Nottingham MP: There's 'a lot to do' to ensure people feel safe in Nottingham

Nottinghamshire Police say they're continuing to target offenders they believe are coming into the city centre armed with knives.

The force has stepped up patrols in Nottingham in the wake of recent high-profile knife related incidents.

Alex Norris is the Labour MP for Nottingham North and Kimberley. He says the problem's being taken seriously:

"There's a lot to do, because we want people to feel safe in our city.

"Firstly, I know the police, are making sure they're around doing reassurance patrols. We are making changes as a government to take knives off the streets, particularly by making sure they can't be bought and delivered by post. Though, there are long term things we need to do as well which is around our young future's programme which will reduce youth violence.

"So it's a mixture of the very immediate, which we're taking very seriously and then longer term changes to reduce this violence which we know has increased in recent years."

Nottinghamshire Police said the patrols – both uniformed and plain-clothed - have already seen a reduction in crime across the city centre.

They have also been supported by Nottingham City Council’s community protection officers which have carried out more than 100 patrols, including across the tram network.

The police patrols were deployed last week after mounting concerns by the public over three incidents that happened over the space of a few days.

Officers have already made a significant number of arrests in relation to all three incidents, with a number of people now charged and appearing before the courts.

Patrols have also targeted those we believe are coming into the city centre armed with a knife through stop and searches.

We're told this has resulted in three arrests and charges for possession of a bladed article including a lock knife, pocket knife, and kitchen knife.

The county's Police and Crime Commissioner Gary Godden previously said to us this was a "powerful tool to use" but one that needs to be used legally and legitimately.

Officers have also arrested a number of people for possession or possession with intent to supply drugs as knife crime and drugs are often interlinked.

Four dispersal orders were also issued for those likely to cause problems in the city, which means they cannot return to the area for a period of 48 hours. Breaching this order can result in arrest.

Assistant Chief Constable Suk Verma, head of local policing, said:

“Last week, I made a commitment to the people of Nottingham, and I will continue to stand by it. The public can expect to see high-visibility patrols across the city centre and these patrols will continue until the public feel reassured. This will be a combination of our neighbourhood policing teams, response teams, as well as our knife crime team.

“Nottingham is a safe city, and we will not allow the actions of a few to spoil it for the majority of law-abiding citizens.

“I couldn’t be clearer with my stance – if you come into the city with a knife then our officers will make it as difficult as possible for you to operate. We will use all the powers at our disposal to make sure you are put before the courts or we look at measures that will see you banned from the city centre. Carrying a knife is both reckless and dangerous and there is absolutely no justification whatsoever for you to have one in your possession. We hope that the significant number of arrests and charges we have made so far offers the public some reassurance.”

Meanwhile, local leaders and community organisations are coming together to discuss a joint approach to tackling knife crime tomorrow.

Nottingham City Council, Nottinghamshire Police and Crime Commissioner, Nottinghamshire Police and a range of local partners are due to be there to make continued improvements to public safety.

First for all the latest news from across the UK every hour on Hits Radio on DAB, at hitsradio.co.uk and on the Rayo app.