Lancashire police tackle knife crime with If

knife

If has won a competitive pitch to work on a new knife crime campaign for Lancashire Constabulary.

Intended to tackle its root causes, it’s based on research into the emotions and behaviours around knife crime.

Designed to be social first, it uses messaging, which they hope will connect with a teenage audience.

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“The if agency worked closely with the team and we are really pleased with the final campaign, it’s been shaped with our neighbourhoods in mind and I hope that it will encourage individuals to stop, think and believe they can step away from knife crime and make a positive change to their life,” said Detective Chief Superintendent Sue Clarke, Head of the Lancashire Violence Reduction Network.

The creative features positive messages to inspire and lead by example, such as: “but after the last few months, I know I make better choices when I’m not with them.”

Initially running on Instagram, it combines video, stills, paid stories and posts of the real life experiences of young people and shows the impact of knife crime and how making positive decisions can change a young life for the better.

The next phase will focus on the wider community, providing support to parents and helping them spot the signs that their children may be involved in knife crime.

“With such a focus on academic results many young people are left feeling insecure & worthless, so, we set out to show them what’s possible – to inspire them with endless possibilities, often harnessing natural abilities like creativity or character traits. Anything to give them a focus & leave them believing they can,” explained Jo Whiteley, Creative Director at if.

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