The Home Office's #Knifefree campaign (www.knifefree.co.uk) seeks to steer people away from knife crime by making them aware of the risks and highlighting positive alternatives to carrying a knife. The campaign aims to reduce knife crime by changing the attitudes and behaviours of young people (ages 10 to 21).

This resource pack was originally launched in July 2018 and updated for June 2019 following consultation with members. The newly developed #knifefree pack includes:

• An updated lesson for key stage 3 recognising and evaluating the risks of carrying a knife
• An updated lesson for key stage 4 challenging common misconceptions about knife crime and exploring how young people can choose to live knife-free and achieve their potential
• A brand new extension lesson, adaptable for either key stage 3 or 4 students, which explores the impact of role models on decision-making and helps students to develop strategies to manage peer influence and pressures to carry a knife. We are grateful to all the teachers and schools who contributed their excellent feedback to our focus group when developing these lessons.

The resources can be accessed here.

These free-to-download lessons will inform young people of the consequences of carrying a knife and inspire them to pursue positive alternatives, using real life stories of young people’s experiences as a basis. Accompanying teacher guidance will help you plan the lessons into your PSHE curriculum safely and effectively. The included PowerPoint slides for each lesson will help you to deliver engaging and effective lessons.

First published 26 March 2018