This morning, my team and I went to Drapers Academy, Harold Hill, to see a You & Me assembly about the impact and repercussions of knife crime. Led by probation officer, David, the assembly set out to educate young people on the damage they could do to their futures simply by carrying a knife for protection. 

Hornchurch charity, You & Me, was set up in 2011 by local mum, Bolaji Olagunju, to provide counselling to young adults at risk of taking a wrong turn and to help parents provide the right kind of support to their kids. The knife crime assembly came a day after I participated in a three-hour parliamentary debate on how best to tackle rising knife crime and youth violence.

After the assembly, I spoke to the politics and law class at Drapers and answered questions on everything from Brexit and skills to welfare and career choices.