Strategic Ambitions for London:
GANGS AND
SERIOUS YOUTH
VIOLENCE
JUNE 2014
CONTENTS
CONTENTS
Strategic Ambitions for London - Gangs and Serious Youth Violence
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Contents
Foreword
4
Executive Summary
7
Introduction
8
What is known about gangs in London?
11
What is the harm caused by gangs to individuals?12
What is the harm caused by gangs to communities?
17
Where is this harm being caused in London?
18
The Case for Change
19
Prevention21
Intervention21
Enforcement22
Leadership and Coordination
23
Strategic Ambitions for London
24
Prevention26
Intervention27
Enforcement30
Leadership and Coordination: Creating the environment
to realise these ambitions
32
Performance and Governance
34
Appendices
36
Glossary36
Acronyms36
References37
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Foreword
When I was first elected Mayor, the scale of
serious youth violence was a blight on London’s
reputation. In 2008, 29 teenagers were tragically
killed in our city – many as a result of stabbings.
That level of violence was horrific and could not
be tolerated in a modern global city.
That experience kick-started change for the better.
That year, I published Time for Action, a programme
for preventing violence and equipping young people
for the future. That was followed in 2012, when the
Metropolitan Police Commissioner and I launched
the Trident Gang Crime Command to deliver more
targeted enforcement against gangs.
Also in 2012 my London Crime Reduction Board
(LCRB), published the LCRB Partnership AntiGangs Strategy in recognition that all agencies
and partners across London have a role to play in
tackling gangs.
I am proud that through this work, much has been
achieved to keep young people safe, provide better
services, and tackle gang violence. Our mentoring
scheme has now reached its target to pair 1,000
at-risk young Londoners, with personal mentors to
help them steer clear of crime and reach their
potential. Teenage homicide (13-19 year olds) has
reduced from 29 in calendar year 2008 to 12 in
calendar year 2013.
Gun discharges have been cut by 45%. Since the
launch of Trident Gang Crime Command in 2012,
knife crime injuries where the victim is aged under
25 has reduced by almost a third, equating to 570
fewer victims. Londoners’ concern about gangs and
serious youth violence have both dropped in the
last year. This suggests that the real reductions in
gang violence we have seen has been reflected in
public perceptions.
But there is more that we need to do. The
message has still not reached enough young
people about the harm caused by the knives.
There is a knife carrying culture that must be
challenged and we need tougher sanctions and a
clearer signal in sentencing that knife possession
leads to prison, like we have with mandatory jail
terms for firearms possession.
Despite the progress we have made, we cannot be
complacent. Gangs continue to feature as a key
crime concern for Londoners and there are still
too many victims of serious youth violence. We
must be even more ambitious and that is why this
document is so important.
Reflecting the shared view of the partner agencies
of the LCRB, it sets out a clear framework for
action – and places the emphasis on prevention.
With more effective enforcement and fewer
violent gang members at large, the space has
been created to redirect efforts towards
prevention – to help stop the problem at source
by diverting young people away from gangs and
helping those who want to exit to do so safely.
We will maintain resources directed at
enforcement and ensure that Trident can continue
to do their vital work. And we must shift our
Strategic Ambitions for London - Gangs and Serious Youth Violence
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focus to improved prevention. In the years ahead,
as London grows and the city’s population of
young people increases, we must redouble our
efforts to prevent a minority being attracted to
gangs, and ensure that we prevent more children
and teenagers from experiencing the violence
linked with gangs. Most importantly, we want to
stop young people becoming engaged with gang
activity at an earlier stage, and make it easier to
exit when they are already involved.
Every time a young person is harmed in London
through an act of violence, it shows us that we
have further still to go. Our ultimate goal should
be to get as good or even better at prevention
efforts to stop serious offending, as we are at
enforcement against the perpetrators once
violence has occurred.
London is a safe city and it is getting safer and
fortunately we do not suffer from the entrenched
and widespread street gang violence of some
other comparable cities. Nevertheless, the
violence linked to a small hard core of offenders
– many involved in gangs – has a disproportionate
impact and it must be confronted.
The LCRB’s Strategic Ambitions set out the shared
goals we have to make even more progress over the
next few years, so that we can achieve my mission to
make London the safest big city in the world.
Boris Johnson
Mayor of London
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Executive Summary
In December 2012, the London Crime Reduction
Board (LCRB) launched their Partnership
Anti-Gangs Strategy. This was the first pan-London
response to the harm caused by gangs in the
capital and bought together key criminal justice
agencies and London’s 32 boroughs.
This joined up response and prioritisation of gangs,
alongside the hard work of the Metropolitan Police
Services (MPS) Trident Gang Crime Command has
resulted in significant successes, most notably a
reduction in those crimes that are typically
associated with gangs.
The collaborative work with partners also provided
an increased understanding of what works in
London to reduce the harm caused by gangs and
provided a solid foundation of evidence-based
practice on which to deliver this new strategic
ambition for London.
The LCRB made a commitment to refresh the
strategy after one year. Gangs remain a key priority
for the Mayor, the boroughs and London’s criminal
justice agencies and therefore, it was imperative
that the LCRB continued to provide strategic
leadership. The Board recognised that the focus of
its work had to remain relevant to the needs of
partners and the changing needs of London.
The Mayor’s Office for Policing And Crime
(MOPAC) led a two-month consultation between
February and April 2014 which bought together
over 320 individuals and organisations to explore
how our approach to tackling gangs should
develop. Stakeholders were provided with a range
of opportunities to contribute including an online
survey and a number of focus groups, including a
youth-led event.
This document outlines the LCRB strategic
ambitions to reduce the harm caused by gangs in
London. The approach focuses on:
„„ Prevention: Ensuring that our children
and young people avoid gang involvement
by providing prevention programmes
accessible through state schools and other
educational establishments
„„ Intervention: A consistent approach to
commissioning and delivering sustainable
services in custody and the community to
reduce serious youth violence and the harm
caused by gangs
„„ Enforcement: A targeted criminal justice
system approach which delivers swift and
sure justice to deter and incapacitate the
most harmful gang members
The prevention, intervention, and enforcement
work will be underpinned by a firm commitment to
improve how partners share information and
resources and the development of an even better
understanding of the gang crime picture, and what
works to reduce the harm caused by gangs.
This document sets out what London partners
working collaboratively, are seeking to achieve by
2017, to combat gang violence and reduce the
harm caused by gangs to individuals and
communities in London.
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Introduction
Gangs and the associated harm they cause is a
public safety challenge facing many global cities.
Street gangs are typically linked to violent crime
and illicit drug markets, but the defining features
of a city’s gangs vary considerably and wider
international comparisons can be difficult.
However, despite the unique context in which
gangs operate in London or Madrid or New York,
they do share similarities and their impact is often
the same – undermining social order, harming
communities, and creating victims of gang
violence, many often young people.
As each urban area seeks to understand and respond
to their own gangs challenge, new technology and
academic insights have offered different approaches
to entrenched crime problems, and in London we
have been supporting new research and analytical
tools to help the police and others to understand
and confront the gangs problem.
Compared to many cities, London is unique in
terms of its diversity and density of population, its
geographical size and the complex interplay
between City Hall and the 32 boroughs. For these
reasons we recognise that to combat gang violence
effectively, London needs strong leadership from
the Mayor’s Office, and a commitment to
collaborative working with local government and
the police and other public services, to ensure gang
members receive multiple interventions, and are
not left to fall between the gaps.1 2 And we
recognise that compared to a decade ago, we have
improved our understanding of gangs and our
prevention and enforcement capability.
London has come a long way in how we respond to
gangs and serious youth violence over the last few
years. The launch of the Metropolitan Police
Service (MPS) Trident Gang Command in February
2012 was the start of a new coordinated
enforcement effort that has been highly successful
in taking many of the highest risk gang members
responsible for the most serious violence off
London’s streets.
And in May 2012, the Delivery Management Group
of the London Crime Reduction Board (LCRB)
commissioned the development of a pan-London
partnership strategy for tackling gangs in London,
which was published in December 2012. The first
LCRB Partnership Anti-Gangs Strategy provided an
excellent foundation which brought partners
together for the first time to agree a shared
approach to tackling gangs.
Since the first LCRB Partnership Anti-Gangs Strategy
was published, significant progress has been made.
The Crown Prosecution Service have introduced
dedicated gangs prosecutors to ensure that these
cases have specialist support, and developed a
gangs flag to help track cases on their systems.
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In Her Majesty’s Prison ISIS in south east London,
the MPS and National Offender Management
Service worked together to bring police officers
from Trident into the prison to investigate gang
activity and to support gang members to exit
before returning to the community, by jointly
devising appropriate licence conditions to minimise
risk of reoffending.
MOPAC have worked with the London Probation
Trust (LPT) to publish a London-specific overview
of findings from the Home Office Ending Gang and
Youth Violence peer reviews in the capital, and
have published a strategic framework3 to support
boroughs and local partnerships in improving the
way they respond to gang-associated young
women and girls.
In partnership with each of London’s 32 boroughs,
MOPAC is sustainably funding 25 gangs projects
through the London Crime Prevention Fund at a
value of approximately £3m per year over the next
four years.
From the outset the LCRB recognised that for the
work to remain relevant to the needs of Londoners
and criminal justice partners, the Board would need
to review and refresh the strategy. This document
builds on that foundation to make a landscape in
which;
„„ evidence-based interventions are supported
based on the fullest possible understanding of
what works;
„„ agencies across the system use their limited
resources better together; and
„„ services are sustainably funded, meet demand,
and reach the right people across London.
This Strategic Ambitions document was developed
following a two month consultation between
February and April 2014, to which approximately
320 organisations and individuals responded. The
consultation involved a comprehensive literature
review; an online survey4; and ten consultation
events, including events focused on youth (led by
young people), prevention, gang exit, public and
mental health, voluntary and community sector
organisations, Local Authorities, criminal justice
system partners and others. A full outline of the
findings from this process is available online5.
Throughout the engagement period, there were a
number of issues that came up consistently.
Respondents highlighted the case for change, and
argued that prevention must be prioritised, so we can
avoid a new generation from being drawn into gangs.
The urgency to do this is made plain by future
changes in the city’s demographics – over the decade
to 2023 there is projected to be a 15% increase in
young people aged 10-18 in London (or +123,168)6.
Without more effective prevention, a larger group of
young people could be at risk from gangs.
Respondents argued that gang members are not
simply offenders – they often have complex
emotional, behavioural and mental health
problems, and therefore need support, alongside
enforcement, to get them out of a violent lifestyle.
The gangs picture is not uniform across London,
and respondents noted that unfortunately, support
provision is fragmented7. Interventions – such as
exit services for gang members, mental health and
emotional trauma services, and support for victims
– must be consistently provided across the capital.
Criminal justice agencies must collaborate to
provide effective enforcement that really grips
offenders.
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Young people, including young people involved in
or affected by gang violence, have played a key
role in influencing the ambitions within this
document, and part of this shared vision must also
be that this work continues to be shaped by and
with young people. Through the creation of a
ring-fenced role for young people on every local
Safer Neighbourhood Board, the Mayor has
ensured that in each London borough, young
people are helping to set local priorities for
responding to gangs and youth violence.
also accept that gang violence has a much wider
impact on all those who live in our city, regardless
of age and background. Fixing that problem is a
complex and long-term endeavour and we still
have some way to go. But this is a shared problem
and our Strategic Ambitions are about using all the
resources that London has at its disposal.
This is vital because young people, particularly
Black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) young
people, are disproportionately affected both as
victims and perpetrators of gang violence. But we
The Mayor and most council leaders accept that
London does have a gangs problem – and been
prepared to say so publicly. But we do not have a
gangs crisis. We should recognise the progress we
have made, accept where more work is needed,
and commit to strive even harder to prevent gang
violence and make London a safer city for
everyone, especially our young people.
Stephen Greenhalgh
Ray Lewis
Deputy Mayor for Policing And Crime
Senior Advisor – Mentoring & Co-Chair of
the LCRB Gangs Panel
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What is known about gangs in London?
Research undertaken for this report, with the
support of the Metropolitan Police, has created an
updated picture of the gangs problem in London
and the factors that define it.
When the Mayor, Boris Johnson, and the MPS
Commissioner, Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe, launched
the Trident Gang Crime Command (Trident) in
February 2012, there were an estimated 250 active
criminal gangs in London, comprising
approximately 4,800 people. Now, current
knowledge indicates8;
„„ The Trident Matrix9 contains a total of 3,495
individual gang members, of 224 known
gangs.
„„ There are currently 183 gangs linked to more
than one offence in the last 12 months, and
58 gangs are considered particularly
active - accounting for two thirds of offences
where a named gang has been identified as
being involved
„„ Gang members are assessed as Red/Amber/
Green according to the assessment of the risk
of harm they pose. Only 6% of individuals are
assessed as within the most harmful red
category, half of whom are in custody at this
time. The majority (57%) are currently
assessed as within the lowest (green) status.
„„ The majority of those on the Trident Matrix
are young adults. 70% of the individuals
are aged between 17 and 23 years of age,
with over a quarter of all individuals listed as
either 19 or 20 years of age.
„„ Most identified gang members on the
Matrix are male (97.8%) with only 40
females represented on the Matrix11
„„ The majority of individuals are identified
as BME (77.6% of all individuals, with white
ethnic description representing 10%)
The LCRB recognises that different agencies will
have their own ways of identifying and recording
gang members. For example, of the 3,681 young
people managed by Youth Offending Teams (YOTs)12
in London, 858 were identified by the YOT as
affiliated or involved with gangs. Yet only 376 (43%)
of these were on the Trident Matrix. Similarly, LPT
identified 975 young adults on its case load13 of
6,500 offenders aged 18-25 years who were gang
affiliated; yet only approximately 20% were
registered on the Trident matrix.
We know that gang members are repeat offenders,
and offend prolifically. They also begin offending in
their early teens, highlighting the importance of
safeguarding and early intervention with this
group. Previous research14 examined individuals on
the Trident Matrix as of August 2012 in order to
learn more in terms of their offending histories.
The analysis showed that:
„„ A total of 93% had a previous sanction,
such as conviction, caution, warning or
reprimand. The average number of
sanctions per gang member was seven.
„„ The majority of individuals on the matrix
live in the community. 71% of individuals
are currently classed as Live10 (of which some
are under judicial restrictions) with the
remainder in Custody.
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On average the typical gang;
„„ The typical gang member had 9 offences
in their history, though there was a range
of up to 146 previous offences. Individuals
on the Trident Matrix were criminally
versatile. Around 59% had a previous drugs
sanction, 36% for public disorder, and 35%
had a previous sanction for an offence
involving a weapon, typically a knife or
bladed instrument.
„„ Gang members were 15 years old when
convicted of their first offence15.
Approximately 57% were first convicted
before their 16th birthday and 83% before
their 18th birthday.
Analysis has also been conducted16 to identify the
criminal justice outcomes for gang members.
„„ 60% had received at least one custody
sentence in their history.
„„ 81% had received a community sentence
at some point in their history and 19%
had received at least one suspended
sentence.
What is the harm caused by gangs to
individuals?
The MPS report that gang crime17 has reduced
by 23% compared to the preceding financial
year (equivalent to 464 fewer crimes). This is the
largest percentage and volume decrease since
FY2009/10 and is over 1,000 crimes less than that
year.
But recorded offences or the number of gang
members alone does not demonstrate the harm
that is caused by gangs. London Ambulance
Service (LAS) data18 shows that;
„„ There were a total of 973 attendances by
LAS to victims under 25 with either a gun
or knife inflicted wound following an
assault in 2013
„„ Knife injuries predominate: 850 of these
were knife injuries, with the remaining 123
being inflicted by a gun
„„ The median age of patients for these
wounding incidents was 20 years of age
The MPS monitor both gang indicator crimes19
alongside specifically gang-related incidents.
Gang flagged offences are defined by Trident as any
event where it is believed that there is a link
between the incident and the activities of a gang or
gangs.
The MPS estimates that gangs and gang members
are responsible for approximately 22% of serious
violence, 17% of robbery, and 50% of shootings
committed in London. One national study20 found
that 23% of females and 4% of males
identified themselves as victims of sexual
violence or exploitation within or by gangs.
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Data from Missing People21 shows that from a total
of 420 children reported to the charity Missing
People by police forces between January 2012 and
August 2013, 261 children (62%) were either
reported missing from London boroughs or had
investigatory links to the London areas. In total 26
of the 261 missing young people from London or
with links to London made reference to gang
involvement. Six were identified as being sexually
exploited, six were considered to be ‘at risk of’
sexual exploitation, and nine cases made reference
to drugs. All of the 26 children, with the
exception of one, were missing for longer
than 72 hours. This highlights the importance of
intervening in these children’s lives in the context of
safeguarding children.
Other Notifiable Offences
Robbery
11%
Drugs
The chart below identifies the types of crimes
identified as being linked to gangs in 2013/14.
10%
Other Accepted Crime
5%
4%
4%
20%
Theft and Handling
2%
Criminal Damage
Burglary
1%
Sexual Offences
0.39%
Fraud or Forgery
43%
Violence against the person
Gang-flagged crimes in FY 2013/14
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Previous MPS research22 examined the victim offender overlap and victim compliance of all
Trident non-fatal shootings in a single year, which
found that:
„„ 74% of victims of this gang violence had
some criminal history resulting in a
conviction, caution, warning or reprimand,
at an average of 9 previous offences per
individual.
„„ Half (51%) of non-fatally shot victims in
the financial year 2010-2011 were unwilling
to assist police with evidence.
„„ Those unwilling to assist the police were
more likely to present an increased criminal
lifestyle.
Data from the Trident Matrix also shows that gang
members are also victims of non-gang related crime:
„„ 61% of all gang members23 have been
a victim of any crime.
„„ 31% have been victim of a violent crime,
and 15% have been a victim of a stabbing
or shooting or a Gang flagged crime.
Given this profile, such victims are a particularly
challenging group of individuals to engage. They are
also likely to be vulnerable or intimidated and
present higher support needs. Overleaf the below
case studies demonstrate the victim-offender
overlap and more importantly, the multiple
opportunities to engage in such complex cases.
„„ However, 39% of victims who were known
to the Police National Computer still
cooperated with police, demonstrating the
value in supporting and engaging with all
victims and witnesses equally.
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Gang Member A
Person A, born in 1991, returned 28 ‘hits’ on the MPS Crime Recording System, either as accused, suspect,
victim or witness between 26th October 2006 and 25th October 2011. As illustrated below, Person A was
accused of a number of offences during this period, including public order offences, possession and supply of
drugs, possession of a bladed article and rape. He was also recorded as a suspect for Assault Occasioning Actual
Bodily Harm and possession of a firearm, and significantly, recorded as a victim of a non-fatal shooting and a
separate Assault Occasioning Grievous Bodily Harm with intent.
The cost of Person A to the police and society is clearly substantial. The timeline below illustrates that police
officers have multiple opportunities to intervene with individuals who later become victims of serious crime,
and highlights the need for officers to work proactively to prevent further harm and significantly reduce costs.
Witness / Informant
Accused
Suspect
Victim
20
Fe
b
Strategic Ambitions for London - Gangs and Serious Youth Violence
Breach
Actual Bodily Harm
20
11
Child Care Issues
Grievous Bodily Harm with Intent
Public Order
20
10
Possession Firearm
Threat Criminal Damage
09
Possession Cannabis
20
Rape Female Over 15
Taking & Driving away
Bladed Article
Possession to Supply Heroin
Rape Female Under 13
Threat to Kill
Grievous Bodily Harm with Intent
Actual Bodily Harm
Actual Bodily Harm
Common Assault
Possession to Supply Cocaine
Actual Bodily Harm
M
20
08
ay
2
00
11
7
Person A shot twice,
April 2010. Unwilling
to cooperate with Trident
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Victim B
Person B is a 16 year old female, who has been a recorded victim of crime since 2009 when she was 11 years
old. In this five year span she has been a victim of multiple perpetrator rape four times, of Actual Bodily Harm
(ABH) or Assault four times and come to attention for child care issues twice.
Her parents are both drug addicts who have been in and out of prison. As a result of reporting the initial
incidents of rape, she received input from Social Services and spent some time in foster care. Over the course
of five years she regularly came to police notice as a vulnerable individual, with the points below demonstrating
the many opportunities to engage with this child and support her. The perpetrators of the multiple perpetrator
rapes were found guilty and received custodial sentences in 2012.
Police Missing Person report
Police concern for safety report
Suspected link to gangs
Police attend A&E
14
Police Vulnerable Person
20
ay
Strategic Ambitions for London - Gangs and Serious Youth Violence
Victim of Common Assault
M
14
Victim of False Imprisonment
Victim of Actual Bodily Harm & Serious Wounding
Victim of Actual Bodily Harm & Wounding
Child Care Issues
20
13
20
12
20
11
Victim of Rape
Victim of Rape
Victim of Theft
20
Victim of Actual Bodily Harm & Wounding
Police Protection on a Case
Liaison with Social Services & Foster Care
10
20
Child Care Issues
Victim of a Personal Theft
Victim of Rape
Victim of Rape
Ju
l2
00
9
Victim
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What is the harm caused by gangs to
communities?
Evidence for 2013/14 from the Public Attitudes
Survey24 (PAS), which surveys 12,800 Londoners
each year, shows that when asked for the top
things that the police should be dealing with across
London, ‘gangs’ was the fourth most common
response, cited by 8% of respondents. When asked
‘to what extent do you think gangs are a problem
in this area?’,10% of respondents cited gangs as a
major or minor problem. This is a decrease when
compared to financial year 2012/13, when 15% of
respondents considered gangs to be either a major
or minor problem.
There is a relationship between perceiving gangs as
a problem in the local area and overall ratings of
confidence in policing. Of the group who think
gangs are a minor/major problem in the local area,
47% report that the police are doing an excellent/
good job in the local area. This is a significantly
lower level of confidence than the group who do
not think gangs are a local problem (67% report
that the police are doing an excellent/good job).
The top two reasons given by respondents for why
they think gangs are a problem in the local area are
‘What I have seen in the local area’ and ‘Seen
gangs…groups of people/teens hanging around’.
Whilst 10% of respondents across London report
gangs to be a problem in their local area, there is
wide variation25 across the boroughs. There has
also been significant improvement in some
boroughs, with 5 boroughs seeing a 10% or more
reduction in respondents reporting gangs to be a
problem over the last financial year.
The consultation survey conducted to inform this
report asked respondents to identify the most
important problems in relation to the harm caused
by gangs in their area. Respondents ranked violent
crime26 as the most harmful impact that gangs had
in their community, followed by drug dealing and
knife crime.
Recruitment of other young people into gangs was
the fourth most commonly occurring concern,
following by anti-social behaviour, sexual
exploitation of young women and girls, and robbery.
Gun crime ranked eighth in terms of community
concerns, followed by links to serious organised
crime (such as formalised organised criminal
networks) and finally vandalism and graffiti.
Other issues which were highlighted as affecting
communities included children going missing, a
lack of positive engagement with the wider
community and opportunities for young people,
mental health, gang conflicts within the secure
estate, and the impact on fear of crime and the
anxiety this causes in the wider community.
In a survey conducted by TNS Market Research for
the Police and Crime Plan 2013-16, published in
March 2013, “tackling gangs” was cited by 49% of
Londoners as one of their top three priorities to
improve safety in their neighbourhood.
“Preventing youth violence” was cited by 37%.
The same questions in May 2014 found that
tackling gangs had dropped 11 points, now
mentioned by 38% of respondents, with
“preventing youth violence” down 4 points to 33%.
This suggests that the real reductions in gang
violence we have seen in the last year have been
reflected in public perceptions.
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Where is this harm being caused in
London?
The 224 gangs identified are geographically spread
across London but gang related violence has
historically concentrated in inner-London
boroughs. Gangs are recorded as existing across all
parts of the capital with only three boroughs
(Sutton, Richmond and Kingston) currently not
recording any individuals on the Trident Matrix.
Gangs, guns and knives are a major cause for
feeling unsafe among young people in London27.
Many studies show that gang membership results
in an increase in crime and an increased propensity
for violence and weapon use28 29 30. This violence is
often related to disputes about territory as
opposed to disputes linked to drug markets, which
is a more common motivator for gangs in other
cities across the world31.
There are also significant levels of violence against
women and girls including sexual exploitation and
victimisation within the gang environment and
young women are at particular risk.
The below map illustrates the intensity of gun and
knife injuries responded to by the London
Ambulance Service by location for April
2013-February 2014.
The data in this section shows that gang members
are both prolific offenders and frequently also
victims. They often come to notice for criminal
activity under the age of 16, highlighting the
importance of safeguarding in any response to
gangs. Gang crime is varied, and spread across
London. The impact of gang crime as measured by
the level of violence is reducing in London, but the
scope and complexity of the gangs problem
remains and the majority of boroughs are affected
by it.
Assaults - Gun & Knife
Injuries - Patient under
25 FY 2013/14
205 to 256 (1)
154 to 205 (2)
103 to 154 (1)
52 to 103 (5)
1 to 52 (90)
Borough
Neighbourhood
Strategic Ambitions for London - Gangs and Serious Youth Violence
18
CONTENTS
The Case for Change
London has made real progress since 2012; both as
a result of the work partners have done to deliver
against the first gangs strategy, but also as a result
of the influence on the national agenda. These
changes have seen gang crime and serious youth
violence reduced, and this has created much-needed
space to deliver Strategic Ambitions for London.
Nationally, gangs have been the object of schemes
like the successful Home Office EGYV programme.
With mandatory sentences for gun-related offences
gun crime has reduced considerably – this is one of
the reasons for the ambitions of the MPS and
Mayor relating to mandatory sentences for a
second conviction of knife possession. In
partnership with Local Authorities in every London
borough, MOPAC have sustainably funded 25
gangs projects through the London Crime
Prevention Fund at a value of approximately £3m
per financial year for four years32. This includes
elements of the integrated gangs units in Enfield,
Haringey, Westminster, Hackney, Lambeth and
Southwark among others, and funding innovative
projects from parenting support in Wandsworth to
work with schools in Barking & Dagenham.
This is in addition to funding a number of projects
which address gangs alongside a range of other
MOPAC crime prevention and reduction priorities,
such as projects addressing gang-associated girls
who are at risk of sexual exploitation and projects
which aim to reduce reoffending. Project Oracle is
also ensuring that LCPF funds are directed to what
works, supporting voluntary sector organisations
such as MAC-UK, Growing against Gangs and
Violence and the Empower Project run by Safer
London Foundation to demonstrate impact. Local
authority investment has also supported Ending
Gang and Youth Violence (EGYV) funding,
providing sustainability to these borough
interventions. Last but not least, MPS have
continued to prioritise tackling gangs through the
dedicated Trident Gang Crime Command.
EGYV has played a part in supporting 20 London
boroughs33 to address gangs at a local level. The
MPS have created a dedicated Trident Gang Crime
Command, and the success of this coordinated
enforcement approach, coupled with national,
regional, and local investment has worked to
reduce the levels of gang crime.
GA Flagged Offences by
Neighbourhood
FY 2011/12
205 to 256 (1)
154 to 205 (2)
103 to 154 (1)
52 to 103 (5)
1 to 52 (90)
Inner London
Outer London
Borough
Neighbourhood
Strategic Ambitions for London - Gangs and Serious Youth Violence
19
CONTENTS
We have a better understanding of what works to
tackle gangs, in terms of the needs of gang
members and the pathways required to support
exit routes away from offending. Now Police and
Crime Commissioners, and MOPAC in London, have
unprecedented opportunities to bring together
partners and funding to ensure holistic approaches
across agencies to deliver safer cities.
But gangs themselves are dynamic and changing.
Increasingly there are growing indications to suggest
that gangs are becoming less territorial and more
concerned with income generation, such as through
the sale of drugs34. The movement of gang members
around London and outside of the city causes
additional challenges to agencies. In the financial
year 2011/12, inner London boroughs had recorded
67% of all gang flagged offences with outer London
boroughs recording 33%. In comparison, whilst the
most recent financial year 2013/14 has seen a
reduction of gang flagged offences across the MPS,
inner London boroughs recorded 54% with outer
London boroughs recording 46%. The maps below
show these changes.
In addition to the movement of gang activity, the
population of London is constantly growing and
changing and will continue to do so. Successful
efforts to reduce first time entrants to the criminal
justice system have meant that in the past few
years, fewer young people are incarcerated in
London’s prisons and young offender institutes.
However those offenders who are still imprisoned
are likely to require more intensive interventions to
effectively rehabilitate and reduce their risk of
reoffending. In London, the Mayor’s Police and
Crime Plan sets a clear ambition to reduce the
reoffending rate of this particularly difficult cohort,
and early indications are that reoffending rates are
appearing to begin a downward trend.
Resettlement work within the secure estate must
reflect this intensive need. The Transforming Youth
Custody, Transforming the Management of Young
Adults in Custody, and of course the wider
Transforming Rehabilitation (TR) agenda will all
alter the context in which partners both in
communities and in custody work together to
tackle gangs.
GA Flagged Offences by
Neighbourhood
FY 2013/14
52 to 103 (5)
1 to 52 (90)
Inner London
Outer London
Borough
Neighbourhood
Strategic Ambitions for London - Gangs and Serious Youth Violence
20
CONTENTS
Under the Ministry of Justice’s TR agenda, it will
be in the interests of the London Community
Rehabilitation Company service provider/s to
manage these risks and address these issues in a
holistic fashion alongside other community safety
and criminal justice partners.
These national and local changes provide us with
unique opportunities to deliver a spectrum of key
priority interventions to reduce the harm caused by
gangs in London, despite the funding pressure
facing the police and other public sector partners.
Through extensive consultation, the priority areas
were identified as follows.
Prevention
Many consultees noted that resourcing should be
targeted at preventing young people from
becoming gang-involved in the first place and that
particular attention needed to be focused on those
whose offending behaviour demonstrated
peripheral links to gangs.
Responses to the survey highlighted the need to
increase capacity and capability of schools and
other educational and youth settings to better
respond to children at the lower end of the risk
continuum; the need for support mechanisms in
schools and particularly support for young people
in the transition from primary to secondary school,
where they are particularly vulnerable to
approaches from gangs.
One of the key elements of what works to prevent
involvement with gangs and youth violence is
continued enrolment with the education process.
Research into at-risk young people was conducted
by the MPS35 in 2013. Engaging in criminality
outside school was identified as a main issue
(33%), followed by influence of family, truanting,
and violence towards peers. Mentoring by youth
workers and working with the family were
identified as two key areas of support required. The
research identified that over a third (36%) have a
younger sibling, highlighting the opportunity for
preventative work with families as well as with at
risk young people. Even in the most chaotic family
settings, parents often want what is best for their
children, they just need support to achieve it.
Partners should therefore focus resources on early
intervention and prevention, especially in
educational settings, working in partnerships with
schools and other education providers, and making
use of existing resources where possible, such as
Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hubs and Troubled
Families interventions. The Mental Health Crisis
Care Concordat also stresses the importance of
organisations working together wherever possible
to prevent mental health issues building towards
crisis point and intervene early to avoid this.
Intervention
A lack of meaningful, sustainable exit services was
highlighted as a critical gap in the survey.
Consultees at events stated that exit programmes
need to include an element of sustained support
for the young person and should be multi-faceted
in nature, addressing the complexity of an
offender’s needs wherever they are in London.
Gang exit provision for young women and girls is a
key gap that has been highlighted through scoping
and research in London, and is reflected in the
Mayor’s Violence against Women and Girls strategy
2013-17. There is a need for a pan-London
framework for consistent gang exit provision.
Strategic Ambitions for London - Gangs and Serious Youth Violence
21
CONTENTS
There was increasing recognition that there is a
high prevalence of mental well-being problems in
young people involved in gangs, brought on by
experiences of emotional trauma resulting from
exposure to violence, which must be addressed. In
2012, the GLA commissioned a research project36
to create a profile of the identified risks, needs and
issues associated with young people involved in or
at risk of involvement in serious violent offending.
This research found that almost two in three young
people involved in, or at risk of involvement in,
serious youth violence have been the victim of at
least one crime. They also found that young people
involved in or at risk of involvement in serious
violent offending commonly experience a range of
emotional wellbeing and mental health issues.
Needs in relation to mental health and emotional
trauma are present in both custody and the
community. Consistent mental health and
emotional trauma service provision is therefore
required in both environments. Young people
involved in or linked to gangs can also be victims
of crime, as can those who are not involved in gang
activity at all. Victims’ needs must be
acknowledged and addressed in the response to
gang violence.
Consultees were concerned with a lack of
consistency in service provision for gang involved
young people. There were two aspects to this;
service provision being offered by some
organisations varied; and a lack of consistency in
what was available borough by borough. The latter
was particularly relevant because gang-involved
young people are not static and support and
interventions need to follow the young person
rather than being limited by borough boundaries
and financial restrictions. Regardless of where an
individual lives, the interventions that he or she is
offered should be reliable and sustainable, and
appropriate to the needs of males and females.
Across all programmes of work, London needs a
consistent service offer which ensures equality of
opportunity to access services for people affected
by, or trying to escape from gangs.
Enforcement
Operational policing tactics was not a major focus
for consultees in regards to gangs. When people
have mentioned policing it has been in two
contexts; the need to develop the Trident Matrix to
better capture partner organisations’ intelligence
and the link between gangs, stop and search and
confidence in the police. The implementation of
stop and search does leave some communities
unsatisfied with the police. This in turn results in a
lack of confidence and through the consultation it
was highlighted that this in turn results in an
unwillingness to engage and work with the police
on critical issues such as gangs.
Since the reforms introduced by the STOP-IT
programme, the progress made by the MPS on
reducing the number of stops and making the use
of stop and search more targeted will help to
alleviate these concerns. However stop and search
remains a key tactic for the police to combat gang
violence and take the weapons off the streets that
facilitate it.
Survey respondents raised concerns about an
increase in grooming and targeting of children by
gangs to carry and sell drugs, often in different
parts of the country. This issue needs to be
understood nationally, not just locally, to help trace
missing children and work effectively with the
police and others across borders where drug supply
lines have been established. This will require
aligning delivery plans with the ambitions laid out
in the governments’ Serious and Organised Crime
Strategy37.
Strategic Ambitions for London - Gangs and Serious Youth Violence
22
CONTENTS
Leadership and Coordination
Survey respondents commented on the significant
role that the Voluntary and Community Sector
(VCS) can play in reducing the harm caused by
gangs in their area. In some areas VCS partners
were integral to solutions and delivery of services,
intelligence sharing and were part of governance
functions. For others the role of the VCS was
limited, however it was acknowledged that it would
benefit all concerned if this was developed.
Stronger links are therefore needed within and
between the police, statutory partners and the
voluntary and community sector.
The need for a co-commissioning of services was
highlighted. As budgets continue to reduce, cocommissioning at a regional or pan-London level
was seen as the best way forward.
Whilst it was noted that information sharing had
improved, consultees highlighted that
communication and information sharing was not
consistent at either a borough or a regional level.
In particular, poor cross-border and cross county
approaches were highlighted, and health partners
and schools should be more actively involved in
this agenda. Survey respondents highlighted the
need for a governance framework or board that has
clear lines of accountability and responsibility for
the co-ordination of gang related activity across
London. Senior strategic leadership must therefore
be maintained and data-sharing practice further
improved.
ADDITIONAL SENTENCE HER
Strategic Ambitions for London - Gangs and Serious Youth Violence
23
CONTENTS
Strategic Ambitions for London
Much of the ‘business as usual’ of LCRB partners
will not be reflected in this strategy. Our strategic
ambitions are about what will be different in
London. The three key elements from the first
LCRB Partnership Anti-Gangs Strategy have been
developed to create the key strands under which
our strategic ambitions will be delivered;
„„ Prevention: Ensuring that our children
and young people avoid gang involvement
by providing prevention programmes
accessible through state schools and other
educational establishments
„„ Intervention: A consistent approach to
commissioning and delivering sustainable
services in custody and the community to
reduce serious youth violence and the harm
caused by gangs
„„ Enforcement: A targeted criminal justice
system approach which delivers swift and
sure justice to deter and incapacitate the
most harmful gang members
Strategic Ambitions for London - Gangs and Serious Youth Violence
24
CONTENTS
LCRB partners will create the environment to deliver these ambitions across London through demonstrating
Leadership and Coordination; bringing partners together to ensure support for what works, and encourage
collaboration, innovation, and efficient working. This is outlined in the diagram below.
Our Strategic Aim
These are the
approaches to achieve
the strategic aim
Reduce the Harm Caused by Gangs
Prevention
Intervention
Prevention programmes Mental Health and
Emotional Trauma
What are we going to do?
Early intervention
Support for ‘at risk’
through transition
How will we create the
environment for this
to work
Measuring success
and impact
Gang Exit
Enforcement
MPS Trident/Criminal
Justice System resource
and partnership working
Victim Support
Civil Enforcement/
Judicial Restrictions
Resettlement
Tackling drug supply
lines across border
Leadership and Coordination
Voluntary and Community Sector Network
Financial investment and co-commissioning
Working in partnership across London
How will this be measured
Youth Crime Outcomes Framework
Gangs Dashboard
MPS Public Attitude Survey (PAS)
Strategic Ambitions for London - Gangs and Serious Youth Violence
25
CONTENTS
Prevention
In every part of the consultation, stakeholders spoke
about the importance of early intervention and
prevention. This further emphasises the need to ensure
that gangs and youth violence is seen as a safeguarding
issue, as much as a community safety issue.
In schools
The critical role of schools (including other
educational establishments) in early intervention and
prevention was consistently highlighted and many
noted the need to provide specific support at the
transition point from primary to secondary school.
Access to prevention services should be consistent
across the capital. There are over 2.3 million young
people in London, representing over 30% of the
population in London. The one place that most
young people have in common is school. Schools
and other educational and youth settings provide
the greatest opportunity to engage with and make a
difference to the safety and well-being of young
people. Better relationships between schools and
community safety partners must be built and access
to any prevention programme must be universal.
Any prevention package should be sufficiently
flexible to meet the needs and age of the audience,
and to cover a range of issues which affect young
people in relation to crime, safety, and well-being,
ensuring a holistic approach to prevention.
Work is already underway to build a structure for
police and schools to better engage with each other
locally. Building on this, Safer Schools Officers will
work in partnership with schools and community
safety partners to play a central role in preventing
youth violence and gang activity in their schools.
In the community
Gangs are a safeguarding problem and so must be
addressed wherever children and young people are;
at home, as well as at school, on transport or on the
streets. Outside of the school environment, the need
for working with the whole family and providing
targeted support for families was raised repeatedly.
In particular, where siblings of gang members can be
identified as ‘at risk’ of gang involvement,
opportunities for early intervention with the family
should be taken. Other signifiers of risk, such as
repeatedly going missing, should be identified
through Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hubs. As the
criteria for Troubled Families are reviewed, the
opportunity to intervene early to prevent gang
membership should be considered.
LCRB partners are already providing a range of
programmes for young people who are at risk of
becoming involved in criminality. These programmes
will continue to be supported and encouraged to
collaborate, along with those identified in the
MOPAC-MPS Crime Prevention Strategy: 20132016, such as uniformed youth groups like the
volunteer police cadets and other positive activities
to prevent involvement in crime.
LCRB partners will
ensure that by 2017:
Access to prevention programmes
in all London state schools and
educational establishments will be
available, enabling children and
young people to make positive life
choices.
Every ‘at risk’ child will receive
targeted support for a positive
transition to secondary school
Troubled Families, Multi-Agency
Safeguarding Hubs and other
family support and safeguarding
mechanisms should understand
and address gang issues
Strategic Ambitions for London - Gangs and Serious Youth Violence
26
CONTENTS
Intervention
Gang Exit
Exit services for those involved in gangs are the
crucial final stage of changing the life of a gang
member. Gangs in London will not truly be
addressed until there is a consistent and accessible
route out of gangs, for those who want to take it.
Any successful enforcement approach will require a
genuine offer of an alternative to gangs, which for
some people will require going through a managed
exit programme.
Making better use of the skills, ambition and
enterprise of young people is crucial. The success of a
pan-London gang exit programme will therefore be
judged not only by the reduction of young people
involved in gangs but by the number of those who
are engaged in legitimate and gainful employment.
Gang exit in the community is a perfect example of
where our current model does not always work for
service users or providers at a pan-London level.
Locally commissioned gang exit programmes can
result in inefficient duplication across borough
boundaries, and results in service provision gaps
across London. For service providers, multiple
commissioners mean duplicated processes. At the
same time, community safety budgets are shrinking,
putting further pressure on local services to support
high risk young people.
Housing is a critical element of gang exit but projects
can be hampered by there being a limited provision of
available housing stock in the capital and due to
challenges of competing priorities and categories of
need. Women and girls who are at risk through
gang-association, for example, will rarely meet the
threshold for accommodation. Simply moving a young
person and his/her family may be ineffective unless
consistent support is also provided to the family.
According to the Trident Gangs Matrix38, 184 gang
members were living outside their identified gangs’
borough, and it was stressed specifically in the
consultation that exit programmes should be made
available to non-EGYV boroughs.
For gang exit programmes, a positive outcome must
be that an ex-gang member is in a stable job earning
income through legitimate employment. LCRB
partners will work with voluntary and community
sector providers, commissioners, and local
authorities to ensure that gang exit in the
community, and associated support (see below) is
consistent and accessible across London. However, it
must work in partnership with local need, not
provide a one-size fits all approach and a panLondon gang exit programme must be flexible to
respond to local data analysis and accommodate
existing practice.
The needs of girls and women must be fully
integrated into this activity. The London Violence
against Women and Girls Strategy outlines how
MOPAC will encourage proactive identification and
needs assessment of gang-associated young women
and girls and develop safe exit strategies.
Mental health/ Emotional trauma
The consultation identified that the mental and
general health needs of gang-involved offenders and
gang-affected victims are not being met. This cohort
of young people was more likely to have emotional
and mental health needs but were not being provided
with support to deal with trauma and loss. This is
especially damaging because through the
consultation it was stressed that violent experiences
can foster violence – ‘hurt people hurt people’.
The risk that Child and Adolescent Mental Health
Services (CAMHS) were unable to meet the current
demand was also highlighted and that there was a
general lack of expertise and understanding of the
overlap between public health and community
safety.Ensuring that staff from schools, YOTS, and
VCS agencies working with young people have the
confidence to explore mental health and emotional
trauma with young people will ensure that referrals
to health practitioners are proportionate, and that
young people presenting with ill health and trauma
are identified and supported. Many consultees
viewed consistent and sustained engagement with
health practitioners as critical.
Strategic Ambitions for London - Gangs and Serious Youth Violence
27
CONTENTS
Needs in relation to mental health and emotional
trauma are present both in custody and the
community. Consistent mental health and emotional
trauma identification and service provision in both
environments is therefore needed and will form part
of the Health and Justice Strategic Plan currently
being developed by MOPAC and NHS England
(London region), as well as delivered through the
Mental Health Crisis Care Concordat.
It must be noted, however, that a focus on support
around mental health should not be to the
detriment of other pathways such as housing, which
remains crucial in order to deliver ambitions around
gang exit and resettlement.
Support for victims
Support services for those involved in gangs to
change their behaviour are crucial if young people
involved in, or harmed by, gang activity and
violence are to change their lives. The vast
proportion of services are directed towards young
people as offenders, yet research shows that gang
membership is associated with increased risk of
victimisation. This may be due to a number of
reasons: risky lifestyles; violence from within their
own gang or retaliation from rival gangs39. In
addition, gang members show inordinately high
levels of emotional trauma and mental ill health40,
and have often suffered significant bereavement or
loss41, so additional Government support for those
bereaved by homicide42 is welcome.
Gang-associated girls and women also have
multiple and complex needs which will require
specialist, gender-appropriate provision. Girls and
women who are sexually exploited and abused, or
coerced into participating in criminal activity must
also be provided with specialist victim support.
According to the Trident Matrix, 15% of gang
members have been a victim of a stabbing or
shooting or a gang-flagged crime. They may not
report the crime but they will need medical
intervention, through ambulance emergency aid or
attending hospital trauma centres. These windows
of opportunity must be harnessed to support
young people to change their lives.
Through the consultation events it was highlighted
that young people who are affected by gang
violence are not routinely getting the support they
need. Given what is known about why some young
people carry weapons, and the overlap between
victimisation and offending, it is clear that there is
a failure to sufficiently support young people who
are victimised and missing an opportunity to
prevent retaliation and escalation. This imbalance
must be addressed.
Resettlement
The consultation process highlighted the support
gang members received in the secure estate,
pre-release and once they were back in the
community. Survey respondents were particularly
concerned with violence in the secure estate
caused by the proliferation and concentration of
gang members in the secure estate. They told us
there needed to be a consistent offer for gang
involved young people in the secure estate in terms
of both support and interventions in order to
reduce the likelihood of reoffending.
The transition from secure estate to community is
managed through a resettlement process. Under
the TR agenda, the London Community
Rehabilitation Company (CRC) will soon be
responsible for providing resettlement support
within the secure state, as well as a ‘through the
gate’ service for offenders sentenced to less than
Strategic Ambitions for London - Gangs and Serious Youth Violence
28
CONTENTS
12 months imprisonment (this service is already
supplied to prisoners sentenced to more than 12
months) as they reintegrate into the community.
This reform to the probation landscape provides an
opportunity to build on and reinvigorate the
already existing services offered to gang members
to desist offending. Consistency between a
resettlement model and wider community based
gang intervention is therefore critical, and the ease
of transition key to supporting offenders. Regional
co-commissioning of gang exit could support this
ambition to build stronger bridges between release
from custody and gang exit into safe housing and
secure employment within the community.
The Youth Justice Board (YJB) and MOPAC will in
partnership design a resettlement model based on
an analysis of the gaps, challenges and
opportunities that exist in London. Gang members
exiting the secure estate will be addressed through
this model and through the pilot resettlement
consortia under development in South and East
London, which are very much focussed on
employment opportunities for offenders, including
gang members. This infrastructure will apply to
gang members to allow them to exit in a structured
and managed way, recognising that support is
required throughout the resettlement process, not
just at the start.
LCRB partners will
ensure that by 2017:
A collaborative pan-London gang
exit service will be created
Support for victims of youth- and
gang-related violence will be a key
priority when MOPAC takes
responsibility for victim
commissioning in October 2014
Mental health/ emotional trauma in
gang members will be consistently
identified and addressed
All London trauma centres will
have access to specialist support
for victims of gang-related
violence
A London resettlement model which
supports gang members to exit and
secure employment will be created
Strategic Ambitions for London - Gangs and Serious Youth Violence
29
CONTENTS
Enforcement
Since the Trident Gang Crime Command was
launched in February 2012, gun and knife crime
have reduced by 32% and 29% respectively43.
This success will be sustained by continuing to
support a dedicated gang command within the
MPS, with current policing resource levels for
Trident and at a borough level. Without this
investment in effective and targeted enforcement,
we risk violence rates rebounding to pre-2012
levels, and losing the opportunity presented for
partners to effectively engage in prevention and
early intervention, and a credible exit offer.
Ensuring that Trident Gang Crime Command
resources are maintained at current levels will
enable us to build on the successes of recent years,
but effective policing goes hand in hand with the
trust and confidence of London’s communities.
This is why the Mayor introduced an ambitious
target to increase confidence in the MPS by 20%
by 2016. It is recognised that police engagement
with young people, and the role that stop and
search practices play in confidence are of particular
relevance here. When well used, stop and search
has proved to be a valuable tool in taking weapons
off the streets, but when poorly used, it can be a
waste of police time and a source of resentment
among young people. MOPAC will work with young
people and the Stop and Search Community
Monitoring Network to develop a product that
illustrates the rights and expectations of those
subjected to stop and search.
Outlined above are the measures LCRB partners
will take to support those who want to turn their
lives around and desist from gang association and
criminality, but there will always be those who
chose to remain involved in gangs and criminality.
Londoners should be confident that the MPS and
wider Criminal Justice System will respond
robustly to gang cases. To support this intention,
the CPS in London introduced dedicated gangs
prosecutors, and MOPAC has been working with
the CPS to develop arrangements for appealing
unduly lenient sentencing. Post-sentence, the use
of asset seizure and other civil restrictions and
judicial disposals will be explored. Seizing the
assets of gang members, which can be used by
older gang members to recruit and attract
vulnerable young people, was highlighted as a
useful deterrent by consultees.
The consultation also highlighted that as there
was no cross agency case management system,
there was no pan-London understanding or
identification of which young people were at risk
of gang involvement. The MPS developed the
Gangs Matrix to identify the most harmful gang
members in London and it is heavily reliant on
police information. As a result it cannot
effectively gauge real-time conflict and tension
within local communities. When interpersonal
conflicts arise a nominals’ risk or harm level can
escalate rapidly. However like all such mechanisms
the Matrix is constantly evolving to improve
identification and this process will be supported
to ensure that information is shared and the
Matrix is enriched to capture and reflect the
changing nature of gangs in the capital.
Improving communities’ trust and confidence in
the police should also encourage and support
victims and witnesses to cooperate with
investigations into gang members. This will be
reflected in the victims’ work MOPAC will
undertake, mentioned above. In some
circumstances, individuals and communities
understandably fear reprisals from gang members.
Strategic Ambitions for London - Gangs and Serious Youth Violence
30
CONTENTS
But most communities do not wish to foster crime
and criminals. They do not want to support drug
dealing or violence in their streets. So they must
be provided with sufficient support to give them
the security to stand up against criminals.
Pan-London organisations such as MOPAC, MPS,
the National Probation Service (London) and the
London CRC, also have a key role to play in
supporting borough-based partners. Local
authorities and VCS partners hold valuable
expertise and drive change in their own areas, yet
gang-related offending can frequently occur
outside of the gang members’ home boroughs,
and indeed outside the capital itself. What affects
one borough in one way may have a different
affect on a neighbouring borough. Pan-London
organisations have the opportunity to spot trends
across the city and to bring partners together to
address developing issues, as well as sharing good
practice and learning. Sharing of relevant data
and information must be prioritised and
undertaken consistently. The pursuit of drugrelated business sales outside of London by
London gangs is one example of an area of focus
for LCRB partners in the coming year.
The government’s Serious and Organised Crime
Strategy outlines opportunities for disrupting the
criminal activity of gangs, such as through underutilised judicial restrictions and exploring and
maximising the powers available to enforcement,
criminal justice agencies, local authorities, and
other non-criminal justice organisations.
LCRB partners will
ensure that by 2017:
There will have been a reduction in
the number of victims of gun and
knife crime
MPS Trident Gang Crime Command
resources will have been
maintained at current levels
Young people will have an
increased awareness of their rights
regarding stop and search
Identification and risk assessment
for gang members will be better
aligned across agencies and fully
reflected throughout the CJS
decision-making process
Appeals are lodged against
sentences for gang cases which are
considered to be unduly lenient
Seizure of assets in gang cases will
be standard practice for the MPS
and the CPS
A coordinated approach involving
national and regional stakeholders
to tackle the activities of London
gangs outside of the capital will be
in place
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Leadership and Coordination: Creating the
environment to realise these ambitions
Creating lasting change takes time, and much hard
work and cooperation will be required in order for
these Strategic Ambitions to be realised. It was made
clear through the consultation that the LCRB had a
role in bringing partners together to ensure support
for what works, and encourage collaboration,
innovation, and efficiency.
Voluntary and Community Sector
engagement
Interventions, support, and other services for young
people involved in or affected by violence are often
provided by London’s vibrant voluntary and
community sector. Yet the gang-specific providers
within the sector have little access to second tier
support. There are few if any organisations which
bring the voluntary and community sector together
to build partnerships across areas, support learning
and build capacity and infrastructure. In the longerterm, the VCS should be supported to be more
cohesive, more sustainable, and better equipped to
respond to a changing financial environment.
Statutory service providers and regional bodies also
needed to harness the support of the communities
that gang-involved young people came from.
Working and engaging with communities directly
would also increase community confidence and
ensure that communities are more willing to report
crimes and provide information and intelligence to
the police. A consortium of practitioners working
collectively to support gang-involved young people
was suggested as a way forward.
Understanding what works
Both VCS partners and Local Authorities are keen to
have a shared understanding of what works, and
what the priorities and targets for London are.
Through the work of Project Oracle, MOPAC and
others are supporting projects to evidence the impact
they have. Although there is now a better idea of
what works for individual projects and areas of need,
there must also be a focus on what works for
London. Project Oracle have worked with MOPAC to
create a Youth Crime Outcomes Framework for
London. This will be tested and agencies supported
to implement the Framework to ensure a shared
alignment over the key outcomes being sought.
Financial Investment
This shared vision must ensure that existing funds
are used more efficiently through co-commissioning
with partners and avoiding duplication, in addition to
exploring and pursuing new investment models.
The partnership established with both Public Health
England and NHS England (London), and the
understanding that local Clinical Commissioning
Groups are key local commissioners must inform this
collaborative approach. The consultation highlighted
the need to maximise effectiveness for both the VCS
and commissioners through stopping short-term
grant funding and contributing small amounts from
different statutory groups.
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Information sharing
Data, information and intelligence sharing remains
the foundation upon which partners can identify
which resources should be shared and where they
should be targeted. Many local areas, particularly
London boroughs supported under the EGYV
programme, have already identified the extent of
gang activity in their boroughs. Information sharing
is improving, such as across the youth and violence
against women and girls sectors, though there is
still some way to go. Access to information remains
a challenge, particularly across sectors such as
health and education. Ensuring that gangs and
youth violence are issues reflected in borough Joint
Strategic Needs Assessments and that community
safety partners are represented (and vice versa) on
local Safeguarding Children Boards and Health and
Wellbeing Boards should support this aim.
LCRB partners will
ensure that by 2017:
A London Gangs & Youth Violence
Network will support the Voluntary
and Community Sector to
collaborate
Quality of service provision will be
consistently demonstrated through
a Youth Crime Outcomes
Framework for London
New opportunities for investment
and the use of innovative financial
models will be explored and
pursued
Services will be co-commissioned
where possible, based on
partnership data outlining local
need and demand
All London boroughs will use a
partnership problem profile of
gangs and youth violence in their
borough
London agencies will routinely
share information and data to
facilitate partnership working
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Performance and Governance
The London Crime Reduction Board, which brings
together local authorities, the MPS and criminal
justice agencies, is chaired by the Mayor of London
and has three clear priorities: gangs and serious
youth violence; reducing reoffending; and anti-social
behaviour. The purpose of the board is to provide
strategic leadership to improve co-ordination at a
regional level in respect of policing and crime
reduction in London.
The London Gangs Panel has been created to
promote and deliver integrated and innovative
solutions, policies and programmes and to deliver
improvements in tackling and preventing gangs and
serious youth violence. The London Gangs Panel is
chaired by Stephen Greenhalgh, Deputy Mayor for
Policing And Crime and co-chaired by Ray Lewis, the
Mayor’s Mentoring Advisor. The London Gangs
Panel will oversee and support the delivery of these
ambitions, ensuring that leadership and coordination
are facilitated at the strategic level by reporting into
the London Crime Reduction Board.
London Gangs Strategy Governance
London Crime
Reduction Board
LCRB Delivery
Management Group
Gangs Panel
VCS Gangs & Youth
Violence Network
Criminal Justice
System Subgroup
Local Authority
Subgroup
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The London Gangs Panel and LCRB will have a
responsibility to ensure that the achievement of
these ambitions is aligned with other pan-London
and Mayoral strategies and ambitions, such as the
Mayor’s London Violence Against Women and Girls
(VAWG) Strategy.
This document outlines a set of Strategic Ambitions.
To realise these ambitions a delivery plan will be
created, outlining what activity will take place in
order to achieve these ambitions. This delivery plan
will be a multi-agency, partnership document.
Implementation will be through delivery groups, in
addition to being channelled where possible through
existing panels, boards and partnerships, such as the
London Health Commission, London Safeguarding
Children Board, London VAWG Panel etc.
In order to measure impact, a London Gangs
Dashboard will be created. Londoners will be able to
see both information about gangs in London, and
the impact of these Strategic Ambitions on the harm
that they cause.
LCRB partners will
ensure that:
The London Gangs Panel will
ensure strong senior leadership
Delivery subgroups to the Gangs
Panel will drive delivery of these
Strategic Ambitions
A delivery plan will be created
Performance will be measured
through a new Gangs Dashboard
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Appendices
Glossary
Acronyms
For this document, the definition of gangs
developed by the Centre for Social Justice44 is used.
BAME – Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic
A gang is defined as a relatively durable,
predominately street based group of young people
who:
„„ See themselves (and are seen by others) as
a discernible group; and
„„ Engage in a range of criminal activity and
violence
They may also have any or all of the following
features:
„„ Identify with or lay claim over territory
„„ Have some form of identifying structural
feature
„„ Are in conflict with other, similar, gangs
A gang member (or nominal) is defined as ‘someone
who has been identified as being a member of a
gang and this is corroborated by intelligence from
more than one source (e.g. Police, partner agencies
or community intelligence).’
A ‘gang crime’ is “any Gang-related crimes or
crime-related incidents are such events where any
individual believes that there is a link to the activities
of a gang or gangs”.45
CAMHS – Children and Adolescent Mental Health
Services
CPS – Crown Prosecution Service
CRC – Community Rehabilitation Company
DMPC – Deputy Mayor for Policing And Crime
EGYV – Ending Gang and Youth Violence
GLA – Greater London Authority
LAS – London Ambulance Service
LCRB – London Crime Reduction Board
LCRB DMG – LCRB Delivery Management Group
LPT – London Probation Trust
MOPAC – Mayor’s Office for Policing And Crime
NPS – National Probation Service
MPS – Metropolitan Police Service
NOMS – National Offender Management Service
TR – Transforming Rehabilitation
VCS – Voluntary and Community Sector
YJB – Youth Justice Board
YOT – Youth Offending Team
YOS – Youth Offending Service
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References
1. Home Office (2013) Ending Gang and Youth Violence:
Review 2012-13. London: Home Office.
12. Youth Justice Board data, as of 18th March 2014. This data
does not include information on three YOTS
2. Independent Inspection of Youth Offending (2012) Core
case inspection of youth offending work: in England and
Wales. Report on London Core Case Inspections. HM Inspectorate of Probation: http://www.justice.gov.uk/downloads/publications/inspectorate-reports/hmiprobation/
youth-inspection-reports/core-case/london-cci.pdf
13. London Probation Trust data as of 18th March 2014.
3. Youth Justice Board and National Health Service (2010)
Health needs assessment of young people in London with
complex emotional, behaviour and mental health problems who are or may be at risk of committing a serious
crime. Health in Justice LLP: http://www.londonhp.nhs.
uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/The-London-needsassessment-for-young-people-with-complex-emotionalbehavioural-or-mental-health-problems.pdf
4. Mayor’s Office for Policing And Crime (2013) Strategic
Framework for Responding to Gang-Associated Women and
Girls. London: MOPAC: http://www.london.gov.uk/sites/
default/files/MOPAC_gangs%20and%20girls.pdf
5. See http://www.london.gov.uk/priorities/policing-crime/
how-we-work/funding
14. Conducted by the Evidence and Insight Unit, MPS
15. Range = 9-40 years
16. 2984 individuals identified from the Matrix with a criminal
background. Updated extract, April 2014, from the Police
National Computer.
17. The MPS place a ‘flag’ on offences they believe are related
to gang activity, known as a ‘GA flag’.
18. Ambulance Attendance to victims of Knife or Gun Injuries
aged under 25 years (Calendar Year 2013)
19. Violence with injury, Knife crime offences, Gun crime offences and Gun discharges
20. Beckett, H with Brodie, I., Factor, F., Melrose, M., Pearce,
J., Pitts, J., Shuker, L and Warrington, C. (2013) “It’s
wrong… but you get used to it” - A qualitative study of
gang-associated sexual violence towards, and exploitation of, young people in England. Office of the Children’s
Commissioner: http://www.beds.ac.uk/__data/assets/
pdf_file/0005/293234/Gangs-Report-final.pdf
6. Mayor’s Office for Policing And Crime (2012) London Crime
Reduction Board Partnership Anti-Gangs Strategy. London:
MOPAC.http://www.london.gov.uk/priorities/policingcrime/mission-priorities/lcrb-partnership-anti-gangsstrategy
21. Total number of children reported to Missing People
January 2012- August 2013 with London links, Missing
children in London – gang exploitation summary to MOPAC
(unpublished)
7. GLA 2013 round of SHLAA-based capped population projections
23. Gang nominal identified on the Trident Matrix as of 24th
April 2014
8. As of April 2014
24. The Public Attitude Survey interviews 12,800 Londoners
each year about their experiences and attitudes towards
policing. Data from financial year 2013/14
9. The Trident Matrix is used to identify the most harmful
gang members in the MPS. It scores individuals who are in
a gang, who are identified as gang members by police and
partners. Intelligence on an individual’s previous violent
history in the last 3 years is also used. Then, individuals are
scored and designated as red, amber, or green based on
their level of harm. Like all risk-based matrices, the Trident
Gangs Matrix changes over time. The top 10 boroughs
with individuals listed on the Matrix are already designated
by the Home Office as Ending Gangs and Youth Violence
Boroughs (EGYV).
10. Live refers to gang nominals not currently in custody
11. It should be noted that gang-associated women and girls
are rarely likely to be identified through this process as
even those that are actively involved in gangs are not the
most dangerous offenders so local areas should not rely on
the gangs risk matrix to identify gang-associated young
women and girls
22. n=176, Financial year 2010/11
25. 1% to 28%, Q4 2013.14
26. Violent crime refers to physical violence excluding weaponenabled crimes such as knife and gun crime.
27. Hope, R., Grossmith, L., Dawson, P. (2012) Youth Talk: The
Voice of Young London. Unpublished: Metropolitan Police
Service.
28. Home Office (2011) Ending Gang and Youth Violence: A
Cross-Government Report. London: Home Office.
29. Home Office (2013) Ending Gang and Youth Violence: Annual Report 2013. London: Home Office.
30. Smithson, H., Ralphs, R., Williams, P. (2012) “Used and
Abused: The Problematic Usage of Gang Terminology in the
United Kingdom and Its Implications for Ethnic Minority
Youth”, British Journal of Criminology., 53 (1), 113-128.
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31. Maher, J. (2010). ‘Youth Gang Crime’ In Brookman, F.,
Maguire, M., Pierpoint, H., and Bennett, T,H. (eds) Handbook of Crime. Uffculme, Devon: Willan.
32. See: http://www.london.gov.uk/priorities/policing-crime/
how-we-work/funding
33. Barking & Dagenham, Brent, Camden, Croydon, Ealing,
Enfield, Greenwich, Hackney, Hammersmith & Fulham,
Haringey, Islington, Lambeth, Lewisham, Merton, Newham,
Southwark, Tower Hamlets, Waltham Forest, Wandsworth,
Westminster.
34. The Police Foundation (2013) A fresh start to tackling
youth crime. A briefing for Police and Crime Commissioners.
London: The Nuffield Foundation.
35. MPS Gangs Prevention proposalv9 (unpublished), October
2013, MPS. The research was carried out at 11 education
establishments across the boroughs of London, seven of
them Pupil Referral Units, and four Schools. It consisted of
interviews with senior staff and a data capture of information on individuals identified as on the trajectory of serious
offending in gangs, but where there is a chance to carry out
preventative work before they become deeply entrenched.
36. Research into violent young offenders and young people at risk of violence (unpublished), Cordis Bright, April
2012. The research involved research into 315 case files
across the Youth Offending Teams (YOTs) of seven London
Boroughs. Within this group of young people the research
has focused on young people involved in gangs, guns and
knives.
37. Serious and Organised Crime Strategy, HM Government,
October 2013
38. As of January 31st 2014
39. Katz, C, C., Webb, V, C., Fox, K., and Shaffer, J. (2011)
“Understanding the relationship between violent victimization and gang membership”. Journal of Criminal Justice.,
39, 48-59.
40. Coid, J, W., Ullrich, S., Keers, R., Bebbington, P., DeStavola,
B, L., Kallis, C., Yang, M., Reiss, D., Jenkins, R., and Donnelly, P (2013), “Gang membership, violence, and psychiatric morbidity”, American Journal of Psychiatry., 170,
985-993.
41. Cordis Bright (2012, April) Research into violent young offenders and young people at risk of violence (unpublished).
42. Ministry of Justice announcement, 20 April 2014
43. MPS data, provided 14.05.14
44. Centre for Social Justice (2009) Dying to Belong. An InDepth Review of Street Gangs in Britain. London: Centre
for Social Justice.
45. MPS Trident Gangs Crime Command Matrix briefing (unpublished)
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