HUNDREDS of Cumbrian children have been convicted or cautioned for knife crimes in just over a decade, figures show.

Ministry of Justice figures for Cumbria Constabulary show young people were involved in 207 out of 1,543 cases involving knives and offensive weapons, resulting in cautions or convictions between July 2010 and June 2021.

94 of those punishments were handed to children aged between just 10 and 15.

Young offenders were sent to prison in 22 of the cases recorded in the last 11 years, while 106 investigations ended with community sentences and 65 led to a caution being issued.

The true scale of crimes involving children is likely to be higher as the data is limited to the possession of knives or offensive weapons and threats involving such weapons.

Cumbria Police's Chief Superintendent Matt Kennerley said: “We work closely throughout the year with partner agencies across the county to tackle knife crime in Cumbria.

“We do this by enforcing the law and we also work to tackle the problem through education.

“We want to educate people from an early age about the dangers of carrying a knife and getting involved in violent crime – and we also speak to retailers on their responsibilities.

“In one example of this, we recently ran our regular surrender initiative, Operation Sceptre, which gave people in Cumbria the chance to hand in unwanted knives.

“As part of this, officers engaged with retailers to provide further guidance on their legal duty to ensure knives are not sold to young people.

“We also have Child Centred Policing Teams in Cumbria, which are dedicated to prevention of youth crime.

“There are many risks when you carry a knife, the obvious one being you are putting yourself and others at risk of serious injury or worse.

“While Cumbria has had a number of high-profile knife-related incidents in recent years, and we have all seen the impact these have had on people’s lives and wider communities, we thankfully do not have a specific knife culture or youth gang culture.

“But we are never complacent about an issue as serious as this so work hard all-year-round to prevent and prosecute these types of crimes.”

Barrow and Furness MP Simon Fell said: "There is no need for anyone to carry a knife on the streets - doing so puts you, and those you're with, in increased danger and is a crime in and of itself. I'd urge anyone thinking of carrying a knife to think twice and not make a bad decision that will have far-reaching consequences.