Wokingham

During the Wokingham half term holiday (February 12 to 16), over 200 young people from the Wokingham district have backed an anti-knife campaign by signing a pledge wall in memory of Damilola Taylor.

Organised locally by Wokingham District Council’s villages youth project, a mobile pledge wall was taken to a variety of venues in the district during the half term holiday and young people were encouraged to sign the wall and pledge never to carry a weapon in the future.

And on Friday (February 16) young people were joined by Wokingham District Council’s chairman Cllr Angus Ross and town Mayor Cllr Dianne King at the pledge wall in Market Place, Wokingham.

Wokingham Neighbourhood youth worker Louise Morris who organised the event said: “We ran a whole series of themed-events to challenge young people about weapon carrying and to raise awareness of their dangers. Whilst this is a serious topic, we also wanted to offer a whole range of fun activities for young people to take part in. It was a hugely successful week.”

Stacey Tagg, aged 18, from Finchampstead, said: “We want to make sure that young people do not carry knives or weapons and that everyone feels safe in their community. Sometimes young people think they will be safe if they carry a knife. But this is not always the case and we need to remind them that carrying a knife is not a good way to protect themselves – it can be a way for them or others to get badly hurt or even worse. We have talked to so many young people this week, and I hope this campaign will really make a difference.”

Wokingham District Council