Sculpture of angel made from thousands of knives goes on display in Gloucester

  • Video report by Victoria Davies

A sculpture of an angel made up of one hundred thousand knives that have been seized by police has gone on display at Gloucester Cathedral. 

The Knife Angel artwork tours around the country, aiming to highlight the devastating impact of knife crime.

It is the only national monument that has been made from used weapons. 

The idea is to raise awareness, but also to start a conversation.

The angel which is 27 feet tall stands prominently next to Gloucester Cathedral and will stay there for the rest of the month.

Latest figures show that police forces across the West investigated nearly 1,800 offences in 2020-21. 

For those who work with young people in the city, it is hoped the piece of art will help spread a powerful message.

The statue will be in Gloucester until the end of February

Esme Lord from a local business, The Cavern said: "I think it's such a big physical presence, it sends out a clear message this stuff is still going on.

"The biggest thing we notice is there are lots of things that can encourage knife crime, like rough sleeping and isolation, and we notice a lot of people come to us who are vulnerable, and those things can lead you down certain pathways to crime."

Fuzz Asghar from Gloucestershire Youth Support Team said: "We make young people aware of carrying a knife, the dangers, the consequences and obviously you could end up in custody or you could die."

People visiting the statue said they found it thought-provoking: "It's scary the number of knives there, but then hopefully they're not out on the streets being used by people causing harm."

"It's bigger than I thought it was going to be and more knives found and taken from young people than I thought."

"Repurposing them in this way makes it clear how much there is a problem about the way we think of knives and the way people think about carrying them."

Local film director Joshy Lee is also hoping to use his art form to bring about social change.

His film called Boy in The Corner was shot and made in the city.

He said: "You wouldn't think in a small city it would be an issue but it only takes a little bit of research and searching to see how prevalent it is, so we made the film to make people aware there are charities and organisations that can help them out."