Swords, machetes and knives among 635 weapons handed into Nottinghamshire Police

More than 200 knives have been handed in to police in 2019 than in 2018.

Swords, machetes and knives are among 635 weapons that have been taken off our streets in Nottinghamshire.

Nottinghamshire Police held a seven-day knife amnesty for a week in March, as part of national Operation Sceptre, in a bid to prevent potentially deadly weapons falling into the wrong hands.

People could drop off the knives at 16 bins across the county, without fear of prosecution for the duration of the amnesty.


A total of 635 weapons were handed in, with more than 200 knives handed in than during the previous amnesty in September 2018.

The weapons will now be destroyed.


"To take 635 weapons out of circulation is a phenomenal response and really shows the strength of feeling among the public and their desire to help tackle this issue. Some people question why we hold knife amnesties because criminals don't engage with them. What I would say to that is just look at the weapons that have been handed in ­- some of these are incredibly dangerous weapons that are designed to cause harm. So every weapon handed in is one less that can fall into the hands of someone who would use it for that purpose.

Paddy Tipping, Nottinghamshire Police and Crime Commissioner, said: “Every knife that has been handed in is one less potential weapon and in that respect this operation was a great success. But the work doesn’t stop there.



