Tomasz Oleszak's friends welcome street lights debate

Frankie and Corben want to see more street lighting which they say will improve the area for the local community

A council is to consider a petition calling for better street lighting at a popular meeting spot where a teenage boy was stabbed to death.

Tomasz Oleszak, 14, was murdered in The Lines in Springwell, Gateshead, in October.

Since his death his friends have been campaigning to reduce knife crime with community group Youth Focus North East.

Gateshead Council said councillors would discuss the petition, which attracted 808 signatures.

The unlit pathway is a popular meeting place for young people

The teenagers said they wanted "bright lights for dark nights" after voicing concerns about the fear of crime in the area.

David McCreedy, the director of youth programmes at Youth Focus NE, said a session was held with the youngsters in Springwell last week following the sentencing of Leighton Amies, who was convicted of Tomasz Oleszak's murder.

He described the mood as "sombre with time for reflection" but said the young people would be "so happy" to discover their petition would be heard.

"It's amazing to know their hard work hasn't been undone and they are looking forward to something positive hopefully coming out of all of this," he said.

"We've had posters, QR codes and sessions in schools to try to promote the petition, the young people have had a lot of drive to do it."

Tomasz Oleszak, who was stabbed in The Lines, was a popular teen and keen footballer

Gateshead Council said it would review and respond to the petition.

A spokesperson for the local authority said: "Our next steps will be to discuss the 808 responses with members, in line with our consultation policy.

"We will then respond to the original petitioner as soon as is practical and provide an explanation of why we came to our decision directly."