'Murder of teen was senseless and shows knife crime can strike any family'

'Murder of teen was senseless and shows knife crime can strike any family'Patrick Green, CEO of the Ben Kinsella Trust and member of the Government’s Coalition to Tackle Knife Crime, reacts to the Government's knife crime announcementCommentsNewsopinionPatrick Green, chief executive of the Ben Kinsella Trust22:30, 06 Apr 2026View 2 Images'The Government is right to act now and provide schools with more support and funding to address knife crime'(Image: Newcastle Chronicle)The Government’s announcement today on the ‘Safety In and Around Schools Partnership’ is an important and timely step towards its aim of halving knife crime within a decade. For the Ben Kinsella Trust, it reinforces why our work exists and why early prevention must sit at the heart of any credible strategy to keep young people safe.‌Our charity is founded in 2008 after the murder of 16-year-old Ben Kinsella. His death was a senseless and avoidable tragedy that devastates his family and shocks the country.‌His story shows that knife crime can strike any family, in any community. Our mission is clear and urgent: to stop what happens to the Kinsella family from ever happening to anyone else.‌Every day, we work with children at the critical stage of early adolescence, particularly those growing up in communities affected by inequality, exploitation, and serious youth violence.View 2 ImagesPatrick Green, CEO of the Ben Kinsella Trust, said supporting schools to tackle knife crime 'has the potential to transform young lives'(Image: Philip Coburn)While knife carrying remains thankfully rare among this age group, fear of knife crime is extremely high. Research from the Youth Endowment Fund shows that 47% of teenagers said the violence or fear of violence has affected them in some way, and one in five young people miss school because they feel unsafe.‌Fear alone becomes a powerful barrier to education, aspiration, and opportunity, and is often a misguided reason why some y...