Essex anti-knife campaigner receives British Citizen Award
Julie Taylor set up the Liam Taylor Legacy.
An anti-knife campaigner, whose grandson was fatally stabbed outside a pub in Essex, has just received a British Citizen Award for her work.
Julie Taylor set up the Liam Taylor Legacy working with prisoners, school children and across the county to tackle youth knife crime. Her grandson was fatally stabbed outside a pub in Writtle in January 2020.
Ever since his death, his family have been campaigning to eradicate knife crime.
Julie says despite new laws, knives are still so accessible:
"I just want to stop all these senseless murders and I want kids to be educated to not carry a weapon. Online sales are a really big issue in this country; it's horrendous, the amount of things that are easily accessible for our children. We need education - education should start in Primary Schools.
"The more youth clubs we've got out there to support children, the more professional people there are out there to be on hand when something goes wrong. We know a lot of kids carry knives for their own protection; we can't make them see that this is wrong, but they need someone to talk to.
"If children aren't speaking to parents or guardians about these things, then that conversation needs to be had. Just be open, honest and caring. We've got to get these knives off the street - it's got to be stopped."