Knife bins coming to Burnley to keep dangerous blades off the streets

The safe and secure containers will be located in busy, well-lit areas that are easy to get to as part of Lancashire Constabulary’s ongoing work to keep knives off the streets and providing people with a legal and safe way to surrender knives and bladed items.

The bins will be located at Calico Homes, Croft Street, BB11 2ED, and Valley Street Community Centre, BB11 5LY.

Using the bins helps to keep unwanted bladed weapons out of circulation. Any knives will be disposed of by the police unless there is an obvious sign one has been used in a crime.

Chief Insp Steve Anderton, Knife Crime Lead at Lancashire Violence Reduction Unit said: “Knives and sharp objects are present in everyone’s home and are easily picked up by children and young people. Providing a safe facility for dealing with unwanted knives is just one of many ways we can come together with communities to keep knives off our streets and protect young people.

“Anyone who has a knife or bladed weapon can dispose of it in the knife bins where it will be taken away and destroyed. We want to keep knives off the streets and keep our young people safe and providing a way for people to dispose of bladed items helps us to do that.”

The new facilities come after Lancashire Constabulary secured government funding to help tackle increased knife crime.

Clive Grunshaw, Lancashire's Police and Crime Commissioner said: “Knives can have a tragic impact on people’s lives as a consequence of them being used as weapons. I fully support the public health approach to violent crime and that we need to work across our communities and organisations to make Lancashire a safer place, something which Lancashire Violent Reduction Unit is working hard to do.

"Knife bins provide a key focal point which encourage people to dispose of them safely and help make our streets safer, whilst acting as a reminder that carrying a knife is illegal, and you will be arrested and prosecuted if you are caught with one.

"Tackling crime and reoffending, particularly violent crime, is a key priority for us in Lancashire. We continue to lose too many young lives to serious violence and it’s crucial that all parts of our society work together to tackle it head-on and make our communities safer."

If you have any information about knife crime in Lancashire, please contact the police on lancahire.police.uk/reportonline, call 101 or the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.