£30m for mentors to fight gang crime

Teenagers at risk of turning to knife crime will be targeted with radical "peer mentoring" programmes under a government-backed drive.

A key recommendation in the Standard's Beat Knife Crime campaign, peer mentoring involves training young people in how to help other teenagers avoid violence and resolve conflict.

Now ministers have announced a £30 million fund for the next three years to support projects that combat the growing scourge of gang crime and anti-social behaviour.

The announcement follows the launch yesterday of the Government's youth crime action plan and comes amid widespread alarm at the spate of teenage murders in the capital.

Leap Confronting Conflict, a group which has been running peer support schemes to tackle violent youth culture in London, has received government cash in the past and was highlighted for its work again today.

Children's Minister Beverley Hughes said charities such as Leap "play a crucial-role in reaching the most disaffected young people in some of the most challenging communities".

Ms Hughes said she wanted the funding to focus on preventing youth crime and urged other groups to apply for the cash.

"Today's announcement is a great opportunity for ambitious organisations to benefit from a package of financial and business support, to enable them to help even more vulnerable young people and, critically, help these unique organisations achieve longterm sustainability," she said.

"We expect to fund a wide range of organisations whose work focuses on our current youth priorities, particularly but not exclusively those that offer services to young people who are at risk of becoming involved in crime.".

The fund will give up to 12 organisations about £2.5 million each for projects to tackle anti social behaviour, gun or gang crime.

Leap was one of five groups that benefited from funding and support under the first round of the Youth Sector Development Fund, as it is known.

It has used the cash to help young people at risk of becoming involved in crime by training more peer mentors in communities across London.

The group also runs a programme that teaches teenagers "conflict management" skills and works directly with gang members.

Yesterday, ministers announced plans to target problem families as part of the youth crime action plan. They said parents must play their part in preventing unruly children going off the rails.

But proposals for knife criminals to be brought face to face with victims in hospital have been criticised.