Dear Residents,

From today it is illegal to possess, sell, make or transport zombie knives and machetes.

The law change follows a month-long surrender scheme which encouraged people to hand in any weapons in their possession before the change in law came into place.

Detective Superintendent Andy Glenn, Serious Violence lead for Northamptonshire Police, said: “I welcome this change of law which gives us more powers to seize these dangerous weapons.

“I’m sure people will be surprised that until now it’s been legal to own zombie knives which we know are used by people involved in crime.

“We will be using the new legislation to take these weapons off the streets and bring offenders to justice.

“We are committed to doing all we can to reduce knife crime in Northamptonshire and this new legislation will help us do that.”

Tackling serious violence is a matter of priority for Northamptonshire and our Youth Violence Intervention Unit is taking a long-term approach to improving the lives of young people involved in this type of crime, providing support and intervention to them and their families in a bid to prevent them falling into a life of crime.

Det Supt Glenn added: “We know that some young people carry knives in the mistaken belief that it will make them safer, however doing so will put them at more risk and can affect their future and ruin their life. Carrying a knife can and does result in serious injury, death, prison sentences and impact on people’s ability to get jobs.

“Lots of help and support is available for people who feel they need to carry or use knives, you can find out more about what’s on offer via www.northants.police.uk/knifecrime.”