Knife crime

Knife crime can involve many things, including just buying or carrying an illegal knife. In recent years, laws on selling and carrying knives have been tightened, and punishments for knife offences increased. Before you consider buying a knife, make sure it’s legal.

What is knife crime?

‘Knife crime’ is any crime that involves a knife.

This can include:

• carrying or trying to buy a knife if you’re under 18
• threatening people with a knife
• carrying an illegal kind of knife
• murder or assault in which the victim was stabbed with a knife
• robbery or burglary where the thieves carried a knife as a weapon

Carrying a knife

If you carry a knife to protect yourself or make yourself feel safer but don’t intend to use it then you are committing a crime. You are also more likely to become a victim of crime.
Your own knife can be used against you.
If you do want to know more about protecting yourself, there are much easier and safer ways to do it. You could, for example, take a self-defence course offered by your local council, or at a gym.

Basic rules on knives

If you’re planning to buy or carry a knife, it’s important to know the rules. Anyone found breaking these laws can face up to four years in prison.
These include:

• it is illegal for any shop to sell a knife of any kind (including cutlery and kitchen knives) to anyone under the age of 18
• it is a crime to carry a knife in public without good reason – for example, if you work as a chef
• the maximum penalty for an adult carrying a knife is four years in prison and a fine of £5000
• it is illegal to carry, buy or sell any type of knife banned by the government (the list of banned knives is below)
• knives with folding blades, like Swiss Army knives, are not illegal as long as the blade is three inches long (7.62 cm) or less
• if any knife is used in a threatening way (even a legal knife, such as a Swiss Army knife), it is regarded as an 'offensive weapon' by the law
• any sharp instrument – even a screwdriver – can be viewed by the police as an illegal offensive weapon if you do not have a good reason for carrying it

Illegal knives

There is a complete ban on the sale of some knives, which are considered to be offensive weapons.
These include:

• flick knives - knives where the blade is hidden inside the handle and shoots out when a button is pressed; these are also called 'switchblades' or 'automatic knives'
• butterfly knives - where the blade is hidden inside a handle that splits in two around it, like wings; the handles swing around the blade to open or close it
• disguised knives - where the blade is hidden inside something like a belt buckle or fake mobile phone
• gravity knives
• sword-sticks
• samurai swords
• hand-claws
• foot-claws
• belt-buckle knives
• push daggers
• kubotan (cylindrical container, holding spikes)
• shuriken (also known as 'death stars' or 'throwing stars')
• kusari-gama (sickle attached to a rope, cord or wire)
• kyoketsu-shoge (hook-knife attached to a rope, cord or wire)
• kusari (weight attached to a rope, cord or wire)

This is not a complete list. If you think a knife you want to buy might be illegal, please check with your local police force.