Greater Manchester Police is supporting a national week-long operation to tackle knife crime.

All police forces in England and Wales are taking part in Operation Sceptre, from September 18th-24th.

During the week, GMP officers are conducting weapon sweeps, carrying out hotspot searches and targeting habitual knife carriers.

During the last Operation Sceptre, across the country 20 per cent of retailers tested sold a knife to a child.

National Police Chiefs’ Council Lead for Knife Crime, Deputy Assistant Commissioner Duncan Ball, said: “We are deeply concerned about continuing rises in knife crime and the number of young lives that have been lost to stabbings.

“Policing has a pivotal role in galvanising communities and local agencies to come together to prevent knife crime.

“Police forces are targeting hotspots and using their powers of stop and search to tackle knife crime.

“Over 4,000 weapons were seized in the last Operation Sceptre and we expect to get many more off the streets in the coming week.

“The causes and drivers are complex. Early intervention to steer young people away from crime and putting in place measures to tackle the root causes is absolutely crucial – we support the emphasis on this in the government serious violence strategy.

“Policing alone cannot bring down violence without action from government, communities and other agencies.”

Chief Inspector Glenn Jones, Force Critical Incident Manager for GMP, says the force is fully behind Operation Sceptre.