Knife Angel visits Leeds as monument to lives lost - councillor

The Knife Angel will be unveiled at the Royal Armouries Museum in Leeds on 1 February

A touring sculpture made from 100,000 knives will go on display in Leeds as a "monument to lives lost", a councillor said.

The Knife Angel, made from blades seized by police, will arrive at the Royal Armouries Museum on 1 February.

The 27ft (8m) sculpture has toured the country since 2017 to remind people of the dangers of knife crime.

City councillor Debra Coupar said that despite falling knife crime rates, it "remains a serious issue" in the area.

The sculpture marks the launch of a month dedicated to raising awareness around knife crime.

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Ms Coupar, Leeds City Council's executive member for resources, said: "We're looking forward to hosting the Knife Angel sculpture, both as a monument to lives we've tragically lost and as a force to help reinforce the work we've been doing around how we can change these behaviours.

"As a city we take knife crime and violence in general very seriously and it's something we and our partners work hard to address with young people and their parents or guardians."

The Knife Angel is made from more than 100,000 blades seized by police

Ch Supt Steve Dodds, of West Yorkshire Police, said any incident of knife crime was "one too many".

"We are acutely aware of the tragic consequences of youth knife crime, the young lives that have been senselessly lost here in Leeds and the families who are left to live with that," he said.

"The arrival of the Knife Angel and the work that sits around it will be an excellent opportunity to build on the work we have been doing to keep our young people and our communities safe."

Alongside the sculpture, the museum will be running free learning sessions on knife crime to local secondary schools.

The Knife Angel was created by the British Ironwork Centre to "highlight the negative effects of violent behaviour whilst solidifying our critical need for social change".

The sculpture, which was recently displayed in Bradford, features messages from families of victims of knife crime engraved on its wings.