Police Commissioner seeks long-term funding assurance from the Prime Minister to tackle violence

Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Police and Crime Commissioner Rupert Matthews emphasised the need for long-term funding to boost efforts to prevent violence during the Prime Minister’s visit to Leicester this week.

The Commissioner met Boris Johnson and Chancellor Rishi Sunak during a visit to the British Gas training academy in Aylestone Road.

Mr Matthews took the opportunity to highlight the need for a three-year funding settlement for the county’s Violence Reduction Network (VRN) to sustain its work with vulnerable young people at risk of being drawn into violence.

The Commissioner, who is also Chair of the local Violence Reduction Board, is determined to increase opportunities for young people at risk of crime and violence and offer practical and emotional support to help them make a fresh start.

He said: “The funding we receive centrally to support the VRN’s work is already making a huge difference to young people’s lives and their futures. However, as I pointed out to the Prime Minister, there is much more work to do and it would be helpful to have the security of a three-year funding deal to be able to plan ahead.

“Our violence prevention strategy is now fully embedded in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland and we are already seeing the dividends of intervening early and supporting young people along the path to adulthood.

“I am determined to sustain these efforts and have asked the Prime Minister for a long-term funding commitment that will not only allow us to increase our engagement with those at risk but plan with certainty how we will meet the needs of young people in the future.”  

Mr Matthews is planning to write a follow-up letter to the Prime Minister and the Chancellor to formalise his views on the need for a longer-term funding solution for tackling violence.  

“There are no quick-fixes to violence – we all realise that – so a long-term strategy enabling us to plan for the future is a sensible move,” he said.

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