Crimestoppers Extends Knife Crime Text Service

Crimestoppers, the crime fighting charity, is extending its knife crime text service to young people across the whole of London. The text service, which uses mBloxs mobile transaction network, enables young people to people to anonymously provide information to Crimestoppers about who is carrying knives in their schools by sending a simple text message. Following a successful pilot in Tower Hamlets, the service will now be promoted in all schools in Londons 32 boroughs through an educational and marketing campaign.
The Tower Hamlets pilot scheme was highly successful and yielded useful information for local police officers. It is hoped that this extension across London will further help combat knife crime in the capital. During the roll-out phase, Crimestoppers will initially be working proactively in the 15 London boroughs most affected by knife crime,  promoting the service through workshops and talks.
The service was developed in conjunction with Anderson Software who provided the specialised, secure, software that ensures that pupils remain anonymous when sending information to the police via text. A similar scheme supported by mBlox is also being rolled out in 32 cities in the US and 16 cities in Canada.
Mobile phones play a fundamental role in the lives of young people today, says mBlox Chairman, Andrew Bud. This project recognised that engaging students in their preferred medium will help encourage them to pass on information about knife crime in a quick and easy way.  Crucially, the secure system allows them to maintain their anonymity, undeniably leading to greater usage by students and assisting Crimestoppers in its fight against knife crime.