Knife Crime
48,774 knife-enabled offences recorded by police, down 8% on the year
176 knife or sharp instrument homicides, the lowest since 1991
28% of all knife-enabled offences recorded by the Metropolitan Police alone
3,337 NHS admissions for assault by a sharp object, down 5%· ONS, Crime in England and Wales, year ending March 2026
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Why This Matters
The story is bigger than the statistics.
Knife crime is not only a charge or a headline. It reaches into fear, exploitation, trauma, families and future generations. The figures above count offences. They do not count the brother who stops going out, the mother sitting through a trial, or the child who was used before he was ever caught.
This page brings the law, the lived reality and the practical next steps into one place, written in plain English. The law and figures on it apply to England and Wales.
Carrying a Knife
The Reality of Carrying a Knife. Some young people carry knives because they think it will keep them safe in a dangerous world. They believe that having a weapon gives them an edge, a way to defend themselves or deter threats. However, the evidence and real-life outcomes show the opposite is often true: carrying a knife frequently increases the overall risk of harm, escalation, serious injury, arrest, or even death. Weapons can create a false sense of security that leads to riskier behaviour. People who carry knives are more likely to get into confrontations they might otherwise avoid, because they feel “armed.” In heated moments—arguments between friends, rivalries at school or on social media, or chance encounters on the street—a knife can turn a minor clash into a life-changing tragedy. Statistics and police reports consistently show that knives carried for protection are often taken and used against the carrier during a struggle. What starts as “just in case” can end in impulsive use with irreversible consequences. The ripple effects go far beyond the individuals directly involved. Victims suffer physical injuries, long-term trauma, and psychological scars. Families grieve lost loved ones or support children through court cases and imprisonment. Communities become more fearful and divided, with parents worrying about letting their kids out, schools tightening security, and local areas feeling less safe. Knife crime is not just a “criminal justice” issue—it is deeply tied to fear, trauma, exploitation, mental health struggles, and cycles of violence that affect entire generations of young people and the society they live in.
The Law & Sentencing
This section sets out the law in England and Wales. Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own legislation and sentencing rules, and none of what follows applies there.
Two separate offences are routinely confused. Carrying an offensive weapon in public is an offence under section 1 of the Prevention of Crime Act 1953, covering anything made, adapted or intended to cause injury. Carrying a bladed or sharply pointed article in public is an offence under section 139 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988. Both carry a maximum of four years. Section 139A covers the same articles on school and further education premises, and section 139AA covers threatening someone with a blade.
The law draws almost no line between carrying for protection and carrying with criminal intent. Section 139 gives you a defence of good reason, and it is for you to establish it. That covers a chef carrying knives to work, a tradesperson with tools, or an item carried for religious reasons. It does not cover self-defence, or carrying because you feel unsafe where you live. A folding pocketknife with a cutting edge under three inches is exempt, but a lock knife is not a folding pocketknife in law, whatever its blade length.
Police can search you under section 1 of PACE 1984 where they have reasonable grounds to suspect you are carrying a weapon. Under section 60 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 they can search without any suspicion at all, in a defined area for a limited period, where a senior officer has authorised it because serious violence is anticipated. You can ask for the officer's name, station and grounds. You cannot refuse.
A first offence may bring a caution, a community sentence or a short custodial sentence. Section 315 of the Sentencing Act 2020 then applies to anyone aged sixteen or over convicted of carrying an offensive weapon, a bladed article in public or on education premises, or a corrosive substance, where they already have a relevant previous conviction. The court must impose at least six months in custody for adults, or a four-month detention and training order for sixteen and seventeen year olds. For offences committed on or after 28 June 2022 it can go lower only in exceptional circumstances. Under-sixteens fall outside section 315.
A conviction does not end with the sentence. It can block university places and apprenticeships, close off work involving children, security, healthcare or the armed forces, make renting harder and prevent travel to countries including the United States, Canada and Australia. After release there may be licence conditions, exclusion zones, curfews and probation supervision.
Joint Enterprise
What Is Joint Enterprise?Joint enterprise is a legal rule used when a crime is committed by a group of people. Under the Accessories and Abettors Act 1861, anyone who aids, abets, encourages, or helps set up an offence can be prosecuted and sentenced as if they committed the crime themselves.
In practice, this means that if you are part of a group and violence breaks out, you could be held fully responsible for what someone else does — even if you didn’t throw a punch or pull out a blade.
The Current Law – The Jogee Ruling
The law changed significantly after the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in R v Jogee [2016] UKSC 8.
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Before Jogee: You could be convicted simply for knowing that someone in the group might use violence. Just being there and foreseeing what could happen was often enough.
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After Jogee: The Supreme Court ruled this was wrong. Now, the prosecution must prove that you intentionally assisted or encouraged the offence. Simply foreseeing that violence might happen is not enough on its own — but it can still be used as strong evidence of your intention.
This was an important change that made the law fairer. However, being part of a group where knives or violence are involved remains extremely risky.
What the Prosecution must prove to convict someone under joint enterprise, the prosecution has to show:
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There was a common purpose or agreement (spoken or unspoken) to commit a crime.
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You actively participated, assisted, or encouraged that criminal purpose.
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You intentionally assisted or encouraged the specific offence that occurred.
Being present at the scene, associating with the wrong people, or knowing violence was possible is not automatically enough — there must be evidence of intentional encouragement or assistance.
How It Works in Practice
While the Jogee ruling was a positive reform, its real-world impact has been more limited than many hoped. Very few people convicted under the old rules have had their convictions overturned on appeal. Juries are still allowed to consider what you foresaw as important evidence when deciding whether you intended to assist.
The message is clear: even if you are on the edge of the group — watching, encouraging, filming, or just “being there” — you can still find yourself facing the same serious charges and sentences as the person who actually used the knife.
To see how this plays out in real life, read Kyle — part of our Prison & Prosecco handbook series, available in our shop.
It's a serious, unflinching look at county lines, knife crime, and joint enterprise. The book follows Kyle, an ordinary 22-year-old from Doncaster, and the journey that pulls him in: how he gets drawn into county lines, into knife crime, into a joint enterprise charge — through arrest, the courtroom, and finally life inside prison.
It puts a human face on everything this page sets out. The law, the charges, the sentences — Kyle shows you what they actually mean for one young man, and how quickly an ordinary life can change.
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The Stories Behind the Statistics
We created handbooks to take the reader through the full picture of knife crime — the lived reality, told by the people inside it. Kyle is twenty-two, a long way down a road he didn't see opening. Reece is fifteen, processed as a dealer when he was a child being used as one.
We also recognise a reality too often overlooked: a growing number of young women are being drawn into knife crime. That's why our next handbook, Reuben & Shay, follows two young people — one of them female — into the same world from two very different paths. Coming soon.
Blogs
Blogs
Child Explotation
County Lines. Understanding child exploitation is key to prevention. Our blog breaks down warning signs and real-world risks.
County Lines
YOI'S
A grounded look at what young people face inside custody, from first arrival and daily routines to the long-term impact and pathways forward.
Young Offender
Offending
Children, County Lines & Sentencing — What Happens When They're Arrested PACE protections, Appropriate Adults, Section 45 defence, NRM, sentencing.
Safer Streets
United YouthVoice
Key Case Law & Further Support
R v Jogee [2016] UKSC 8 — The Supreme Court ruling that established intention, not mere foresight, is required for joint enterprise liability. This is the foundational authority on the current law.
Read the full judgment: supremecourt.uk/uploads/uksc_2015_0015_judgment_e9dab4a097.pdf
R v Anwar [2016] EWCA Crim 551 — Court of Appeal case clarifying that Jogee did not create an automatic defence. Where there is an agreed common purpose, foresight of another offence being committed remains a question of fact for the jury.
Read the full judgment: bailii.org/ew/cases/EWCA/Crim/2016/551.html
R v Tas [2018] EWCA Crim 2603 — Court of Appeal case confirming that being unaware of a specific weapon does not
automatically provide a defence.
Read the full judgment: bailii.org/ew/cases/EWCA/Crim/2018/2603.html
Support Organisations
JENGbA — Joint Enterprise Not Guilty by Association is the leading campaign organisation in the UK supporting people convicted under joint enterprise. They provide support to prisoners and families, campaign for law reform, and offer guidance on the appeals process. Significantly, JENGbA were an official intervener in R v Jogee [2016] UKSC 8 — the very Supreme Court case that changed the law. Their involvement demonstrates the depth of their legal expertise and their commitment to justice for those caught by this doctrine: jengba.wordpress.com
The law in this area is complex and fact-specific. If you are facing a joint enterprise charge, always seek independent legal advice from a qualified criminal defence solicitor as a matter of urgency.
Have your say with Kulture Voice →
Carrying a knife does not make you safer. It makes you a target, a suspect, and — too often — a prisoner.
Sources Checked
Originally reviewed: 2025
Updated: 2026
Information
For educational purposes only. This page does not provide legal advice.
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