REVERBERATIONS caused by the stabbing of Owen Dunn are still being felt in Swindon as Labour's Shadow Home Secretary paid a visit to the town. 

Yvette Cooper came to Swindon to discuss concerns around knife crime and during her visit met with local police, community organisations aiming to help Swindon youth and the newly formed Community Interest Company, Owen's World. 

Owen Dunn, 18, was stabbed to death in December while on the way to visit his girlfriend in Haydon End and a 14-year-old has since been arrested and charged with murder.

In the aftermath of that, members of Owen's family, and Joanne Gonzalez, a mother whose son was friends with Owen, set up an organisation named after him with the aim of clamping down on rising youth violence and providing a safe space for the town's young people. 

Ms Cooper and North Swindon's Labour candidate Will Stone, met with Mrs Gonzalez to talk about the impact of Owen's death on the community and what Owen's World was attempting to do.

"It must be incredibly hard for all of you, all of his family and friends, Ms Cooper said, "But it's amazing what you're doing, tell us about some of the things you're doing."

Swindon Advertiser: MP Yvette Cooper and Owen's World Joanne GonzalezMP Yvette Cooper and Owen's World Joanne Gonzalez (Image: Newsquest)

Joane told Yvette about the Owen's Shed initiative which is taking unwanted sheds and giving them to homes in Swindon so that young people have somewhere safe to hang out that's off of the streets. 

They then discussed a new petition launched by Owen's World that is calling for children to be taught self-defence classes as part of the school curriculum, which both Ms Cooper and Mr Stone thought was a 'fantastic idea'.

"I actually come from a background where I actually teach martial arts, and the majority of the time it teaches people to be non-confrontational," Mr Stone said. 

Ms Cooper asked Ms Gonzales what support Owen's World needs, and she replied by saying that there needs to be an overhaul of the policing system to bring back trust between young people and them. 

She said: "They need to have some belief in the services that are being given to them. They need to believe in the police and they need to believe in the people that are in the area."

Labour's plans to crack down on knife crime include a £360m neighbourhood policing package, putting 13,000 additional neighbourhood officers and PCSOs on Britain’s streets.

As well as tough new measures against online sites selling and promoting dangerous knives,  making the grooming of kids for crime a specific criminal offence, and providing new youth mentors in communities.