Award-winning mentor and speaker Paul Hannaford gave a hard-hitting talk to students as part of Uxbridge College’s commitment to helping young people stay safe.
Paul’s presentation to around 2,000 students, organised in line with the Government’s Modern Crime Prevention Strategy and the Mayor of London’s Knife Crime Strategy, is part of the college’s ongoing programme of talks and activities to support young people’s employability and life skills and to maintain their safety.
Paul tours schools and colleges with his presentation, which cautions young people against the risks associated with carrying weapons and drug use. He explained the consequences of carrying knives, including unplanned usage, tragic, unavoidable deaths, and long jail sentences. Students also learn more about the relevant laws around knife carrying in compulsory college tutorial sessions.
Liam Plumridge, Course Team Leader for Employability, Progress and Review, who organised the visit, said: “Paul gave an inspiring talk which really made students think. Tragically, and as we all know, knife crime is on the increase, with a shocking number of young people continuing to lose their lives because of it. We pride ourselves on having a safe college and are committed to doing all we can to support this going forward and to equip our students to feel as safe as possible both inside and outside college.”
Paul Hannaford has given his talk to around 400,000 young people and won a number of awards for his campaigning work.