Search

South Yorkshire’s Violence Reduction Unit (VRU) has welcomed the Knives Take Lives awareness campaign, launched this week by South Yorkshire Police (SYP).

Knives Take Lives aims to challenge the behaviour of teenagers in South Yorkshire who may be considering carrying a knife, with research showing boys in their early teens who carry knives do so for their own perceived protection, or for social status among their friends.

Poignantly, the campaign launched on the third anniversary of the deaths of Ryan Theobald and Janis Kozlovskis, who were murdered in Doncaster in 2022.

South Yorkshire is the fourth highest region in the country for knife crime offences, both by volume and rate per 100,000 population. In 2024, five people in the county tragically lost their lives as a result of being stabbed.

In collaboration with SYP, students from Sheffield College’s Hillsborough campus provided insights into the design and script for the video, with performing arts student Sam Heald providing the voiceover for the campaign.

Head of the VRU, Dave Cowley, said: “Campaigns like this are designed to make us feel uncomfortable, but also help us have difficult conversations with our peers and young people.

“Boys under the age of 18 make up the group most likely to be caught carrying a knife in South Yorkshire and this campaign is one of many steps in addressing this urgent issue.

“Last month, the VRU hosted the South Yorkshire Knife Crime Summit, attended by representatives from partner organisations all over our region, highlighting the importance of working together in tackling knife crime.

“One of the key aims of the VRU is to tackle violence before it starts. Campaigns like Knives Take Lives help us to spread the awareness of the devastating impact knife crime has on the families left behind and the futures of the young people involved.”

South Yorkshire’s Mayor, Oliver Coppard said: “Today marks three years since Ryan Theobald and Janis Kozlovskis were murdered in Doncaster and I’m grateful to Ryan’s mum, Lisa for her support in raising awareness of the devastating impact that knife crime has on so many lives.

“South Yorkshire has the fourth highest number of offences carried out using knives in the UK.”

“Nationally, the Government is stepping up, by targeting the accessibility of intimidating weapons, holding social media executives accountable when they fail to remove illegal knife crime content from their platforms, the banning of ninja swords and future investment in Violence Reduction Units.

“This campaign is hard-hitting and an uncomfortable watch, but this is hugely important in highlighting the devastating impact carrying a knife can have.”

Knives Take Lives is based on a real-life fatal stabbing in South Yorkshire committed by a teenager. The story was written by DC Tom Ryan, a detective constable in SYP’s Major Crime Unit, who investigated the original case.