"We have developed a major trauma system across the whole of the UK which has reduced the mortality rate by at least 20 per cent over the last seven years. It is about the whole chain of survival, from the roadside to rehabilitation.

"There's quite often not enough appreciation of the role the police play, by putting on tourniquets, bandages to stop bleeding from people who have been stabbed or shot and getting patients to the major trauma centres quickly to give them better access to theatre.

"Those system changes around the mindset of how we look after trauma patients and upskilling first responders at street level has been really key to improving survival as much as there has been."

Shehan Hettiaratchy, major trauma director at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, added: "In the last calendar year, we saw about 650 stab victims in our hospital.

Forensic experts search for clues from Jayden Moodie's moped after he was stabbed to death (Image: Yui Mok/PA Wire)

In the last calendar year, we saw about 650 stab victims in our hospital

Shehan Hettiaratchy

"Fatalities attract the headlines, but we know from our own data that for every one person who comes into hospital and dies from knife wounds, we have about another 50 who are injured by knife crime.

"There is a huge number of people who are injured by knife crime and these are injuries which leave them with permanent disabilities.

"We have seen a lot of people who have been stabbed in the legs. Clearly they are stabbing someone in the legs because they are not trying to kill them.

"You can cut the main nerve that runs down the back of the leg and you don't recover from that. You won't be able to run properly again, walk properly again."

Danny O'Brien, founder of Anti Knife UK, told the Daily Express that knife crime was a complex problem which campaigners such as Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, were struggling to address. If we didn't have the great surgeons that we have, we could be looking at over 400 deaths," he said.

"Sadiq Khan and others are throwing money at it but there isn't a solution there because it crosses the threshold of so many things - mental health, domestic violence, violent crime and drugs. We're chasing our own tails. It feels like groundhog day. We come up with a solution and then say 'Oh we tried that and it didn't work' or we try something and then say we don't have the money for it anymore and then it stops.

"If there is a problem in an area, take the problem out of the area. At the moment, it is like a wound that has gone septic and we have let it fester and it has got bigger and bigger and the scar across the country is still growing.

"We're getting knife crime in areas now like little villages which usually look really good on a postcard but now they are being hit by knife crime. To say families are devastated by knife crime does not cover it. They are just destroyed, especially if it is a young person." In 2016, 267 people were stabbed to death and 245 were fatally wounded in 2015, according to figures from Anti Knife UK.

Experts warned children are arming themselves with knives because they are terrified they will be targeted in a street attack.

Dr Bew said treating knife crime as a public health issue - rather than simply a police matter - could be crucial in reducing knife crime because it will provide authorities with an opportunity to intervene early and steer youngsters away from violence.

Mr Khan has directed an initial £500,000 towards establishing a Violence Reduction Unit following a successful scheme in Glasgow which led to a dramatic drop in stabbings.

Last summer the Home Office announced it was introducing an £11million Early Intervention Youth Fund to steer young people away from a life of crime.

And in December, ministers confirmed police will get more money for frontline officers to tackle violent crime.

'He was a good kid...I told him to behave in London'

By David Pilditch

THE uncle of a 14-year-old boy killed in a targeted attack said yesterday he told the youngster to "behave" when he moved to London six months ago.

Jayden Moodie was stabbed up to seven times by three attackers armed with 12-inch kitchen knives after they deliberately rammed him off his moped on Tuesday.

Last night Jayden's heartbroken uncle Josh Grant said the teenager had moved to the capital from Nottinghamshire with his mother Jada last summer.

He said: "I'm in bits. He was a good kid. When he was young he looked up to me and I always gave him advice and tried to show him the right way in life.

"It's hard. I told him before they moved down to London six months ago he had to behave down there. He didn't listen."

The painter and decorator said his nephew - a keen footballer and boxer - had been enjoying his new life and hoped to work for him when he finished school.

The youngster's godmother Zoe Grant said the level of violence in London was "out of hand". She said: "He was a beautiful boy, so intelligent and had everything to live for.

"He went to London and then this happens, it's just so unfair. He was very dearly loved by everybody."

"The violence is out of hand, it's not right."

Last night unconfirmed reports said one bloodied blade was recovered just yards from the scene of the killing.

Jayden was ambushed as he rode his moped along a residential street in Leyton, east London. One resident, who asked not to be named, said he had seen the attackers run over to Jayden.

"Each took it in turns to stab him in the back. He couldn't do anything. He was just lying there on the ground and they kept plunging their knives into his back. It was horrific," the witness said. "They were large kitchen knives.

"There was no shouting. Nothing - just silence. It was truly chilling.

"I tried to revive him. I came out. There was a police officer. He was cutting his jacket with his scissors. We did everything we could. I tried to do my best but I could not save him."

Last night, police in Leyton recovered a black Mercedes B Class car which they believe was used by the killers.

Jayden's grandfather, who gave his name only as Solomon, said: "Jayden was a good child. The system is letting down the youths.

"They don't come on the streets because they want to - they don't have a choice."

Residents told last night of a turf war between rival gangs based in nearby housing estates.

Detective Chief Inspector Larry Smith, of Scotland Yard's murder squad, said: "Everything that we have learned about this attack so far indicates it was targeted."

A man narrowly escaped death just hours after the killing when he was slashed in the throat yards away from Jayden's murder.

Detectives last night said it was too early to establish if the attacks were linked.

COMMENT BY DR DUNCAN BEW

ONE in three of the children we see come from our most socially disadvantaged backgrounds, and in fact live in poverty.

One in four have significant safeguarding issues in their own living arrangements and one in 10 have no permanent home.

Across the whole spectrum, there is a consistent association with both socio-economic deprivation and inequity of opportunity for housing and employment and a whole host of factors around deprivation which put the people who need us most at the greatest risk.

One of the frustrating things for us is we repeatedly see vulnerable people coming to harm knowing there was an opportunity to have potentially prevented that.

The public health approach sees violence as preventable - not inevitable.

The key thing to understand is that it is not just about healthcare.

It's not a softly-softly approach. It's an all-encompassing approach that tries to create safe environments and avoid structural violence.

Dr Duncan Bew is Clinical director at King’s College Hospital London (Image: Richard Saker / Observer / eyevine)

We know early adverse childhood experiences are a key issue when looking at the susceptibility to violence and also being potential perpetrators.

Our provision of mental health services is a really crucial part of this and we have to invest in this and community mental health.

We need to engage with young people and understand the risks that they feel they have and why they feel it is necessary to carry a knife.

We know that if someone is carrying a weapon, even if it is just for their own protection, they are far more likely to be injured by a weapon.

It is really important that we listen to young people to really understand the fear that they genuinely have. It is also important we utilise that experience and knowledge to intervene.

Keeping people in education is key. There has been a strong association between school exclusions and injuries.

If they are carrying a weapon because they are scared, why are they scared? Is it because they don't feel protected in the local community? We have to ask what we have to do to make these communities feel safe.

Dr Duncan Bew is Clinical director at King’s College Hospital London

WE haven't learnt anything. The death toll has dropped by only seven. The Government has just stayed quiet. It's not all just gangs. It's every single age group, gender, nationality. The issue is across the country.

It has been a crisis since 2008.

But all we have had from successive governments is lip service. David Cameron said we're going to get tough on knife crime.

We have got to get into schools regularly. We need to teach our kids life skills.

The Government would rather pay someone with letters after their name when they could use the families of those who have lost somebody to go into schools and say, "This is the real story." There are plenty of parents who would do that.

It is normal for the youth of today to carry a knife. We're not shocked by a knife crime incident any more. We seem to get more upset by a dog getting stabbed than a human being. It is normalised as, "It happens".

Fear is driving this. Young people see their friends carrying a knife and think they have to do the same.

It's sheep mentality. Before you know it, everyone is scared. Getting hold of a knife is so easy.

The grooming is more serious than the police and social media let on. It is too easy to groom someone.

You are offering them trainers and if they haven't got anything, they are going to accept it.

Danny O’Brien is Founder of Anti Knife UK

Source: Express