A project, funded by the Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Violence Reduction Alliance (VRA), is providing young people with mental health support with the hope of preventing future crime.

VRA has established the scheme in partnership with Staffordshire Police and Midlands Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust (MPFT) with the aim of helping young people involved in crime or at risk of becoming involved in crime.

Violence Reduction Team (VRT) Clinical Associate in Psychology/Mental Health Practitioner, Lauren Cockroft, has been assisting young people across the county access the support they need.

Speaking in relation to the Staffordshire Police 'Ditch the Blade' Campaign, Lauren said: "We've known for years that they [young people] get involved with non-standard teenage activity, including carrying a knife, for a reason.

"This could include layers of trauma, disadvantage, poverty or more.

"These things go untreated as usually communities don't know how to respond to these experiences, or don't see the explicit impact of them on young people."

Lauren's role involves creating a safe space for vulnerable young people, listening to their problems and helping them to understand past experiences that may have impacted their mental health.

She said: "Often people don't even recognise some of the things they experience as being related to their mental wellbeing, so don't access the right services until it's quite far down the line in terms of distress and impact on their lives.

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"They need mental health support that's accessible for them and doesn't judge or take a moral stance on what has happened, or what they're doing in response to what is going on in their lives."

Recently, Lauren worked with a young person who came to police attention after they expressed thoughts of seriously harming others.

Staffordshire Police said: "Lauren was able to complete work with the young person focusing on their worries and triggers, helping them to understand how their fears made them anxious and caused unsettling emotions to surface as frustration and anger.

"Alongside this Lauren was able to complete some work with the adults around them to ensure that a systemic change in the support the young person received took place, helping the young person to feel reassured and safe to respond differently to their worries.

In the last 18 months, Lauren has received 136 referrals from VRT police officers, with 32 leading to direct work or intervention by her.

Staffordshire Police, Fire & Rescue and Crime Commissioner, Ben Adams, who is chair of the VRA said: "The VRA aims to address the root causes of violence.

"For young people, a common cause of why they may be affected by violence is mental health.

"Through the VRT Wellness project, young people can access support they may not be able to receive elsewhere.

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"This support can be life changing for a young person involved in violence because of their mental health.

"From March this year, the VRA has been able to provide further funding to allow Staffordshire Police and MPFT to expand the project, meaning more young people will be able to access the support they need."

'Ditch the Blade' runs until Sunday May 31.

Click here to find out more.