The series of horrific gun murders this year has changed the attitude of young people in the city towards organised crime, youth workers believe.
The atrocious murder of nine-year-old Olivia Pratt-Korbel on August 22 had a seismic impact on Merseyside, and particularly resonated with young people.
For those working with youths at risk of both being victims and perpetrators of violent crime, seeing the horrors that gang culture can create has had a significant impact. Police and other agencies were already working hard to reduce spiralling knife crime, a battle thrown into sharp focus by the murder of 12-year-old Ava White by a 14-year-old boy.
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In March this year, a 15-year-old girl was shot at a bus-stop by 18-year-old Rio Jones, who was chasing another male on an electric bike.
In 2021, Liverpool had the highest rate of hospital admissions for violence per population in England, with neighbouring borough Knowsley in second, Sefton third, St Helens fourth and Halton fifth, with Wirral slightly further behind at ninth.
Alan Walsh, a youth worker and anti-knife crime campaigner who has extensive experience tackling youth violence, told the ECHO young people are willing to share information with police, but must be made to feel safe.
He said: "The murders have had quite a large impact, in terms of talking to police and sharing information. Young people have realised that stuff like [Olivia's murder] can't happen. There has to be a way of talking. It is about the safety of young people to want to share information.
"After Olivia Pratt-Korbel we were on outreach speaking to about 50 people. It's not grassing that's doing the right thing, that's what needs to be done; but what's the safe way to do it without getting called a grass by our mates?
"The simple fact is more young people are seeing the reality of knife crime and violence, and they're starting to realise 'that's wrong'. In my opinion anyone who has seen their mates stabbed realise 'that's wrong that'.
"One young person I was speaking to had been chased with a Zombie knife. He asked me 'what would have happened, would the lad have stabbed me'? I said he probably would have. That's the change, more mature conversations.
"Some of the talks I have done they are a lot more impacted by knife crime than what you first see. In groups of 30, around 10 or 11 are putting their hands up when we ask if they know someone who has been affected by knife crime."
One scheme to try and increase resilience among young people caught in cycles of violence is Merseyside Violence Reduction Partnership's "Navigators" scheme, which involves a team of specially trained mentors working with children experiencing violence or at risk of violence.
As part of the initiative, staff at Alder Hey Children's Hospital, the Royal Liverpool Hospital and Aintree Hospital have been immediately referring children who turn up at A&E after being violently attacked.
In 2022, 159 cases were referred to the Navigators involving children as young as 10, including some treated for stab wounds, broken bones or lacerations. Of that number, 43 agreed to engage in further support.
Detective Superintendent Siobhan Gainer, head of the MVRP, said: "Whilst we might be quite comfortable with the idea of collaborating with police, health and social care services, some young people may feel let down by the adults they have encountered, leading to a lack of trust.
"They therefore view our Navigators as something entirely different, as confidants who may well have had the same life experience as them."
The 43 youths involved this year engaged with services such as the Cells Project, which specialises in rehabilitating young offenders, sports programmes run by Everton and Liverpool Football clubs and Merseyside Youth Association – who provide the Navigators working within the hospitals.
Consultant Surgeon Nikhil Misra said the fact that 159 cases were reported to the Navigators was an indication of the willingness of NHS staff to use a programme especially designed to engage young people.
He said: "I feel this is the beginning of what will become the norm in hospitals and treatment centres, because it benefits the patient short and long-term.
"Firstly, it permits a crisis intervention to cope with the incident; and then it develops a longer-term strategy to ensure that everything is done to prevent injuries like this from happening, again. Fewer incidents means reduced spend on expensive emergency treatments and more importantly, a decrease in the number of heart-breaking acts of violence that occur."
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