StreetDoctors, based in East London, have helped over 20,000 young people with essential skills and emergency first-aid if they ever encounter somebody seriously injured
“There is no safe place to stab somebody – that’s the reality.”
That is the message behind an award-winning campaign from East London charity StreetDoctors, which says dangerous misconceptions about knife crime are becoming increasingly common among young people.
The London-based charity has won Film of the Year at the National Charity Awards for its film highlighting the reality of what it’s like to actually stab someone.
East London-based charity StreetDoctors has won the top prize for The Fatal Question, a powerful national campaign created with Saatchi & Saatchi that tackles one of the most dangerous myths facing young people today: the belief that there is such a thing as a “safe” place to stab someone.
Martin Tilbury MBE joined StreetDoctors three years ago. His background has been in helping young people, whether that be in the UK or Africa, when he worked with the Red Cross. He spoke to MyLondon from Uganda.
He said: “In a lot of our training, we spoke to young people about whether there is a safe place to stab someone. We found from working with 20,000 young people a year, we found that 65 per cent believe they are affected by street violence at some level.
“We also found with young people that this whole perception about the number of them carrying knives. We found that they always felt unsafe and uncomfortable in public settings, so they would carry a knife for protection. They think it might be acceptable to carry a knife, and for us, it’s about how we can change that normalisation.”
The film centres on a stark and unsettling question often asked by young people — “Where is a safe place to stab?” – before dismantling this myth through real-life stories and devastating consequences. Using an interactive installation and testimonies from victims’ families, the campaign reveals how a single stab wound can have fatal outcomes, challenging deeply held misconceptions.
According to the Office of National Statistics, in 2025, there were 49,151 police-recorded offences involving a knife or sharp instrument in England and Wales. In London, there were 16,344 in 2024/25.
StreetDoctors is a national charity that educates young people about the realities of street violence, equipping them with the knowledge and skills to make safer choices and support others in their communities. Through a network of volunteer healthcare professionals, the charity delivers training to thousands of young people each year, focusing on both the physical and psychological consequences of violence and encouraging young people to become part of the solution and train them in emergency first aid so they can save the life of someone who has been stabbed and become leaders within their communities.
The film went on to win Grand Prix – Film of the Year at the Smiley Charity Film Awards. The Awards are recognised by both the British Film Institute and IMDb, and have become a global platform for purpose-driven storytelling.
Martin said: “I didn’t expect to win the main award. It felt like real recognition that a powerful subject, where we were brave enough to step up and tackle. It was important that we raised the issue, and the parents involved in the filming were so grateful that we tackled it.
“We often blame young people for making wrong decisions, but if they don’t have the right information or opportunities, how on earth are we going to blame them for the wrong decision? That’s why the film is important because it shows there is no safe space. Seeing the human stories brings it across in a trauma-informed way.
“We hope that if people realise there is no safe place to stab, then if you decide you’re going to carry a knife or stab somebody, then you’re almost basically prepared to kill somebody — that’s the reality.
“After having conversations with the young people, it helped them understand. We teach them first aid so that if they are ever in a situation, they won’t feel helpless.
“When you speak to parents who have lost a child, they are grateful that we started tackling this issue. It’s obviously a hard position for them because you want to say thank you to them for being part of the project, but the reason they are part of it is that one of their children was a victim.”
You can watch the film on Smiley Movements’ website here.
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