Crimes against children have risen dramatically in the past few years, as they are increasingly being targeted for their expensive electronic possessions such as iPods or mobile phones.
The police and local authorities are funding the Safety Box Scheme which aims to teach primary school pupils to try and minimise the risk of injury when involved in a confrontation. Nathaniel Peat, its founder, said: ‘It gives young people confidence and the fundamentals of how to stay safe.’
Another scheme involves primary and secondary school pupils being taught how to avoid muggings, for instance learning to put their mobile phones away when in public or if they see someone suspicious. The scheme was piloted in Yorkshire last year with great success and is not set to be the very first national safety program.
The Metropolitan Police are now also focusing their patrols on the three hours after school closes as this is the time children are targeted. There has already been a 21 per cent fall in the number of young people that are victims of muggings in January this year, compared with the figures taken in January 2008.
Commander Mark Simmons, head of the Met’s violent crime directorate, said that the carrying of expensive gadgets was only part of the problem: ‘Some of it is just about rival groups of kids, and those who want to assert their authority. It’s not always about the goods that get stolen. It’s also a way for them to assert their control and influence.’
Statistics show that children of 15 years of age are the most likely to be targeted by muggers. This has prompted self-defence lessons to be implemented for children across the country, something that has already proved a success in London.
