Cratus supports the fight against knife crime with Steel Warriors

Cratus has been providing pro-bono political and community engagement support to London charity, Steel Warriors, who are creating free outdoor calisthenics gyms made from the melted down and recycled steel knives collected from the streets of London.

The charity’s main focus is to reduce the number of young people carrying knives in the UK. They successfully introduced their first site in Poplar in Tower Hamlets in 2017 which has received a positive endorsement from the local community as well as athletes such as Jay Chris, two-time world Calisthenics champion and Team GB heavyweight boxer, Anthony Joshua. With knife crime at its highest rate in England and Wales since records began, projects such as the Steel Warriors’ gyms are even more crucial in the fight to make our streets safer.

Cratus are providing communications support and advice to help Steel Warriors to deliver more of their calisthenics gyms across London, with the aim of creating the first network of free gyms with a social purpose to be built across the UK. Steel Warriors are currently focusing on areas of London that have been most severely affected by knife crime.

Through its extensive political network and by facilitating political engagement with local authorities across the capital – including various London councils – Cratus is assisting the charity in developing its gym network beyond its first site in Tower Hamlets. Through working with local government, Steel Warriors has the potential to expand its reach into more communities and across more locations within London, further contributing to the reduction of knife crime in the capital. Jo Bradford, Director of London Planning at Cratus said:

“We’re really excited to be working with Steel Warriors to help them deliver more calisthenics gyms in London. They have found an innovative, positive way to re-use confiscated knives in alongside encouraging physical activity and we’re pleased to provide whatever support we can to see more of their free gyms delivered across the capital. We believe Steel Warriors has the potential to make a significant positive impact within communities affected by knife crime and the young people that reside in them.”

Note: Images provided courtesy of Steel Warriors