AC3.1: Plan Campaigns for Change Relating to Crime
Aims
My campaign for change will focus on changing the awareness of knife crime, as it is an
increasing issue within the United Kingdom. According to a report by the Office for National
Statistics, the number of people killed with a knife in England and Wales in 2021/22 was the
highest on record for 76 years. My aim for this campaign will be to educate people on the
effects that knife crime has and the ripple effect it will have on the victim’s family, friends, and
community. Another aim I will have is to change how knife crime is perceived by the younger
generation. Knife crime is often involved in the lives of young adults, or even children as they
are immersed in a ‘vicious circle,’ for example if they are involved in a gang or drug network,
there is an expectation to have that ‘fear or be feared’ mentality, which is why they carry
weapons such as knives. My final aim is to encourage people to report the crime and take it
more seriously than they perceive it to be.
Objectives
To achieve my aims, I will follow the SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic,
Time) technique to create my objectives. My first objective is to create a TikTok and
Instagram account and to attain at least 1,000 views on each platform in a month, my
account will publish videos of people talking about their experience of losing a loved one to
knife crime, in hopes of spreading empathy and awareness around the crime. I chose to use
the platform ‘TikTok,’ and ‘Instagram’ as they will cater towards my target audience as 47.4%
of users are under thirty on TikTok and almost 31 per cent of global Instagram audiences are
aged between 18 and 24 years. My second objective is to publish 200 leaflets which will
promote information on how to spot and prevent children from falling into situations with bad
influences, such as being friends with people who carry knives unapologetically. It will also
offer advice for parents who are concerned about their child, or children they are close with,
who engage in bad influences. My last objective will be to distribute two hundred posters and
merchandise within a month, such as badges and lanyards around schools and busy areas
such as town/city centres, bus and train stations, and shopping centres. The posters’
purpose will be to encourage people to report knives and will be eye-catching with the use of
vivid red and a rhyming slogan in large font, such as “Choose life, not a knife.”
Justification of choice of campaign
The reason I have chosen to centre my campaign around knife crime is because it is an
increasing issue within the United Kingdom that, according to statistics, is on the rise.
According to the House of Commons “in the year ending March 2023, there were around
50,500 offences involving a sharp instrument in England and Wales (excluding Devon &
Cornwall). This was 4.7% higher than in 2021/22 but 7% lower than in 2019/20”.
Furthermore, I also chose this campaign as I know people who have been affected by knife
crime or have lost people due to knife crime. For example, I knew people who were friends
with Brianna Ghey and Dea-John Read, whose stories were popular in the media due to how
young they were. Public awareness of crime is also quite high; however, people might not be
aware of how the crime happens, and what causes people to get involved.
Aims
My campaign for change will focus on changing the awareness of knife crime, as it is an
increasing issue within the United Kingdom. According to a report by the Office for National
Statistics, the number of people killed with a knife in England and Wales in 2021/22 was the
highest on record for 76 years. My aim for this campaign will be to educate people on the
effects that knife crime has and the ripple effect it will have on the victim’s family, friends, and
community. Another aim I will have is to change how knife crime is perceived by the younger
generation. Knife crime is often involved in the lives of young adults, or even children as they
are immersed in a ‘vicious circle,’ for example if they are involved in a gang or drug network,
there is an expectation to have that ‘fear or be feared’ mentality, which is why they carry
weapons such as knives. My final aim is to encourage people to report the crime and take it
more seriously than they perceive it to be.
Objectives
To achieve my aims, I will follow the SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic,
Time) technique to create my objectives. My first objective is to create a TikTok and
Instagram account and to attain at least 1,000 views on each platform in a month, my
account will publish videos of people talking about their experience of losing a loved one to
knife crime, in hopes of spreading empathy and awareness around the crime. I chose to use
the platform ‘TikTok,’ and ‘Instagram’ as they will cater towards my target audience as 47.4%
of users are under thirty on TikTok and almost 31 per cent of global Instagram audiences are
aged between 18 and 24 years. My second objective is to publish 200 leaflets which will
promote information on how to spot and prevent children from falling into situations with bad
influences, such as being friends with people who carry knives unapologetically. It will also
offer advice for parents who are concerned about their child, or children they are close with,
who engage in bad influences. My last objective will be to distribute two hundred posters and
merchandise within a month, such as badges and lanyards around schools and busy areas
such as town/city centres, bus and train stations, and shopping centres. The posters’
purpose will be to encourage people to report knives and will be eye-catching with the use of
vivid red and a rhyming slogan in large font, such as “Choose life, not a knife.”
Justification of choice of campaign
The reason I have chosen to centre my campaign around knife crime is because it is an
increasing issue within the United Kingdom that, according to statistics, is on the rise.
According to the House of Commons “in the year ending March 2023, there were around
50,500 offences involving a sharp instrument in England and Wales (excluding Devon &
Cornwall). This was 4.7% higher than in 2021/22 but 7% lower than in 2019/20”.
Furthermore, I also chose this campaign as I know people who have been affected by knife
crime or have lost people due to knife crime. For example, I knew people who were friends
with Brianna Ghey and Dea-John Read, whose stories were popular in the media due to how
young they were. Public awareness of crime is also quite high; however, people might not be
aware of how the crime happens, and what causes people to get involved.
