Government provides £3.5 million funding for Cleveland Police violent crime unit

Cleveland Police will be given £3.5 million to set up a unit tasked with preventing violent crime.

The announcement comes after it was found that the Cleveland area has the second highest rate of violent crime anywhere in the country. 

It is hoped the violence reduction unit will go some way to preventing crimes being committed in the first place, with the funding given over the next three years by the Home Office. 

It is the first time funding has been provided to the area by the government specifically to try to reduce violent crime. 

Police and Crime Commissioner Steve Turner welcomed the news, saying: "It’s amazing news that we have secured funding that will address such a long-standing and serious issue for the area. I know my team and Cleveland Police has been calling for this funding for years."

However, Mr Turner acknowledged there is still a lot of work to be done, adding: “There are still too many people in Cleveland who have their lives touched by serious violence, whether through being a victim themselves or by losing a loved one to violent crime. 

“This is not a quick fix. It could take years to the reverse the trends we are currently seeing”. 

Young people living in lower income households are at increased risk of committing violent crimes. In 2019 Middlesbrough, had the highest proportion of people claiming income-supporting benefits of anywhere in the country. 

In an ITV News Tyne Tees special report, Detective Chief Inspector of Cleveland Police Steve Chatterton said "resourcing issues" are partially responsible for high crime rates.

"I can't deny that the resourcing issues that we have in the police with the low numbers that we've currently got has a knock on effect," he said.

"The more resources that we would have would have, the more visible we could be on the street which would then have a knock on effect on people carrying knives."

Barney Green, a consultant vascular surgeon at James Cook University Hospital in Middlesbrough, said: “I am absolutely thrilled that the Home Office has recognised the problem we have in our region with serious violence and have provided the much-needed financial support to fund a Violence Reduction Unit in Cleveland." 

He added: “There is no doubt that the collaborative work of the VRU [Violence Reduction Unit] will have a positive impact in our area”. 

Acting Chief Constable Helen McMillan said: “I am delighted that this funding is being made available to the Cleveland area for the benefit of local people and future generations. 

“Having dealt with a number of serious incidents involving knives and weapons… and speaking to victims and their families, I know how much violent crime can devastate lives”. 

Ms McMillan said the new unit was needed to “guide young children and adults away from a life of violence”.