Sheffield stabbing: Campaigner calls on authorities to act after 14-year-old attacked on council's doorstep

Authorities will now be forced to act to combat knife crime after a teenage boy was stabbed on Sheffield Council's doorstep, a local knife crime campaigner has said.

Anthony Olaseinde, founder of knife crime charity Always An Alternative, spoke to The Star after week which saw two alarming stabbings take place in Sheffield city centre.

On Saturday, September 9, three people were taken to hospital with stab wounds sustained on and around Carver Street.

Then on Tuesday, September 12, a 14-year-old boy was transported to Sheffield Children's Hospital after being stabbed in the neck on Norfolk Street, next to Sheffield Town Hall.

Anthony said: "People are finally accepting that we have a very, very big problem with knife crime. A 14-year-old was stabbed outside Town Hall... they will have to do something about this now, or I hope they will."

Anthony leads the Alway An Alternative charity, which works to keep young people away from knife crime and gangs. He speaks in schools, runs workshops, and even monitors eight weapon bins across the region, where knives can be disposed of without worry of prosecution.

Following the recent violence in the city, Anthony told followers on X, previously Twitter, he would "love to sit down" with South Yorkshire Police, Sheffield City Council and the Sheffield BID (Business Improvement District) to discuss knife crime in the city centre.

He believes a solution to the growing knife crime problem is out there and is keen to work with Sheffield's local authorities to save the lives of young people.