North Yorkshire Police have announced the total number of knives collected from the knife bins across the county.
More than 1,700 knives have been taken out of circulation in North Yorkshire in the past three months following the county-wide roll out of knife surrender bins.
Items including hunting knives, daggers and machetes have been safely deposited at the secure bins, which are in locations such as car parks.
The scheme, which is run by North Yorkshire Council and North Yorkshire Police, aims to take as many blades as possible out of circulation, to prevent them falling into the wrong hands.
The knives are then destroyed and recycled.
This week, the arrival of Operation Sceptre will see additional amnesty bins located in York, Scarborough, Malton, Northallerton, Harrogate and Skipton police stations added until Sunday, so people can surrender weapons with no questions asked.
There will also be extra police deployments to target areas in the county where knife crime has been detected, operations to prevent knife-carrying and educational visits to schools.
Detective Chief Inspector Jon Sygrove, from North Yorkshire Police, said:
“While knife crime in North Yorkshire is very low – around two-and-a-half times below the national average – sadly we do deal with the devastating impact of it.
“This week is about raising awareness of knife crime, but we work 24 hours a day every day of the year to make sure blades don’t fall into the wrong hands and ensure they aren’t carried as weapons.
"The knife bin rollout has played a big part in helping us do that.
He added:
"If you are worried about someone carrying a knife, please tell a family member, a teacher or youth worker, a police officer, or report it to the police on 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111. It really could save a life."
Many of the knives surrendered so far are legal to possess but would be illegal to carry in public without a lawful purpose.
However, some of them fall into a category of offensive weapons which are illegal to possess, even if kept at home.
Anyone who brings knives to the bins would not face prosecution for possessing the items.
You can find your nearest knife bin using this interactive map.
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