Weapon bins removed from Sheffield's streets after one is vandalised and has contents removed

Weapon collection bins, installed to get knives and other weapons off Sheffield's streets, have been removed after one was vandalised and the contents were taken.
By Harry Harrison
Published 26th Apr 2022, 15:35 BST
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Anthony Olaseinde, who runs the Keep Sheffield Stainless campaign, decided to pull the bins temporarily and have them upgraded to make them more vandal-proof.

Mr Olaseinde said: “None of them have been damaged before so it made me a bit uneasy as I don’t want these weapons that we’ve taken off the street to end up back on the street.”

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The Keep Sheffield Stainless campaign was set up to reduce the number of knives on the street and create a safe space for those affected by knife crime.

Anti-knife crime campaigner Anthony Olaseinde has decided to temporarily remove weapon bins from the streets of Sheffield after one was vandalised and had the contents removedAnti-knife crime campaigner Anthony Olaseinde has decided to temporarily remove weapon bins from the streets of Sheffield after one was vandalised and had the contents removed
Anti-knife crime campaigner Anthony Olaseinde has decided to temporarily remove weapon bins from the streets of Sheffield after one was vandalised and had the contents removed

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In recent years, Sheffield has been blighted by knife crime, which Mr Olaseinde believes means it can no longer be considered one of the safest places to live.

He said: “It’s disturbing. It’s worrying. I’ve lived in Sheffield all my life and it’s something I’m not proud of.

“I think the people who earn money and it’s their job to reduce this would step up.”

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South Yorkshire Police recorded 1,349 serious knife crimes from June 2020 to June 2021, which is just a part of the violent crime in the city.

Mr Olaseinde said: “I just think that the police and the council should work with charities and people like myself so we can work together and find a solution.”

While the collection bins are being upgraded, Mr Olaseinde is personally collecting knives, free of charge, in order to continue the work he and the Keep Sheffield Stainless volunteers do.