Speaking as forces across the country marked the
national Op Sceptre anti-knife campaign, Supt Phil Staynings said they could not “police their way out of the problem”.
He said Wiltshire Police had put a renewed focus on early intervention schemes aimed at diverting youngsters away from carrying knives, with officers working directly with teachers through a new police and schools panel and programmes supporting families of children known to be at risk of falling into crime.
But Supt Staynings also confirmed that the force’s knife carrier’s index – a log of those suspected or confirmed to routinely carry knives – had 25 names on it.