IN BRIEF
KNIFE ANGEL DEPARTS WIRRAL BUT ANTI- VIOLENCE MESSAGE REMAINS
FUNDRAISERS CLIMB LIVERPOOL CATHEDRAL IN AID OF SHELTER
The iconic Knife Angel sculpture has now departed Wirral after a month-long stay at Birkenhead Park ’ s Grand Entrance but the legacy it leaves on the area is set to continue .
The Knife Angel is made from more than 100,000 weapons that had been surrendered as part of the knife amnesties co-ordinated by police forces across England and Wales . It is designed to raise awareness and get people of all ages talking about the impact of knife crime and all forms of violence and aggression in our communities .
For the four weeks it has been in Wirral , it has certainly done that – and much more . Aside from the tens of thousands of visitors it received during July , Merseyside Police are also reporting a reduction of 54 % in the number of offences involving a knife in July compared to the previous month . Add to that the fact that 350 knives have been surrendered and taken off the streets of Merseyside over the course of July as part of a weapons amnesty launched on the back of the Knife Angel ’ s visit , it is clear the anti-violence message of the statue has resonated with local people .
Wirral Council leader , Cllr Janette Williamson , said : “ It has been a great privilege for Wirral Council to host the Knife Angel for the last month . I ’ d like to thank Alfie Bradley for creating such an iconic national symbol against violence and aggression ; we have seen firsthand how it has stimulated conversations in households , classrooms and workplaces across our borough . Those conversations - and the many posts on social media – all help to spread the anti-violence message far and wide . It will move on to the next town now , but the legacy it leaves in Wirral will last a lot longer as so many people have reflected on the futility of violence and the tragedy and grief it causes . I ’ d like to say thank you and well done to community safety partners across the borough , who have joined together with a range of other organisations to deliver an outstanding programme of related events and activities to communicate what the Knife Angel stands for ; from football tournaments in Beechwood and Leasowe , a candlelit vigil led by Tomorrow ’ s Women Wirral , sessions from Tranmere Rovers in the Community , multiple schools visits , a Community Day in Birkenhead Park or any number of youth diversionary sessions .”
Last month saw many brave people scale the heights of Liverpool Cathedral for a well-known housing and homelessness charity , Shelter . The event , which was coordinated by Shelter Merseyside , and in particular Pauline Cox , brought many people together to raise awareness and much needed charitable donations to support the fight against homelessness .
Such is the need for housing-related support that Shelter had their online advice and service pages accessed over 5 million times last year , as well as upwards of 1,000 telephone calls per day nationally .
Pauline Cox of Shelter Merseyside explained the underlying causes of homelessness as : " People become homeless for lots of different reasons . There are social causes of homelessness , such as a lack of affordable housing , poverty and unemployment ; and life events which push people into homelessness .
" It also often occurs when they leave prison , care or the army with no home to go to . Similarly , many women experiencing homelessness have escaped a violent or abusive relationship . Also , with recent national and global issues such as Brexit and Covid , many people have become homeless because they can no longer afford housing costs due to redundancies , lack of job opportunities etc .”
One of the fundraisers on the day , Steven Taylor-Smith who has established his own housing not-for-profit organisation on the Wirral , said : “ For individuals and families who are experiencing homelessness , or are at risk of becoming homeless soon , their lives become impacted upon in so many ways . As a result , it becomes so difficult for people to get themselves back into a place that they can call home . We only need to consider the national statistics to understand the gravity of homelessness - the average age of death for people experiencing homelessness is 46 for men and 42 for women . In addition , homeless people are over nine times more likely to take their own life than the general population ”.
For every £ 1 donated to Shelter , 79 % is spent directly on helping people through advice , support and campaigning and 21 % is spent on fundraising activities .
Please contact Pauline Cox at : pauline _ cox @ shelter . org . uk for further information .
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