A Leeds mum spoke of how her son's murder "tore her family apart" as Sir Keir Starmer visited the city to talk about crime.
Sarah Lloyd opened up about the trauma she experienced when her 17-year-old son Kieran Butterworth was stabbed to death in Harehills eight years ago.
Speaking at Elland Road as the Labour leader spoke to Leeds United Foundation mentors, the mother said she now visits schools to tell children about her trauma, encouraging them not to turn to crime.
"You can hear a pin drop," she said. "We cover everything, the trauma. It's devastating.
"I tell them the story of what happened since I lost Kieran. It tore our family apart. It had a huge impact on the mental health of my other children.
"If you [speak to children] before they go into secondary school then they've got more of an understanding [of crime]."
After Ms Lloyd spoke about her struggles with trauma after her son's murder, Sir Keir said support "isn't there" for many families of murder victims.
He said the foundation's work with school pupils is crucial to ensuring children aren't pressured into crime.
"It's striking how much trauma they've experienced by the time they're 13 or 14," the Labour leader said.
"I don't know how you do it," he told Ms Lloyd. "Speaking to children at that age is crucial."
Steve Hartley, who runs the violence reduction project for Leeds United Foundation, said the charity supports more than 1,000 vulnerable young people in Leeds to ensure they escape the clutches of crime.
Mentors visit schools and work one-to-one with excluded pupils, telling their own stories about their experiences with crime.
