The YJB Annual Statistics highlight:

• In the year ending March 2024, there were just over 3,200 knife or offensive weapon offences committed by children resulting in a caution or sentence, which is 6% fewer than the previous year but 20% greater than 10 years ago. This is the sixth consecutive year-on-year decrease.
• In the latest year, the vast majority (99.7%) of knife or offensive weapon offences committed by children were possession offences and the remaining 0.1% were threatening with a knife or offensive weapon offences.
• Out-of-court disposals are a method of resolving an investigation outside of court. In the year ending March 2024, 61% of disposals given to children for a knife or offensive weapon offence were a community sentence. This proportion is broadly stable over the last 10 years.
• The proportion of children sentenced to immediate custody was 7% in the last year, which is the same level it has been for the last three years.

Included within the Knife Crime Insights Pack (PDF, 401 KB, 16 pages) are a number of evidence-based insights into what works and what doesn’t. There are also a number of recommendations informed by these insights, which are:

1. The YJB supports attempts to reduce knife supply.
2. The YJB supports individualised decisions on outcomes.
3. The YJB supports local strategies to address the conditions that sustain violence.
4. The YJB supports local partnerships working together to ensure that adults meet the needs of children.

‍