logo beneath the text. The group is gathered along the wall, with some signs partially overlapping.Wycombe Youth Action
Youngsters aged 12 and over have been involved in the video alongside adults who are established artists

Romeo, 14, said: "There are people getting influenced by other people and trying to seem cool by carrying knives on the street."

Stevoss, who set up an organisation called Love Music, Hate Violence, helped the youngsters record the track and make a music video filmed around High Wycombe.

He said: "They want to see safety in the community.

"They want to be able to go out there and walk the streets without having to worry, hang on, somebody is going to roll up on their bike and try and do something.

"This is the culture that's being beamed at the young people. So we've got to beam a new culture at the young people to change that."

News imageWycombe Youth Action / Love Music Hate Violence A close-up side profile of a person seated inside a church, with both hands clasped beneath the chin. The person is wearing a white T-shirt and is positioned in the right foreground of the image. Behind, two tall stained-glass windows fill the left side of the frame, casting bright natural light into the space. Decorative painted walls, stone arches and ornate religious artwork surround the windows, highlighting the historic interior. The composition contrasts the sharply focused foreground figure with the softly illuminated church background, drawing attention to the architectural details and the reflective pose.Wycombe Youth Action / Love Music Hate Violence
The video uses locations around High Wycombe

For Leyla, 17, taking part in the video was "one of the biggest things - I had to do some choreography work for the dancers - that's something I think I want to pursue when I'm older.

"This project has exposed all of us to things that some of us want a future in."

News imageWycombe Youth Action / Love Music Hate Violence Two people perform a choreographed dance routine in a multi-storey car park. One person stands in the foreground wearing a dark padded jacket and light-coloured tracksuit bottoms, with arms raised in a dance pose. A second person is positioned several metres behind, also mid-movement. The car park is lit by overhead fluorescent strip lights, with parking bays, support columns and a parked vehicle visible in the background.Wycombe Youth Action / Love Music Hate Violence
The video includes a dance sequence in a car park

Yasmin Harris, who helps to run Wycombe Youth Action, said: "They are all such an inspiration, all these young people on this track.

"Hopefully we will get it across the country for other youth clubs, other organisations to maybe do something like we've done as well, so it grows."

News imageWycombe Youth Action / Love Music Hate Violence A person wearing a black quilted jacket and dark sunglasses stands in the foreground of a cemetery, with rows of gravestones stretching across a gently sloping grassy landscape behind. The person has both hands held out in front at waist height. Trees with sparse spring foliage frame the scene, and clusters of flowers are visible among the graves. Bright sunlight illuminates the grass and headstones beneath a clear blue sky, creating strong contrast between the sunlit background and the dark clothing in the foreground.Wycombe Youth Action / Love Music Hate Violence
The video aims to promote positive messages to divert people away from knives

Knife crime remains one of the biggest challenges in urban areas, although the government said this week progress had been made.

According to its figures, knife-related homicides have dropped to their lowest level in 35 years .

A recent surrender drive had taken "more than 15,000 knives off Britain's streets" and the government said action was also being taken "to stop young people from ever picking up a weapon in the first place".

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