Netflix's Adolescence delivers vital message says Redditch anti-knife campaigner
The series focuses on a teenage boy arrested for the murder of a young girl
Last updated 25th Mar 2025
A Worcestershire anti-knife crime campaigner says Netflix crime drama Adolescence is a real eye opener for people on the topic of knife crime. The show stars Stephen Graham and newcomer Owen Cooper and centres around the murder of a young girl.
The prime minster Sir Keir Starmer has backed a campaign to show the series in schools, which focuses on a teenage boy arrested for the murder of a young girl.
Pete Martin from Redditch has taught thousands of young people about the dangers carrying a weapon can have after his best friend was stabbed and opened a new youth community centre in the town last year aimed at deterring people from becoming involved in knife crime.
He says the show has had a real impact on people and has praised it for highlighting knife crime in an accurate way.
"It portrayed a really important message about young people carrying knives and some of the reasons that people don't always think about," Pete said.
"We've had a lot of feedback of how it made parents feel, some were quite triggered, some were shocked, some found it very interesting, but it's had a real impact on our community and really got people talking about knife crime and knife crime amongst younger people in particular.
"There's a lot of work being done by youth workers, people in the community, to raise awareness and try and drive this message forward, now we want it backed up with proper action from the government."
The government pledged in September to halve knife crime in a decade, with the prime minster saying he would be looking at bringing in new measures to make it tougher to buy knives online following the Southport attack last summer.
It would see two types of identification required for people buying them, such as a live video to prove they are of an age to purchase one, as well as a drivers license or passport.
Stricter rules for online retailers selling knives have also be introduced by the government through 'Ronan's Law', which means retailers will need to report suspicious and bulk purchases of knives on their platforms to police, with tougher sentences for selling knives to under 18s.