Gang culture 'can affect schools'

Gang culture is still luring many young people into a life of crime and violence, a report has suggested.

A study for the NASUWT teachers' union found teenagers involved in gangs brought weapons into school and even wore stab-proof clothes for protection.

The study, which examined inner-city schools in London and Birmingham, said gangs were becoming more dangerous and involved children of a younger age.

But the government insisted the vast majority of schools were "very safe".

The report said gangs in schools usually stemmed from established issues in the wider community, rather than developing in schools themselves.

While not all schools had a problem, gang culture was a "significant concern" for those that did.

The research - carried out by the Perpetuity Group, a consultancy which specialises in reducing crime - found pupils often carried weapons or hid them in and around the school grounds.

"I can protect myself with a knife or a gun. I would rather be arrested than dead," one teenager told researchers.

Another said: "It's not a bad thing to bring a weapon into school - you might get attacked on the way to school, on the way back. It's protection."

And not all those pupils who carried a weapon did so because they were part of a gang.

"I will admit to owning a knife because I am scared of gangs," one youngster told researchers.

Gang culture

The report identified a number of factors as to why gangs continued to hold sway in communities.

Poor parenting skills, a lack of leisure and outside activities, deprivation, family breakdown and the absence of a father figure were all factors in the strength of the gang culture, the report said.

A lack of aspiration among youngsters growing up in deprived areas also had an impact on the choices they made.

And the financial gains associated with a gang culture were also thought to contribute to the ongoing presence and influence of gangs on young people.

"You are part of something if you belong to a gang," one young person told researchers.

"If you are in a gang you have back up in case you get into trouble," said another.

The report said schools alone could not tackle the complexities of gang culture.

'Common problem'

General secretary of the NASUWT, Chris Keates, said: "It is clear that gang problems need to be acknowledged by schools to enable them to be tackled head on.

"There is a real danger that some schools will be tempted to conceal or fail to address such problems for fear the reputation of the school will suffer.

"This is a common problem in relation to many behaviour issues and has to be tackled by government. Schools need to feel confident in dealing with these issues."

But the Department for Children, Schools and Families denied there was a major problem with gangs and a knife culture in schools.

A spokesman for the department said: "The vast majority of schools are very safe places and incidents with knives are incredibly rare.

"We do not see any need for pupils to be wearing stab-proof vests."