OFFICERS are seeing “positive outcomes” in their work to reduce knife crime across the borough, Reading’s police chief has claimed.

This has resulted in a reduction in the amount of knife possession seen across the town, according to police commander Nick John.

The police chief was speaking to the Chronicle following the conclusion of Operation Sceptre, an anti-knife campaign launched by Thames Valley Police in May.

READ MORE: Police launch anti-knife crackdown across Thames Valley

Following the crackdown, almost 100 knives were seized by police in Berkshire.

Police placed amnesty bins outside their stations to encourage locals to give up their blades.

And it is preventative measures such as this that officers in Reading are focusing on in order to reduce knife crime following a series of stabbings in the town over the past year.

READ MORE: Timeline of stabbings in Reading since the start of the year

Speaking to the Chronicle, Nick John said: “Knife crime, or serious violent crime, is a priority for the force and a priority for Reading.

“We've got a number of activities ongoing in order to reduce the amount of people that carry knives on the street.

“We are working not just on our own but also in partnership with local authorities and groups around prevention and not least the Violence Reduction Unit within Thames Valley.

“We have seen some tragic, tragic incidents over the past 12 months and we have responded as best we can to that.

“But at the same time, we have tried to ensure we are actively engaged on preventing knife crime in the first place.

READ MORE: What is being done to stop knife crime in Reading?

“We have seen a really robust approach, we've seen a number of tactics utilized, such as section 60 [stop and search powers] following incidents in order to manage that risk and that threat.

“As well as that, there has been an engagement and education approach in schools across the borough and working with different groups.

“So it's not always just about ‘let's respond to the incident’ and carrying out a response once something happens, we're also working tirelessly on prevention as well.

“And we are seeing some positive outcomes from that, in relation to a reduction in the amount of knife possession across the borough.

READ MORE: Tilehurst residents holds knife amnesty for residents

“If you're not in possession of a knife then you're not going to use it, in simplistic terms.

“We need to make sure that we are doing everything we can to work on that prevention.

“We will continue to do absolutely everything once an incident occurs to react to it but we must make sure we are working in partnership to prevent it in the first place.”

“So prevention is always far better than cure.”