ContentsGlossary 3List of Diagrams, Tables and Charts 4Preface 6Executive Summary 7

Part 1: Setting the Scene 81. Introduction 82. Context 9

2.1 The National Gang Agenda 92.2 Frankland Gangs 10

3. Methodology 193.1 Mixed Methods 193.2 Research Sites 193.3 Data Collection 193.4 Sample 203.5 Analysis 233.6 Ethics 24

Part 2: Findings 254. Definitions of groups of young people

254.1 The Problem of Labelling 25

4.1.1 Gangs don’t exist 254.1.2 Gangs are defined by criminal activity264.1.3 Gangs are defined by their attempts at status and power

264.1.4 Gangs are defined by their structures, roles and processes

274.1.5 Gangs are defined by their dress code 274.1.6 Gangs are defined by the way they care for you27

4.2 Summary, Recommendations and Further Questions31

5. The Emergence of Groups of Young People 325.1 The History of Groups of Young People in Frankland

325.2 Drivers for Group Membership 33

5.2.1 Respect, status and power 335.2.2 Family issues or belonging 345.2.3 Money 365.2.4 Boredom and lack of opportunity 375.2.5 Peer Influence 375.2.6 Drugs 38

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5.2.7 Fear and protection 395.2.8 Music and other media 395.2.9 Sectarianism, racial and football

405.2.10 A culture of violence and criminality

415.3 Current Gangs 445.4 Summary, Recommendations and Further Questions46

6. The Functioning of Groups of Young People476.1 Recruitment and Initiations 476.2 Different Structures of Groups of Young People47

6.2.1 Publicly criminal groups 486.2.2 Drugs business oriented groups 496.2.3 The family as a gang structure 506.2.4 Organised crime groups 506.3 Roles 546.3.1 Male roles 546.3.2 Female roles 56

6.4 Criminal Activity 636.4.1 Criminality Overall 636.4.2 Weapons and Violence 646.4.3 Drugs 70

6.5. Summary, Recommendations and Further Questions 737. Sustaining Factors 76

7.1 Money 767.2 Belonging 767.3 Fear and Protection 767.4 Inter-group reprisals 777.5 Reputation 787.6 Boredom and lack of opportunity 787.7 Drugs 797.8 Peer pressure 797.9 Excitement 797.10 Music and media 807.11 Complex sustaining factors 807.12 Summary, Recommendations and Further Questions 81

8. Trajectories 838.1 Trajectories 838.1.1 Injured or dead 838.1.2 Prison 838.1.3 Desistance 848.2 The Process of Desisting 85

8.2.1 Diversionary Activities 858.2.2 Positive Role Models 868.2.3 Education, employment and training 87

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8.2.4 Wider Support Services 878.2.5 Law enforcement 888.2.6 Maturation 898.2.7 Safe homes 908.2.8 Gang education 908.2.9 Planning alternatives 908.2.10 Community ownership 918.2.11 Parenting 918.2.12 Benefits 928.2.13 Identity Change 93

8.5 Summary, Recommendations and Further Questions97

9. Comparison to other Cities 99

Part 3: Conclusions 10110. Conclusion and Recommendations 101

10.1. Definitions 10110.2. Emergence 10110.3. Functioning 10210.4. Sustaining factors 10310.5. Trajectories 103

References 105Appendices 110Appendix 1: Semi-structured Interview Schedule

110Appendix 2: Practitioner Survey 113Appendix 3: Project Information Sheet 115Appendix 4: Geographical names for the postcode areas

116Appendix 5: Provider Information

GlossaryFrankland colloquialism Meaning

Boys/z, Mates / Brothers / Family / Crew

Street based friends who will back you up / you must back up and who can be called upon for criminal activity

Ends/z The area that your group / gang has jurisdiction over

Wagga Showing offChav’s / Chavvy ?Wannabe, Newbie Someone new who wants to belong to the group /

gang

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Top dog, Wolf, Elder, Older

Someone at the top of the group hierarchy

Beef A problem or issue with someoneBitches, Slags, Honeytraps

Derogatory names for females in groups

Youngers, Cubs Young members of the group / gangLinks, Associates, Smackheads

People who are not members of the group / gang, but who are used to carry out tasks for the group

A dirty Giving someone a dirty look, that implies that you are superior to them, or have an issue with them

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List of Diagrams, Tables and ChartsTablesNumber

Name Page

1 Personal Robbery Statistics 132 Personal Robbery Participant Profiles 143 Serious Violent Crime Statistics 154 Serious Violent Crime Participant Profiles 165 Assault with Injury Statistics 176 Assault with Injury Participant Profiles 187 Home Office Drivers Applied to the Data 438 Gang Typologies 489 Numbers of Gangs in UK Cities 9910 Ethnicities of Gangs in UK Cities 99

ChartsNumber

Name Page

1 Gender of the Young People Participants 202 Ages of the Young People Participants 213 Ethnicities of the Young People Participants 214 Home Postcodes of the Young People

Participants22

5 Source of Adult Participant Answers 236 Young People’s Definitions of Gangs 287 Young People’s Views of the Drivers of

Joining Groups of Young People42

8 Practitioners’ Views of the Drivers of YouthGangs and Violence

43

9 Young People’s Views of Areas that have Gangs

45

10 Practitioners’ View of How Young People are Recruited into Gangs

47

11 Practitioners’ Views of the Extent of FamilyInvolvement in Gangs

51

12 Practitioners’ Views of the Extent of Organised Crime

54

13 Young People’s Views of the Uses of Girls inGroups

60

14 Practitioners’ Views of the Extent of SexualExploitation in Gangs

62

15 Practitioner’s Views of the Role of Crime inGangs

63

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16 Young People’s views of Criminal Activity inGroups

64

17 Percentage of Weapon Use Identified by YoungPeople

65

18 Practitioners’ Views of the Extent of Inter-Gang Rivalry

67

19 Young People’s Views of the Reasons for Violence

69

20 Practitioners’ Views of the Role of Drugs inGangs

70

21 Young People’s Views of the Factors that Sustain Groups

73

22 Practitioners’ Views of What Keeps Young People in Gangs

81

23 Young People’s Views of Possible Trajectories

81

24 Young People’s Views of How to Desist 8525 Practitioners’ Views of Desistance 9226 Practitioners’ Views of Existing Effective

Services96

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DiagramsNumber

Name Page

1 The Analytical Framework 232 Nine Possible Modes of Gang Involvement 283 The Relationship Between Drivers 444 Map Showing the Areas Indicated as having

‘Gangs’45

5 Summary of the Functions of Groups 746 Support Mechanisms for Desistance 93

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Preface - Wayne

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Executive SummaryThe research involved 143 young people and 7 practitioners inqualitative research and 49 practitioners in quantitative researchon the experiences of young people in groups in Frankland.Most young people do not think that there are gangs in Frankland,thinking of themselves as groups of young people instead. A range ofdefinitions exist that link to the Centre for Social Justicedefinition of a gang (CSJ, 2009). In Frankland the term ‘group’ ismore useful than ‘gang’ as young people relate to it better, and itdoes not stigmatise them.

Groups in Frankland are dynamic, they are evolving and changing aswe write. Young people identified that there they know of groups in13 of the Frankland postcodes. There were mixed views as to whetherthey remain a postcode issue or not. Young people identified tendrivers for young people to join groups that are complex andinterrelated. Young people were recruited and initiated into groups in a range ofways that reflect the drivers for group membership. Groups tended tobe either involved in acts of public criminality or undergrounddrugs businesses. Families were also clearly linked to the criminalactivity of groups. A range of hierarchies and roles existed withinthese groups, and they differed for males and females. Females arelargely exploited within groups, although they can also play a fullrole. Violence and drug dealing were prolific and were engaged infor a range of reasons, but predominantly for status and money.

The factors that sustain membership of groups also drive membership.Sustained membership leads to imprisonment, injury or death. A fewyoung people manage to desist, but this is a monumental taskinvolving a complete change of identity. Young people identifiedtwelve ways in which services could support their desistance, andpointed out that this help needed to come ‘just in time’. There wereexamples of effective services across the city that can be builtupon.

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Frankland bore similarities to other cities in the UK with gangs,although also had some unique features such as the variation of theroles of girls according to ethnicity which has not been documentedelsewhere.

A range of recommendations have been made under the headings of thefindings; definition, drivers, functions, sustaining factors, andtrajectories.

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PART ONE: SETTING THE SCENE

1. IntroductionThis report was commissioned by Frankland City Council as part oftheir Ending Gang and Youth Violence Strategy in March 2013. Theaim of the research was to; ‘provide an analysis of the key factors and driversprecipitating the emergence of urban street gangs in Frankland’ (Frankland cityCouncil, 2013). The report is intended to inform Frankland CityCouncil’s thinking about how to promote more positive outcomes foryoung people than gang and violence may represent. Brathay ResearchHub were commissioned to conduct this research as an impartial andobjective research organisation with capacity to conduct robustacademic research under the jurisdiction of the University ofCumbria, and with a proven track record of engaging marginalised andsocially excluded young people in research.

The data for the report was collected between April 2013 andDecember 2013. This resulting report brings together data fromdocumentary evidence, from a survey of 49 practitioners and managersand 150 interviews with young people and professionals thought to beinvolved with, or affected by, youth gangs and youth violence.Interviews with young people from across the city form the keycomponent of this research. Having first-hand experience of theseissues, young people growing up in Frankland who are thought to begang involved and / or affected by gangs and violence are bestplaced to help us understand the nuances of their lived experiencesand the most appropriate means of responding to these. Respondentswere all generous with their time, and contributions on the wholeappeared honest and perceptive. No attempts were made to verify orcorroborate what had been said by young people or practitioners,their views stand in the report as their collection of perceptionsof experiences. As with all research undertaken by Brathay ResearchHub, this research into the lived experiences of young people is‘applied’ in nature, with a clear focus on improving outcomes forthose affected by the concerns under review.

The final introductory statement pertains to the use of terminologyin this report. Young people are often demonised and marginalised.They are simultaneously viewed as vulnerable and as a threat to

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other people, communities and society (Deuchar, 2007; Deuchar,2009). This has perhaps been exacerbated by the discourse of youthgangs. Whilst youth gangs indisputably exist, we as authors do notwish to perpetuate the sense that young people belong to gangs atall, or that they do so in a purposively delinquent manner. We donot wish to label the young people of Frankland as gang involvedespecially as so many young people interviewed were vehement thatthey were not in gangs. Therefore we have used the term ‘groups ofyoung people’ as a generic term throughout the report, and onlyspecifically mentioned gangs when young people have. A fullerdiscussion of the terminology of gangs opens the report in section3.1.

Similarly this data needs to be situated against larger discourse of‘youths’, ‘gangs’ and ‘violence’ present in society today. The PlaceSurvey (2010) showed that 43% of people in Frankland see young peoplehanging around in groups as a problem. The terms ‘youths’, ‘gangs’and ‘violence’ are not neutral, and may be biased by popular mediaand sensationalism. Further, what happens in Frankland’s youthpopulations may reflect general national trends in adult and youthanti-social behaviour, and needs to be seen against that backdrop aswell as a phenomenon in its own right. We hope that this report is illuminative and put to good usesupporting positive outcomes for young people.

Kaz and Lucy

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2. CONTEXT

2.1 The National Gang AgendaThe national agenda has been London centric as the capital has hadthe greatest prevalence of youth gang issues. There is growingresearch into youth gang activity in Glasgow, Manchester, Birminghamand Liverpool, and this, we believe, is the first research intogangs in Frankland. Shocking gang events have tended to triggerpolicy interventions; for example in 2007 Billy Cox was shot dead inhis own home in London at age 15 (BBC News, 2007) and in 2008 RhysJones was shot dead in Liverpool aged 11 as he walked home fromfootball training (The Guardian, 2008). In the same year the PrimeMinister’s Gun Crime Summit introduced new judicial powers andprevention to tackle guns and gangs, and the London Five BoroughsAssociation was established and initiated ‘operation ceasefire’,cross agency risk management, safe houses, multi-agency work, andgang related criminal justice interventions in London.

In 2008 the Home Office Tackling Gangs Action Programme was launchedwith a £1 million budget. This reinforced policing, created civilorders, started gang related witness protection, mediation services,a crackdown on guns, and extra activities to keep kids off thestreets. In 2008 the Prime Minister’s Focussed Gang Project funded10 innovative projects to tackle gangs. Data collection pertainingto gangs was improving all the while, particularly in London,leading to the Metropolitan Police Service’s figures that 169 gangsin London were estimated to have caused 40 murders and 20% all crimein the capital. In response a London Serious Youth Violence Boardwas established in 2010.

2011 was a momentous year, with young people rioting in London,Manchester and Birmingham following a police shooting of a youngperson thought to be gang involved and armed. The riots precipitateda national Home Office Gangs and Violent Crime Initiative and theintroduction of gang injunctions for adults and then young peoplewithin the national Ending Gang and Youth Violence Strategy (EGYV). Thisstrategy recommended localism of provision, multi-agency riskassessment committees (MARACs) and multi-agency support hubs (MASHs)

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and, significantly, redirected ten million pounds of Home Officefunds into 29 priority areas including Frankland. This policy alsomade a clear link between family dysfunction and gang involvement,tying gang interventions into the Government’s Troubled Familiesagenda. This policy framework was designed to: ‘change the life stories ofthose that end up dead or wounded on our streets or are getting locked up in cycles ofreoffending’ (Home Office, 2011:7). Alongside the street basedinitiatives, the Local to Global policy also launched in 2011 committedmore resources to tackling global organised crime and acknowledgedits links to gangs.

Despite these reviews, policies and interventions, the numberscontinued to escalate, and in 2012 the Metropolitan Police Serviceidentified 259 violent gangs in 19 boroughs in London. More recentlyhowever the areas supported by the EGYV funds do now seem to havedata showing positive impact. The Home Office and HM GovernmentReviews of EGYV (2013) were positive, citing examples ofimplementation, supportive peer review processes, improvements inservices across the localities supported and associated falls inpolice recorded youth violence overall in these areas. Now there are33 areas supported, and there is a refreshed commitment for EGYV inmultiagency settings and in multiple policies for 2014. Franklandremains one of these 33 areas.

2.2 Frankland Gangs This overview of the development of gangs in Frankland is notcomprehensive. We have selected key dates and events that are mostapplicable in introducing the context of this research. Frankland isEngland’s fifth-largest city with a population of 555,000 (HomeOffice, 2012). It is also one of the safest cities in the UK, andEngland’s greenest city. Extensive regeneration is taking place inFrankland city centre and it has a fast growing economy despite theclosure of its steelworks in the 1980’s. Frankland houses twouniversities with more than 50,000 students. It has a vibrant citycentre that attracts large numbers of people.

The city also faces some challenges as identified in the State ofFrankland (2013). As the population increases so does the percentage

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of 0 – 15 year olds, from 94,840 people in 2008 to 110,060 in 2013.The number of non-British residents has increased in recent yearsfrom 11% of the population in 2001 to 17% in 2009. There has been anincrease particularly in the number of Eastern European, Indian andChinese residents. Whilst anti-social behaviour was cited as adecreasing problem, 43% of the population surveyed said that youngpeople hanging around on the streets was a problem (The Place Survey).There are socioeconomic difficulties in the city with 29neighbourhoods that are the most deprived 20% in England,predominantly in the South and West of the city, and almost aquarter of households in poverty, and eleven food banks. Attainmentin Frankland schools was behind national averages, especially forparticular groups of young people such as Black Minority Ethnicityand English as a Second Language students. Youth unemployment hasalso risen over recent years, from 2665 in 2008 to 5475 in 2012, toa level above the national average. There was however a lower rateof children in care than nationally.

Reassuringly, the Youth Justice Board (2013) report that levels ofyouth crime are decreasing. In the 2012 – 2013 period there were 194first time entrants to the youth justice system, a 30% drop from theprevious year. The 33.5% reoffending rate was lower than other CoreCities and in the second best quartile nationally. There were 37custodial sentences awarded in 2012 – 13, this was 13 less than inthe previous year. There was also a lower proportion of BlackMinority Ethnic young people in the Youth Justice System, althoughthis still remained high at 24.1%.

Frankland has a long history of gangs traced back to the 1920s inthe book The Frankland Gang Wars (Bean, 1981) and it is one of numerousurban centres seen to have an emerging or re-emerging gang problem.In the last eight years ten people have lost their lives in gangrelated shootings or stabbings. The murder of 16 year old JonathonMatondo in 2007 during retaliatory gang shootings in Burngreavebrought youth gang activity into the limelight in Frankland. In 2008there were gang disputes that resulted in two murders and oneattempted murder of gang members by members of their own gang. Thistriggered the arrest of many senior gang leaders and this is

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believed to have largely controlled gang activity (Jackson,2012:27). In 2009 there were a further two unrelated gang murdersand a number of ensuing retaliatory attacks.

Frankland was one of 29 original areas invited to bid for support bythe Home Office due to its large population of 10-17 year olds. Inresponse to this the South Yorkshire Police prepared an EGYV ProblemProfile (Jackson, 2012) as a supporting document in the submission.This reported on levels of crime in the city, including; mostserious violence, personal robbery and offences, assaults, violenceinvolving alcohol, knife enabled offences, firearm enabled offencesand organised crime groups. Most of this data was generic and couldnot be specifically linked to gangs, although some case studiesclearly portrayed gang activity and its links to crime. As well asprofiling the extent of crime in the city with statistics and casestudies the report also identifies a significant number of youthcrime interventions and good practice in intervening with gangsacross the city. Frankland has examples of excellent practicerelating to EGYV, for example, a Domestic Abuse Worker is locatedwithin Community Youth Teams, a clinician in Frankland NorthernGeneral Hospital A&E department was recruited to help develop dataon injuries that could be gang related, and a bereavementcounselling service was put in place for young people at risk ofoffending/anti-social behaviour and then extended with EGYV fundingto include young people and adults who have offended.

As per the EGYV national strategy, Frankland City Council had a peerreview in June 2012, examining their approach to EGYV. The city wascommended for its strong track record in implementing and sustainingsuccessful EGYV projects, multi-agency support teams, committed,passionate and knowledgeable practitioners, commitment to addressingsocio-economic factors, will to share information, strong andpassionate voluntary sector, and leadership and senior management.Due to these strengths, the peer review thought that ‘Frankland is in astrong position to deliver against the ending gang and youth violence agenda’ (HomeOffice, 2012:4). There were equally a range of areas for improvementwhich included an extension of the problem profile mapping toinclude urban street gangs and problematic peer groups across

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Frankland. This research addresses that need, it is a part of theproblem profiling, providing a qualitative understanding of thefactors that precipitate gangs in Frankland, complementing the on-going quantitative mapping.

In 2013, the Police Intelligence Unit provided statistics to informthis report’s understanding of current levels of youth relatedviolent crime and robbery in Frankland; this data sets the contextfor the voices of the young people that follow. It is howeverunaudited data and should be read as such. The data reported is forthe period 1st January 2011 – 30th November 2013 and includes allyouth crime, i.e. the victim of the crime was aged between 10 and 24years of age at the time that the crime was committed. This data isaccompanied by offender profiles for youth perpetrators also aged 10– 24 at the time that the crime was committed. The data does notpertain directly to young people who are in groups or gangs, it isgeneric young offender and youth victim data. As such thesestatistics are not showing us the level of crime that gang involvedyoung people necessarily cause, but they do set the scene for thescale of crime in the city that may be related to groups of youngpeople. The young people’s voices will provide us with a sense ofthe extent to which crime and membership of groups correlate.

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Personal Robbery OffencesAlthough volumes of personal robberies are low, over the past the 3years there has been a year on year increase in robberies reported.Young people aged 10 – 24 are apparent as victims of robberies(n=269) and perpetrators of robberies (n=139). The followingstatistics (see Table 1) provide an overview of the nature and scaleof the offending behaviour and characteristics of its participants.

Factor StatisticAlcohol as anaggravating factor inthe personal robbery

5% overall6% where the victim was aged 16 or under3% where the victim was aged between 17 and24

Use of firearms andweapons in personalrobbery

5% use of firearms (24 offences)24% use of knives or other sharp instruments

Key times for personalrobbery

18.00-00:00, peaking on Thursdays and SaturdaysWhere the victim was aged 16 or under, key times were between 15:00 and 21:00 (69% of offences) key days were Monday and ThursdayWhere the victim was aged between 17 and 24, the key times were between 21:00 and 03:00 in the mornings (43% of incidents) key days were Thursday and Saturday.

Peak months forpersonalrobbery

Where the victim was aged 16 or under thereis generally a peak in volumes of robberiesin July and August, possibly coinciding with the summer holidays.Where the victim was aged between 17 and 24the peak was in September and October and November which coincides with the start of the ‘student year’.

Table 1: Personal Robbery Statistics

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The following profiles (see Table 2) compared a total of 269 victimsand 139 offenders, all of whom were aged from 10 to 24 years and hadbeen involved in robbery or violent crime as either a victim oroffender in 2013 in the city of Frankland.

Gender Males account for the majority of both victims (77%)and also offenders (88%).

Age 16% of victims and 22% of offenders were aged 16 or under at the time of the offence40% of victims and 60% of offenders were aged between 17 and 24 at the time of the offence.

Ethnicity 71% White offenders against a population of 88% volume24% Black offenders against a population of 3% volume2% Asian offenders against a population of 6% volume83% White victims against a population of 88% volume1% Black victims against 3% of the population,9% Asian victims and 6% South East Asia victims.

Occupation 67% of offenders were unemployed27% were students (including school age)5% were in employment at the time of the offence.Where known:11% of victims were in employment46% were students (including school age)6% were unemployed at the time the offence took place.

Groupoffending

72% were committed by a single offender18% were committed by 2 known offenders6% by 3 known offenders4% by 4 or more offenders.

Table 2: Personal Robbery Participant Profiles

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Serious Violent CrimeSerious violent crime includes Homicide & Child Destruction,Attempted Murder, Wounding or other act endangering life, GrievousBodily Harm (Part), Causing Death by Dangerous/Careless/Inconsiderate Driving, and Causing Death by Aggravated VehicleTaking. Young people aged 10 – 24 are apparent as victims (n=69) andperpetrators (n=63) of these crimes. Serious violent crime accountedfor 4% of all violence against the person offences over the past 3years (January 2011 to November 2013); during this time period therehas been a small decrease in the number of serious offences. Themajority of serious violence offences are ‘assault with intent tocause serious harm’.

Factor StatisticAlcohol as anaggravating factor inserious violent crime

26% of serious violent offences overall0% where the victim was aged 16 or under25% where the victim was aged 17 and 24

Use of firearms andweapons in seriousviolent crime

5% use of firearms58% use of knives or other sharp instruments

Key times for seriousviolence crime

15:00 and 21:00 where the victim was aged 16 (66% of offences)21:00 and 03:00 where the victim was aged between 17 and 24 (47% of incidents)The majority of assaults with injury were reported as taking place across the weekend, from late Friday evening to early Sunday morning

Locations of seriousviolent crime

Overall:36% in residential premises35% on the street29% at locations such as licensed premises,retail outletsWhere the victim was aged 16 or under11% in the home56% on the street33% at other locationsWhere the victim was aged between 17 and 2425% in the home37% of incidents took place on street38% at other locations

Table 3: Serious Violent Crime Statistics

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The following profiles compared a total of 69 victims and 63offenders (see Table 4), all of whom were aged from 10 to 24 yearsand had been involved in an assault with injury as either a victimor offender in 2013 in the city of Frankland.

Gender Males account for 87% of victims and 95% of offendersAge 6% of victims and 3% of offenders were aged 16 or

under at the time of the offence30% of victims and 45% of offenders were aged between 17 and 24 at the time of the offence.

Ethnicity 73% White offenders10% Black offenders10% Asian offenders5% Middle Eastern offenders84% White victims4% Black victims9% Asian victims

Occupation Where known:59% of offenders were unemployed11% students (including school age)22% were in employmentWhere known:17% of victims were in employment25% were students (including school age)19% were unemployed

Groupoffending

79% were committed by a single offender16% were committed by 2 offenders2% were committed by 3 or more offenders.

Table 4: Serious Violent Crime Participant Profiles

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Assault with InjuryAssault with injury accounted for 52% of all violence against theperson offences over the past 3 years (January 2011 to November2013); during this time period there has been a steady decrease inthe number of assault with injury offences. Young people aged 10 –24 are clearly both victims and perpetrators of this category ofcrime. The key statistics are shown in Table 5.

Factor StatisticAlcohol as anaggravating factor inassault with injury

Overall 31%8% where the victim was aged 16 or under35% where the victim was aged between 17 and 24

Use of firearms andweapons in assaultwith injury

0.4% use of firearms (9 incidents)2.2% use of knives or other sharp instruments

Key times for assaultwith injury

15:00 and 21:00 where the victim was aged 16 (60% of incidents)00:00 and 06:00 where the victim was aged between 17 and 24 (50% of incidents)Weekends were peak times, from late Friday evening to early Sunday morning

Locations of assaultwith injury

Overall:40% in residential premises27% on the street33% at locations such as licensed premises,retail outlets, etc.Where the victim was aged 16 or under:47% on the street22% in the home31% at other locationsWhere the victim was aged between 17 and 24:29% on the street32% in the home39% at other locations

Table 5: Assault with Injury Statistics

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The following profiles (see Table 6) compared a total of 860 victimsand 440 offenders, all of whom were aged from 10 to 24 years and hadbeen involved in an assault with injury as either a victim oroffender in 2013 in the city of Frankland.

Gender Males account for 55% of victims and 81% of offenders.Females account for 45% of victims and 19% of offenders.

Age 10% of victims and 14% of offenders were aged 16 or under at the time of the offence31% of victims and 34% of offenders were aged between 17 and 24 at the time of the offence.

Ethnicity 77% White offenders against a population of 88% volume10% Black offenders against 3% of the population8% Asian offenders against a population of 6% volume85% White victims7% Black victims5% Asian victims

Occupation Where known:39% of offenders were unemployed23% students (including school age)14% were in employmentWhere known:16% of victims were in employment31% were students (including school age)19% were unemployed

Groupoffending

offences 94% were committed by a single offender5% were committed by 2 offenders2% were committed by 3 or more offenders.

Table 6: Assault with Injury Participant Profiles

SummaryIt is clear that some young people are the victims of andperpetrators of crime. These unaudited figures suggest that therewere 1168 victims and 642 perpetrators of robbery, violent crime andassault aged 10 – 24 in 2013, compared to a population ofapproximately 68,000 young people of that age, 0.1% and 0.01%respectively. Offending behaviour is therefore not prevalent amongyoung people in Frankland, although indeed serious. These figuresalso represent all young people, not those who are exclusively ganginvolved, and so the crime related to gang involved young people

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will be smaller still. This supports the Peer Review suggestion thatrecords of offences include gang involvement so that a closercorrelation can be made between the two factors.

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3. METHODOLOGY

3.1 Mixed Methods The research used a mixed methods approach, that is to say it mixedqualitative with quantitative data. This approach of mixing researchmethods allowed us to overcome the shortfalls attached to anexclusively qualitative or quantitative approach. This mixing isapparent in the combination of quotes and statistics, providing anoverview of the scale and nature of young people’s experiences.Further, the approach provides a triangulation of a range of viewsto create an accurate snapshot of life for young people in Franklandtoday. Each different perspective is a different lens on thesituation, and together they produce a combined view. Theseperspectives include the views of young people, all collectedqualitatively, the view of practitioners and managers collected viasurvey and interviews, quantitative police data and an academicview, drawing in external literature to confirm or contrast with thecurrent situation. The literature is not comprehensive orrepresentative of the full academic field as a full literaturereview was beyond the scope of the commission, and the referencesshould be read in that light.

3.2 Research SitesThe research was intended to be city wide, and encompassed youngpeople from 16 out of 21 postcode areas, 76% coverage. The conductof the project was informed by partnership working with existingstatutory and non-statutory services that proactively engaged youngpeople affected by these issues and a range of professionals workingwith them in understanding the nature of concerns and identifyingsustainable responses to them. We spent time opportunisticallyinterviewing young people waiting for appointments with otherservices, we spent time in youth projects building relationshipswith young people prior to focus groups, and we arranged focus groupsessions with providers of interventions. We were also conductedresearch opportunistically approaching young people on the streetaround the city centre.

3.3 Data Collection

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The data collection with young people employed a semi-structuredinterview schedule approved by Frankland’s EGYV steering group. Thesemi-structured schedule (see Appendix 1) was appropriate for thiscontext as we wanted to ensure that we covered key common areas ofdiscussion, but also wanted to allow the young people to direct theconversation themselves, talk about issues that were important tothem, and to remain silent on issues that they did not know about ordid not feel able to discuss. Managing the relationship with theyoung people, maintaining trust, and protecting them from risk wereguiding principles throughout the data collection. Accordingly wealso engaged young people at a level that they were happy with – forsome this meant a short survey style conversation with us asking thesemi-structured questions. Other young people seemed happier totalk, and the conversations progressed into short and sometimespaired interviews. At a higher level again came in depth interviewsof up to two and a half hours with young people who wanted tocontribute more, these were largely directed by the young peoplethemselves. In some settings we also worked with young people infocus groups within established youth work sessions. All the youngpeople were rewarded for their participation with a £5 gift voucher.This was not used as an incentive as it may have influenced theirdecision to participate or not. Instead we provided them postinterview as a reward for engaging with us.

Practitioners and managers were asked to complete a gang servicesurvey either by hand or electronically (see Appendix 2). This wasan anonymous survey, although the names of services were providedallowing us to map the range of perspectives present. These are notidentified in this report to maintain confidentiality.

3.4 SampleThere were 143 young people and 7 practitioners who participated ininterviews and 49 practitioners who completed a survey. Thisgenerated a total of 42 hours of interview data and 199participants. Previous qualitative studies of ‘youth gangs’ havebeen based on smaller samples, for example, John Pitts’ 2007 studywas based on 54 interviews, and Ross Deuchar’s 2009 study was basedon 50 interviews. The most recent research on sexual exploitation in

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gangs by Beckett et al. (2013) for the Office of the Children’sCommissioner was of a similar scale with 188 participants. We havereason to be confident about the robust sample size.

The gender divide of the young people was unequal, with a 73% maleweighting, and is perhaps indicative of the weighting of youngpeople accessing additional services.

male73%

female27%

Chart of Gender of Young People (n= 143)

Chart 1: Gender of the Young People Participants

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The young people were predominantly aged 16-20 (77% of the sample),although the entire age of interviewees spanned from 10 to 40 asshown in the chart below.

10 to 15 16 to 20 21 to 30 30 to 400

20

40

60

80

100

120

Chart of the ages of interview participants (n=143)

Chart 2: Age of the Young People Participants

There was diversity in the ethnicity of the participants. Ratherthan imposing ethnic categories on them we used the ethnicities thatthey self-identified as. 45% were White British and 34% wereSomalian. This is a greater BME bias than across the generalpopulation in Frankland (17% as per the Home Office Peer Review(2012)). Other ethnicities included Mixed Race, Asian, Yemeni, Roma,and Irish. Three young people did not disclose their ethnicity. Thisethnic balance was biased by the level of interest and participationin Somalian communities with the research. They are shown in thechart below. One notable absence from the sample are Slovaks who area new ethnic group who have moved into, and are influencing life inFrankland. This is a gap in the sample.

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White

Britis

h

Mixed

Race

Asian

Irish Rom

a

Somali

anYem

ini

Undisc

losed

010203040506070

Chart of the Young People's Ethnicities (n=143)

Chart 3: Ethnicity of the Young People Participants

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We also asked the young people where they lived. Not all of themwanted to tell us, this was the greatest area of non-disclosure,with 17% not wanting to say where they live. Most young people livedin S3 (23%), followed by S4 (16%). This bias in the data againrepresents the communities that were most interested in talking tous. There was good coverage of the postcode areas across Frankland,with only five exclusions, S8, S12, S14, S19 and S30. The postcodesof the young people are shown in the chart below, and the names ofthe postcode areas can be found in Appendix 3.

S1 S3 S5 S7 S9 S11 S13 S17 S20 S30 S41

unknow

n05101520253035

Chart of Young People's Home Postcodes (n=143)

Chart 4: Postcodes of the Young People Participants

We did not capture detailed information about the young people’slives as this was deemed to be intrusive, so we are unable to sayhow many of them were from troubled families, looked after, refugeesor asylum seekers, were young offenders and so on. This could be anarea for future refinement and research. There are two known gaps inthe sample. We did not manage to get any family involved with oraffected by gangs to speak to us, however we have accessed the threefamily case studies in the EGYV Problem Profile (Jackson, 2012). We werealso unable to gain the perspective of young people and adults whoare in custody as the National Offender Management System declinedour request to research in prisons on the grounds that much researchinto gang involved prisoners was already taking place.

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There were 49 respondents to the practitioner survey, the majorityof which were completed in paper format at a training course, and 5completed electronically. The service staff that responded includeda good mix of statutory and voluntary sector services. In additionto this, there were also 7 practitioners in voluntary sectorservices who were also interviewed. We were aware that the answersto the survey may not all be entirely factual, as many services maynot routinely collect data pertaining to the gang involvement of theyoung people who attend. We screened for this in an opening surveyquestion. The results showed that 53% of the answers provided werefrom anecdotal evidence and observations, however, 29% was evidencebased and the remaining 18% purely personal opinion.

Evidence based29%

Anecdotal53%

Personal opinion18%

Source of answers n = 49

Chart 5: Source of Practitioners’ Survey Answers

3.5 AnalysisWe open coded the data. This means that the data was read, andthemes that emerged from it were noted down, creating a theoreticalframework. In this way the themes emerged from the data, rather thanus imposing our prior views onto the data. This analysis surfacedcategories and themes from different perspectives. Having analysedthe whole data corpus with these categories we then investigated thepresence of various themes. This analytical framework is shown indiagram one below.

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Definition Emergence Functions Sustenanc

eTrajector

ies

Themes:Weapons, Violence, Drugs, Girls, Families, Ethnicity, Territory.

Diagram 1: The Analytical Framework

As we describe each category and theme we highlight whether theevidence is coming from the young people’s views, the practitioners’views, or other documents and literature. The views of young peopleare signposted with anonymous code numbers (for example, YP1, YP3,YP24 etc.). Likewise the views of the practitioners are signpostedwith similar code numbers (P1, P2 etc.) or marked as survey data(Survey). All documents and literature are referenced by the authorand year of publication and included in the list of references. Someof the findings are straightforward reportage, but some of what issaid is more speculative, based on inferences or hunches drawn fromwhat respondents have said, or from what has been read. These arehighlighted by phrases such as ‘it appears’, or ‘it is said’.

The subject revealed itself to be complex and nuanced, with multiplelayers of meaning from different perspectives. As such structuringthe report was complex. For this reason a summary, recommendationsand further questions are provided after each section, allowing thereader to access relevant sections, and understand the findings asthey progress. As the context of Frankland and the lives of youngpeople are ever fluid this report can only ever represent a snapshotin time of the activity of groups of young people.

3.6 EthicsGiven the sensitivity of the topic under review and the potentialnegative implications associated with discussing these issues, carehas been taken to identify an appropriate, minimal risk means of

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Themes:Weapons, Violence, Drugs, Girls, Families, Ethnicity, Territory.

eliciting young people’s perspectives within a research interview orfocus group setting. An important safeguard in this respect is thecommitment that the majority of potential interviewees were accessedthrough agencies that can advise of any potential risks associatedwith involvement in the research and to ensure follow up support isin place if required. To allow the young people to contribute asfully as possible, and to avoid them disclosing serious criminalactivity they were encouraged to comment on issues in the thirdperson, unless they actively chose to do otherwise. We were veryclear about the boundaries of confidentiality and disclosure.

All the participants were provided with information about theproject (see Appendix 3) so that they could give informed consent toparticipate. Additional consent was sought if the participant’sinterviews were captured on audio recorder. The names of theparticipants were not used post consent process ensuring that theycould not be linked in any way to data. This alone did not ensureconfidentiality, as some of the details of events and actions thatthe participants discussed would also inevitably identify them. Insome instances, therefore, we have had to also anonymise the datadespite the loss of integrity and richness that this has caused.

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Part 2: FINDINGS

4. Definitions of groups and gangs of young people4.1 The problem of labelling

The data showed some problems with the terminology of a gang.

4.1.1 Gangs don’t existA large number of young people struggled to define the term, orwould not define what it meant. The most frequent answer was thatgangs do not exist, that the term is incorrect (8% of all answersand 34% of all the definitions given). One set of answers suggestedthat there may be gangs, but ‘gang’ was not the right word to callthem, they are instead ‘boys’ or such;

Our boys don’t call themselves a gang. They just chill and smoke weed and wecall ourselves ‘our boys'. Everyday something happens. People call them agang, but they are not YP22Close friends and family are involved. They would not be a gang, just family.They will never be known with a gang name and they won’t divulge who theyknow so that they can’t be named as a gang. I call them gangs, but they callthemselves, groups, boys or family. My brother’s mates for example just callthemselves boys. They just see it as what they have to do. They’re not a gangbecause they haven’t chosen it – it’s how they have to be because of societyYP74It’s particular areas and people. And the gang issue is subjective YP75It’s not gangs, people here talk about boundaries and bandana colours, butit’s all shit, they are just all mates. There are no gangs here, they are not calledthat YP76I don’t trust people in what you call gangs, because they’re just young YP108

Another set of answers acknowledged that the police and otherauthorities (‘they’) and the media, call them gangs, but that theyare not in gangs;

Police always think a group is a gang YP44Gangs are groups of mates, they are not gangs, but other people say that theyare YP54 We’re not a gang. It’s just the media YP137

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A third group of answers demarcate the difference between a gang whoseem to be assigned criminal activity, and a group of friends whoare doing nothing;

People hang out but they are just chatting, there is nothing to do so we arejust hanging out and we get a bad reputation for it. If we all walk aboutoutside then they call us a gang. Gangs don’t exist – people use the word inthe wrong way. When you see people hanging out around they have nothingelse to do, but they get labelled as hooligans. It’s a no brainer that there areno gangs, it’s just people hanging out and they just twist it in their headsYP89I disagree, it’s just a group of friends or family. Gang is a word that otherpeople would call us. There are no gangs. It’s just people who are friends forages, hanging out and watching each other’s backs. It’s not a gang YP108

As researchers, we occasionally found it hard to adopt the term‘groups of young people’ in interviews and sometimes slipped backinto use of the term gang (illustrating how pervasive and compellingits use is). In these occasions, young people who had already saidthat they were not in gangs would understandably re-stress theirpoint and pull us up on our use of language;

I understand the meaning of a gang, and we are not a gang, we keep trying toget that through to you YP115That doesn’t happen in what you call a gang…. YP108

Young people who state that there are no gangs also themselves usethe language that they object to later on in their own interviews,perhaps muddying the water further.

The young people who said that there were not gangs were asked aboutviolence, rather than gang activity, and then engaged inconversation about a range of criminal activity that groups of youngpeople engaged in (this is discussed further in the followingsections). Whilst young people believed that they were not in gangs,they did believe that young people were engaged in a range ofcriminal and violent behaviours, they were not claiming that allyoung people are pro-social.

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4.1.2 Gangs are defined by criminal activityThe second definition of a gang by young people involved theircriminal activity. 6% of all the young people believed this to bethe defining feature of gangs, 25% of all the definitions provided.

Loads of young people hanging out together but not just mates, they arethose that cause trouble and that YP2A gang is in trouble with the police, they are violent, they make trouble wherethey can YP17Gangs are aggressive, cause trouble, take drugs and start fights YP35Gangs are when groups of young people are causing trouble YP107

4.1.3 Gangs are defined by their attempts at status and powerPerhaps allied to the answer above, 3% of the whole sample, and 13%of those giving definitions thought that gangs were identifiable bytheir attempts to get status and power;

Gangs want attention, rather than just being a group of young people YP34Gangs are people who think they are hard YP109

Status and power were often connected to violence and criminal acts.

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4.1.4 Gangs are defined by their structures, roles and processesAnother 3% of the whole sample, and 13% of those giving definitionsthought that gangs were identifiable by their structures, roles andprocesses, such as having a leader, or a rite of initiation;

They are groups that have a leader and a rite of passage or initiation andstuff YP5There is a difference between gangs and other young people. Gangs haveboundaries, they walk, talk and react differently YP21His language is different with his mates, like wagga, and he talks to girlsdifferently and uses abbreviations, there’s a pecking order YP88

4.1.5 Gangs are defined by their dress codeAnother 3% of the whole sample, and 13% of those giving definitionsthought that gangs made themselves deliberately identifiable withtheir clothing;

The way that they dress makes them a gang YP3Young people hanging out are different to people in gangs. You can tell bywhat they are wearing YP19Certain gangs wear certain logos e.g. Addidas, Nike, ‘to show who’s boss in myends’ YP53His dress sense is changing and he now looks more chavvy YP86

4.1.6 Gangs are defined by the way they care for youOne young person stated that you could tell a gang by the fact thatthey resembled a family – the care and protection that they offeredhim was a defining feature;

They are a family, they offer you what your family doesn't YP13

The 32 definitions offered were almost equally provided by youngpeople who did and did not self-identify as in a gang (53% ofdefinitions by gang involved young people and 47% by non-ganginvolved young people).

Young people did think that there were gangs, but these seemed to bebetter defined by their criminal activity rather than by the label

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‘gang’. Additionally the young people who did not think that therewere gangs belonged to groups that also had characteristics with‘gangs’, that is to say, they were criminally involved, they woulddefend a member of their family / group and they would carryweapons. We will therefore now progress to look at thecharacteristics of some gangs and groups.

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These different definitions of gangs are summarised in the chartbelow.

Dress

code

Struct

ures

Crimin

alFam

ily

Not ga

ngs

Status

and p

ower

No def

initio

n020406080

100120

Young People's Definitions of Gangs

Chart 6: Young People’s Definitions of Gangs

Overall the data revealed five complex characteristics of gangs: Young people who are identified as and self-identify as gang

involved Young people who are identified but do not self-identify as

gang involved Young people who are not identified but self-identify as gang

involved Young people who are not gang involved from any perspective On the periphery – associated or at risk of involvement or

exiting from involvement

These can be summarised as a matrix of possible gang involvement as shown in Diagram 2, which could be used to map any individual’s involvement. This matrix highlights nine possible forms of gang involvement and the complexity of young people’s behaviour in relation to gangs.

Identified as gang involved by others

Not identifiedas gang involved by others

Seen to be associated, entering or exiting

Self-identify as gang involved

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Do not self-identify as gang involvedSee selves as associates, entering or exiting

Diagram 2: Nine Possible Modes of Gang Involvement

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The complexity and nuances of ‘gang involvement’ are perhaps bestillustrated by this young woman’s description of her boyfriend, whoshe fears may be gang involved:

The thing is. like I don’t class him as in a gang, he’s just associated with peoplein the city ‘blah blah’, but no, I am starting to think that it might go deeper as he has a look on his face and will produce a gun or a fancy knife, and last week he gave me a taser to keep under my bed and I said, ‘no, I have a metal bar’, but it’s different things and it’s scary and I care for him and don’t want towake up and find my son’s dad killed YP70.

It now seems pertinent to turn to the literature on gangs to see howthis illuminates the data. The definition of a ‘gang’ has always been problematic, and therewere many disputes and versions of a definition available in theliterature (Home Office, 2004, Pitts, 2008). Gangs are a socialconstruct however, and the term has perhaps become a common noun fora social construct that is applied to young people and notnecessarily how they perceive themselves to be. As early as 1971Klein highlighted that there were issues about who bestowed thetitle of ‘gang’. This begs the question of whether a group of youngpeople is a gang when others perceive them to be so, or when theyself-define as a gang? This would corroborate the differentperceptual positions that emerged from the data and that informedDiagram 2.

Young et al. (2007) point out that indiscriminate use of suchterminology can create a self-fulfilling prophesy of gang relatedbehaviour. Hallsworth and Young (2008) have most vehemently arguedagainst the use of gang terminology, accusing media and academicsalike of inflating issues. They point out that a ‘gang’ isideologically loaded with negative connotations, and further arguethat we seek simple definitions, as rational adults, in order todescribe a world that we can recognise and therefore work with, butthey state the reality is that the street world is complex andindefinable. The Centre for Social Justice resolved these issues in2009 with a definition of gangs as;

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‘A relatively durable, predominantly street based group of young people who:

(1) See themselves (and are seen by others) as a discernible group, and(2) Engage in a range of criminal activity and violence.

They may also have any or all of the following features:(3) Identify with or lay claim over territory(4) Have some form of identifying structural feature(5) Are in conflict with other, similar, gangs’.

This has been universally accepted and is use in all UK reports anddocuments since 2009. This definition would seem to correlate to thedata from the young people which highlighted that young people feelthey have to identify with being in a gang themselves, that they areto do with crime, and one of the other three features. The data hastherefore corroborated the value of the Centre for Social Justice’sdefinition. Many academics have striven to point out that not all groups ofyoung people are gangs (Hallsworth and Young, 2008; Aldridge, 2008;Klein, 2008). This is reinforced by qualitative research, forexample, by Deuchar (2009) who found that young people living indeprived urban communities in Glasgow felt that they are deemed tobe gangs when they are not, and further felt demonised bydescriptions of gangs. Equally the Ministry of Justice found thatoffenders disagreed with Home Office terminology and activelyresisted the label of gang member (Harris et al., 2011). This raisesa second issue with indiscriminate use of gang labels, in that itcan further marginalise and disenfranchise young people fromauthority figures who label them. Highlighting the problem ofdefinition is not to say that gangs do not exist, there is ampleevidence that they do exist in UK cities (Pitts, 2008; Palmer, 2009:CSJ, 2009: Balasunderam, 2009: Firmin, 2010: Pitts, 2010).

Equipped with a definition, we wondered how many young people wouldidentify gangs, or say that they were in gangs. 89% of the youngpeople said that there were gangs and 87% knew of someone in a gang,this suggests a prevalence of gangs. Only 28% of the young peopleidentified themselves as being in a gang themselves however, which

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perhaps again outlines the disparity between claiming to be in agang yourself and perceiving others to be in a gang.

The practitioner survey showed that service staff believed that 41%of the young people that they worked with were perpetrators ofviolence, that 30% were wannabe gangsters, and 18% were actuallygang involved. The opportunistic random sample that we interviewedshowed a higher level of involvement than expected by practitioners.14% of the practitioners felt that young people would identifythemselves as gang involved, 74% of staff thought that they wouldidentify themselves with gangs to some extent, and 12% thought thatyoung people would not identify themselves as gang involved.

Gang literature has sought to identify discernible ‘types’ of gangs.Hallsworth and Young (2004) developed a Three Point Typology ofUrban Collectivities (including peer groups, gangs and organisedcriminal groups) to try to map the different ways in which peoplecome together on the street. Later in 2000 Gordon developed a moresophisticated Five Point typology of Youth Groupings (includingYouth movements, youth groups, criminal groups, winnable groups,street gangs, and criminal business organisations). Klein (1995)deepened these typologies further with a Five Point Typology ofStreet Gangs (including the traditional gang, the neotraditionalgang, the compressed gang, the collective gang and the specialitygang). In 2007 Pitts then mapped five types of gangs in WalthamForest alone (including the articulated super gang, the street gang,the compressed street gang, the wannabe gangsters, the criminalyouth group and the middle level international criminal businessorganisation).

In more recent times such typologies have been problematised, oftenby the very authors that produced them, demonstrating a shift inthinking. In 2010 Klein stated that; ‘The twin tendencies to stereotype gangsas all similar or to ignore the issues of gang structures have been harmful to research, topolicy, and to public understandings of gangs’ (2010:10). Short and Hughes (2010)USA based research shows that gangs are all different, that theyvary along different dimensions, they constantly change, and arefluid organisations and therefore defy typologies. This is a viewthat Hallsworth and Young (2008) have supported in the UK. These

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typologies, they say, are not in the language of the street, andthey do not represent the street. Street collectivities, accordingto them, are fluid and volatile and amorphous, and best understoodas rhizomatic root structures, rather than linear arboreal tree rootsystems. This resonates with the complexity of ways in which youngpeople can be designated as gang involved, as reflected in Diagramtwo. If there are nine different ways in which young people can besaid to even belong to gangs, then the complexity of formations ofgangs themselves can equally be expected to be complex. This will beexplored in more detail in section 6.

4.2 Summary, Recommendations and Further QuestionsThere are a range of views from young people about the existence ofgangs. These include views that gangs: do not exist, are defined bycriminal activity, are defined by their attempts at status andpower, are defined by their structures, roles and processes, aredefined by their dress code, and are defined by the way that theycare for you. Young people who believe that there are no gangsbelieve that groups of young people get involved in criminalactivity. Young people can designate themselves as gang members orbe designated as gang members by others. Definition is thereforeuncertain and problematic as is describing types of gang structures.

We recommend that ‘gang’ labels are used in an informed and carefulway, given that there is uncertainty about the meaning of the term,who may be counted as a member of a gang, and that its use canreinforce the behaviour it seeks to address and further alienatesalready marginalised young people.

Questions remain. It would be useful, although perhaps unfeasible,to map the number of young people in Frankland who would self-identify as gang involved and the number of young people identifiedas gang involved to understand the scale and to establish if thereis a differential.

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5. THE EMERGENCE OF GROUPS OF YOUNG PEOPLE

5.1 The History of Groups of Young People in Frankland The context described in 2.2 has established that there is a highyouth population in Frankland, high youth unemployment, povertyconcentrated in specific areas, high levels of non-British residentsand a high proportion of BME young offenders. Gangs have existed inthe area for nearly a century, but youth ‘gang’ and violence hasrisen in the last decade. This provides us with some clues as to theemergence and reasons for groups of young people becoming violent orfor joining ‘gangs’. We will now explore what the young people andpractitioners understood as the history of the emergence of groupsof young people who are violent and or ‘gang’ involved in the city.There was very little data about how groups of young people who maybe violent or gang involved emerged in Frankland from the youngpeople themselves. There was a sense generally that they had beenaround for a long time, and young people certainly referred to themas being postcode based in the past:

Gangs before were area based but were also people from all sorts of differentareas for instance you had a Broomhall and Pitsmoor and Parsons Cross whowould have all those areas covered, but now it’s just areas. There used to bemore people in gangs so they could keep control over lots of areas like hereand there and making more money faster and getting their name heard andgetting that fear across to other people YP73The kids that got shot have gone and there are no postcode wars anymore

YP40One guy was pissed off and talked about one person with beef being againstanother person and then they turn into a group but it gets labelled as anarea, but that is not what it is, it’s about individuals with mates YP89It’s definitely calming down and is getting better YP118

In such descriptions, the young people seemed to think that therewere fewer issues that could be classified as gang related. Howeversome young people felt that the issue was worsening rather thanimproving:

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Others say it’s calming down but I think it’s going underground. It’s like everyoneis evolving now and I think that it will get to the point where the younger ones willsee how bad it is now and where does it go from there? It couldn’t really get muchworse could it as there is something in every postcode so where does it go fromhere YP71Also, like, a lot of people got involved with the police and so it does seem to, like,get bigger and bigger over the years. Like now I think it’s getting as bad as it hasever been for young people. It used to be bad for older people but now it’s worsefor younger people because they don’t have anyone to turn to and they arevulnerable YP73

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The clearest sense of history was displayed in Broomhall, where theolder generation were deliberately making attempts to change thecourse of history, protecting the younger generation from the issuesin the past:

We did have a big issue and there was a lot of drug related violence and we havea big history of that and now that rubs off onto us. That past generation did stuffand it rubbed off onto us. The younger kids are now carrying that reputation,they are messed with it and live up to it and they don’t deserve that YP98

5.2 Drivers The Home Office Peer Review of Frankland (2012) identifies the differencesbetween risk factors and drivers:

‘Risk factors – these are related to the individual, peer group, school, family andcommunity that are commonly found to be associated with gang involvementand violence. Individuals with these risk factors will not necessarily get involvedwith gangs, but knowing about risk factors can help to identify those who aremost at risk of involvement in gang violence.

Drivers – these are underlying issues that help to explain how risk factors impacton the daily lives of individuals and may result in them becoming involved ingangs and gang violence. These can be seen as emotional, reputational,environmental, social-economic, cultural. Understanding the drivers helps toidentify issues that should be targeted when trying to intervene to prevent orreduce gang involvement or violence’ (2012:36).

This research therefore sought to understand what drove young peopleinto gangs, rather than adding to the wealth of information onexisting risk factors. This was in fact a natural process, the youngpeople all spoke naturally about the reasons why young people joinedgroups or ‘gangs’ and often linked these to underlying issueswithout promoting. We were impressed with the sophistication of theanswers given. 22% of the young people talked about the drivers ofviolence in groups of young people and 31% identified drivers ofgang activity in groups of young people. In total 53% of youngpeople responded to this question.

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5.2.1 Respect, Status and PowerThe most frequent driver was reputational (18 young people). Youngpeople were repeatedly reported as wanting respect and the statusthat it brings. Some young people were able to articulate the linkthat there is to power. Being involved in groups who engage inviolence or gang activity could bring them power that they could notattain in other aspects of their lives.

It’s to get respect and a reputation YP4Your peers fear you and then they don’t give you no grief YP9They make themselves look good and look hard by being in a gang YP23Reputation, looking cool, looking strong YP47They do it to get people to look up to them YP27It’s all about fear, peers, and status YP29The younger ones get into violence to prove themselves YP71It’s all about status and rep YP130

Reputational drivers also links to the sense of belonging that comeswith belonging to a group. The young people described how areputation as trustworthy leads to you having higher status andhigher level tasks. Reputation leads to trust (as well as fear see5.2.7) and inclusion and belonging:

As soon as you play out with your mates, you meet people and you meet moretop people and then you’re in it, boom, because you get 100% trust andrespect and back up from them, so we proper love them, they are loyal anddon’t stitch you up YP81.It’s like, if you do this, we’ll give you this…and now you’ve done one job, youcan do another job and because you are new, you are only risking a smallsentence…. gangs are held together by trust YP107.

The literature on risk factors and drivers of gang involvement wouldsupport the importance of respect and status in youth groups. TheMinistry of Justice psychological research (2011) named it as one offour key drivers of gang and crime involvement. The Youth JusticeBoard (2007), Toy and Stanko (2008) and Deuchar (2009) also all namethe importance of power, respect and status in youth groups.

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5.2.2 Family Issues or BelongingJoining a gang because of family dysfunction and/or because of theneed to find a sense of belonging was the next most frequent driverof joining groups of young people (16 responses). This also links tothe theme identified above. There were two aspects to families thatcould drive violence and groups becoming gangs. The first was that apoor experience in the family could lead young people to seek analternative – in a group of young people. The second aspect was thatyou would be driven into violence and/or gang activity if yourfamily were already involved. We will discuss these in turn.Some young people identified that you might want to be part of agroup of young people because of the additional sense of ‘family’that you get from them:

Some people might join for family – to get a sense of family YP107

Others seemed to be impelled into groups of young people because ofthe poor parenting that they were receiving in terms of not beingloved or cared for, being the victim of abuse in the home, beingneglected and so on. This theme could also link to boredom, in thatsome parents may not be able to engage their children in meaningfulactivities:

Not got a family and they want to feel safe, used to be a part of a gang, in thepast. I was scared and wanted to be a part of something. I got a sense ofbelonging from it YP9If you disrespect your parents and family, or are disrespected by them thenyou go and find family in a gang YP12Family experience mainly, if you spend a life scared of your mum and in fostercare it does you no good. I decided not to be violent like my mum, but othersin that situation might not, they might become violent YP25Because no one cares YP27Poor homes, family issues like being around violence YP29I was lonely ‘cos my family was all locked up, so they were the only ones thattook me in when I had no one YP33There is no love at home YP45It’s because they get pushed away from their families YP44

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The benefits accrued from the alternative youth family wereidentified as being better understood, being trusted, and beingprotected:

You get born into it, and get involved and then no one is gonna do you over.So it’s like protection YP19People are sound and they get me. My mates know everything that’s gone onfor me, so I turn to them because they know it all. So when I fell out with myfamily I’d go to gang because they’re friends and I belong YP107

The association with this new family has implications for youngpeople’s identities:

In a gang you become ‘one of them’ you are not Joe Bloggs any more, you are‘Joe Bloggs S3’ YP70.

Five of the young people we interviewed were in gangs because oftheir families’ involvement. They said:

You get born into it YP16Young people get involved because they are told to by their family YP149If it’s your family, then you just fall into it YP108

For these young people there was no choice to be made, they werebrought up into a family that was violent and/or involved in gangactivity, and that became their normality. Such young people did notknow of an alternative way of living, and some were unbelieving whenin informal conversation we said that there were no gangs in therural area of the country that we lived in.

The literature on risk factors and drivers of gang involvementsupport the importance of family for a range of reasons. The lack ofa father figure as a role model in many households has been linkedto young people’s desire to follow a hyper alpha male gang leader(CSJ, 2009; Kenny Report 2012; Aldridge and Medina 2007; Sharp,Aldridge and Medina 2006). Poor parenting itself is a key cause ofgang involvement (Farrington and Welsh, 2007; Khan et al., 2013;CSJ, 2009) as is family breakdown (Farrington and Welsh, 2007; CSJ,2009) and domestic violence (Farrington and Welsh, 2007; CSJ, 2009;

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Department of Health 2002). In these circumstances, the literatureconnects the gang as a surrogate family (Deuchar, 2009), much as theyoung people did in this study, as they seek to find their sense ofconnectedness and belonging outside the family home (Ministry ofJustice, 2011). Deuchar (2009) describes this in terms of socialcapital, he explains that young people seek out compensatory formsof social capital (Bassani, 2007:30) that they are not getting inother forums such as the family. Equally, the Youth Justice Boarddata (2007) highlights the increased risk of gang involvement foryoung people if there is family involvement in gangs.

5.2.3 MoneyMoney was the next most frequent theme (15 responses), and there wasa strong link between money as providing status, and money derivedfrom drugs, so it is difficult to isolate it fully from these otherdrivers. The most common reference to money was in relation to theactivities that some groups of young people engaged in would lead tothem acquiring money:

Like me for instance I didn’t want to get involved in it but lots of people that Iknew were and it was hard and it was easy at the same time. An easy way tomake money and it was hard to get a job so unless you worked for family youcouldn’t make money and so like you see a lot of people like with new clothesand cars and people idolise it and get it into their mindset that they want itYP73There’s no other option around here. If you want money you get into gangsand you do drugs. People even choose drug dealing over going to collegeYP72Once people get involved in gangs and violence, it’s easy money. They can’twork so they sell drugs. Drugs, violence, gangs, gang rape and money are allclosely related, you can’t separate them out YP20There is a relationship between violence and gangs and money YP22

Some of the older young people were also able to relate increasedengagement in violence or gang activity due to the poverty in someareas:

Pitsmoor is more socially deprived YP171

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The same factor was highlighted by one of the practitioners whoparticipated:

If you map deprivations, that’s where all the gangs are, it’s a direct link YP111

There is a perhaps a logical link from living in a deprived area toliving in poverty, seeing other people with things that you mightwant (materialism) but can’t afford (social injustice), believingthat you can’t get those things legitimately (lack of opportunity)and so criminal activities to make such gains within groups of youngpeople seeming an attractive choice. This line of logic is evidentin the following quote:

Now there is unemployment so you have gotta work twice as hard to get stuff. It’show you’ve been brought up and it’s just normal. We’re not old enough to get jobsbut the people we hang with have nice things and we want that too. Everyone’sgotta eat. People criticise you for what you wear and what you have and so asyou grow up you want stuff. You see other people with stuff, like trainers andcars, and so you do summat about it. We do burglaries and drugs and robinnocent rich people, it’s not good but you’ve got nothing yourself and you needsummat. If you grew up in a posh estate you would have everything and then itwould all be ok, but when you’re poor you want everything and so you get itYP77

Perhaps the growing disparity between the rich and the poor in theUK, high unemployment and increased materialism has fuelled criminalactivity in youth groups. Young people are driven into youth groupswho engage in criminal activity as they see no other viable way ofgaining the status they need from ‘looking like’ other people, andhaving what they have. The literature on gang involvement issupportive of this view. The Ministry of Justice (2011) found thatthe need for money was one of four drivers of criminal activity. TheYouth Justice Board (2007) and Toy and Stanko (2008) link this tothe increasingly materialistic culture in which we live today. Thiscoupled with a widening socio economic gap (CSJ, 2009; Pitts, 2007)and intense and overt consumerism (CSJ, 2009) is creating areas ofviolence and gang involvement in areas of socioeconomic deprivation

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(Deuchar, 2009; Farrington and Welsh, 2007; Department of Health,2012). These communities can then develop criminal and gang disposedcultures, as discussed further in 5.2.10.

5.2.4 Boredom and Lack of OpportunityYoung people believed that there was ‘nothing else to do’, and thatthis created a sense of ‘boredom’ (13 responses). Associated to thiswas a sense that there were not many opportunities open to them interms of jobs, apprenticeships, traineeships and volunteeringbecause they had no chance of getting them compared to their moreprivileged peers. This compounded the issues of boredom, asunemployment would lead many of the older young people to have agreat deal of time on their hands.

There is not enough for them to do, there used to be loads, but now there isnowt’. It’s mostly. And there are no jobs for them, so they are mischieving YP6Because there is nothing for young people to do and we have nothing YP12They are violent because they are bored YP23Boredom and lack of money causes it YP36It’s too hard to get jobs….people do try but can’t get them YP47

Both Deuchar (2009) and Aspire (2012) cite unemployment anddisillusionment about career prospects as drivers of ganginvolvement.

5.2.5 Peer Influence

Perhaps with so little to do on the streets, peer influence becomesof higher importance in young people’s lives. Especially whencoupled to the peer group acting as an alternative family and basefor attachment. Twelve young people cited peers as the main driverfor involvement in groups of young people. Whilst this is labelled‘peer influence’, the role of age is significant, in that the cohortof young people in groups seem divided into a group of ‘youngers’and ‘olders’, the young ones looking up to and emulating their olderpeers.

The younger ones look up to the older ones or their brothers and so it is peerinfluence YP23 There are lots of wannabe gangsters - the younger ones YP36

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You get called “pussy” if you don’t join in the gangs YP44The older ones are role models. At first the younger ones don't know what theyare getting into YP71 I couldn't stay out of gangs. I had to join because of the pressure. It wasimpossible. They were on at me all the time when I was out. And it got so itwould be safer to be in the gang than not in the gang. So then I thought, like,I may as well be top dog. So I did more selling and stuff and got more violentand took over YP72 Some people are peer pressured into it YP82Boys are just chilling together and then they get into it YP132Youngers want to be like the olders YP135

Living around violence and gang activity within a peer group canmake it seem normal, young people then accept it and become numbedto its negative impact:

Yes we get involved because there are young people doing it all around you. Onceyou get in trouble, it just gets to be regular YP19

Extensive literature on gang involvement supports the view that peerrole models and peer pressure is a key driver (Kenny Report, 2012;Khan et al., 2012; Farrington and Welsh, 2007; Aldridge and Medina,2007; Sharp, Aldridge and Medina, 2006; Kintrea et al., 2008). DiegoVigil (2010) theorises the importance of peers in relation todevelopment theories. He cites four dimensions of development foradolescents; the social dimension is the need to be liked, theemotional dimension is gaining a sense of acceptance for who youare, the cognitive dimension involves identity construction, andphysical changes are becoming an adult male through puberty. Whilstthe fourth factor will happen irrespective of environmental factorsas it is hormonal, the other three factors are highly contingent ona peer group. The needs of being liked and being accepted driveyoung people to behave in ways that are common to their peers andthat in turn influences their identity. The role models of thestreet therefore have a huge role in young people’s development, andbelonging to the street can be seen to be consistent with youngpeople’s developmental needs (Diego Vigil, 2010). From thisperspective peer pressure can be seen to include anything from peers

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forcing a person to join a gang through coercion, to a personwanting to join a gang because they feel the need to be acceptedinto that social group. It covers a wide spectrum of behaviours.

5.2.6 DrugsDrugs were mentioned as a driver in nine of the young people’sexplanations of why they are members of groups of young people,however drugs featured in the interviews with 83% of the youngpeople, suggesting that it may be a more powerful driver than theyacknowledge. As previously mentioned, drugs are a prime mechanismfor making money, and so have a strong link to money as a driver forinvolvement in groups of young people. It also linked to boredom andlack of opportunity detailed above, as perceiving that there are nolegitimate job opportunities can lead to young people choosing todeal drugs.

They can’t work so they sell drugs YP19Why get involved? Because they are fucked in the head, they go to the gangsfor supply and demand of drugs. They want income, and it’s a good businessYP22If you want money you get into gangs and you do drugs. People even choosedrug dealing over going to college YP70Drug selling £1000 a week YP48

The literature on gangs usually treats drugs as a symptom orconsequence of being gang involved, however, its role in generatingincome would suggest in this study that it is a driver.Interestingly Wacquant (2004) describes the process of materialdeprivation, and violent money making as ‘hyper ghettoisation’. Inthis process Waquant describes the absence of regulating socialrelations and the violence associated with the drugs trade leadingto an intensification of intra class and intra racial crime andviolence. There are similarities here to the quotes from youngpeople who repeatedly link power, violence, money and drugs togetherin a destructive cycle.

5.2.7 Fear and protection

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A few young people mentioned that they join groups of young peoplebecause they are afraid that they will be attacked if they do not (9responses). The need for protection on the street is therefore adriving factor.

You carry stuff [weapons] ‘cos others carry stuff. You don’t know if they've gotsomething and you don’t want to get hit YP1If you get involved and then no one is gonna do you over. So it’s like

protection YP18They ask you to work for them and if you don't say yes they will beat you up

YP19They look up to the adults and are also scared and so get involved YP20

Protection from victimisation is one of the four drivers of criminalactivity identified by the Ministry of Justice (2011). Its role as adriver of gang involvement is widely evidenced (Pitts, 2007;Deuchar, 2009; Marshall, Webb, Tilley, 2005).

5.2.8 Music and Other MediaYoung people named music, film and games as influences on youngpeople. These were contributory factors rather than singulardrivers, but none the less, influential.

They [young wannabe’s] get misguided too and are influenced by music.Area codes are in the lyrics as well as gangsters’ names like Lester Divers. Theyget misguided by this music as the DJ’s glorify it and it’s not reality. Theyounger ones make themselves look like criminals, aspiring to be like thepeople in the music YP65 There was some stuff about role models, and they are Tupac and the like andit’s glorified. Redemption the film has influenced them, the Crips and thatYP69But they copy what they see on TV for getting status YP135They try to take things off from 'Grand Theft Auto' and act it out YP20Music is massive, it corrupts your mind and makes you want to beat someoneup and so you go out and do so and if you listen to 50 Cent it’s moreambitious, and other music talks about making easy money and so you juststick to the bad stuff then. When the media talk about us being the bad peoplethen we may as well be the bad people YP97

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This could also be counted as peer influence, but the fact thenational and even international potential for influence gave it adifferent characteristic. Pitts (2007) is the only other academic toassociate music as a driver of gang involvement.

5.2.9 Sectarianism - Racial and FootballSectarianism is a form of prejudice, discrimination or hatredagainst other groups of people who are perceived to be different,usually due to religious, class or political differences. It is hardto determine from this data set whether sectarianism is a driver forgroups of young people, or whether it is a symptom of theirformation. When any group forms it creates cohesion between itsmembers. People who are not in that group are then deemed ‘other’,and the differences perceived between the group and ‘others’ can bethe basis for sectarianism. Conversely, commonly held sectarianviews within a community could lead to a group forming. From theeight quotes here, it seemed that racial and football relatedsectarianism were particular drivers of group formations, butsectarianism remains a theme in all further analyses to allow a fullunderstanding of its role in groups.One group of young people took time to explain the different racialtensions, and how their link to various gangs:

There were clashes between the Somalians and Jamaicans in Pitsmoor.Broomhall is mainly Somali and some Asian, Sharrow is Pakistani and Asianwe are close with them because they are nearby. Up at Nether Edge they arePakistani. Upperthorpe has the least racial conflict because it is so diverse,there are Pakistanis, Somalis, Whites and Asians. Firth Park is Pakistani andnearby Fir Vale is White. Manor is the worst area because it’s all white YP’s161-172You get people wanting to be hard and they are racist and so they don’t likegays and emo’s and like anyone different. Even the young ones hang in theendz and talk about those that they want to get YP68Hillsborough is mainly football related violence and groups YP86Football is also a mechanism for gangs, there is a relationship between them.EDL is different to gangs YP58There were EDL marches a while ago, and some gangs joined with the EDLand there were then clashes with other cultural gangs YP57

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The sectarian views of some young people are apparent from theirstatements:

Darnall is full of pakis. In S9 there were wars between them and S3. In Darnallwe fight with them. We can’t say ‘owt to the brownings, the half castes orquarter castes because they are like us, but you can’t say that about pakkis. Ifthey are seen with you they will get taken out. If [name of man of non-British heritage] came over with me it would take half an hour and thestreet would be full and a load of people would come and smoke him, eventhough he’s a big bloke YP153

These racial tensions perhaps lead some of the young people toconclude that:

It’s [gang activity] mainly about racism, not due to postcodes. Itswhites against all religions and all other races YP141

Having identified sectarianism as a driver of violence, it isalarming to think that there are currently ‘around 900 Roma families, butno one knows for sure, failing to integrate’ (Kenber, 2013). These new residents,according to The Times, are accused of littering, playing loudmusic, hanging out in streets, stealing, prostitution and childtrafficking (Kenber, 2013).

The literature on gangs usually links sectarianism to the behaviourof gangs, as a consequence, rather than as a driver of gangbehaviour.

5.2.10 A culture of violence and criminalityThese factors together can be seen as pervasive cultural drivers ofyoung people’s membership into groups that may be violent and/organg active. Even some of the young people identified the culturethat they lived in as forcing their membership:

It’s the way that they are brought up and the environment that they are in, it’ssurvival YP10

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It just happens, mostly it’s just kids hanging out and kind of getting sucked upinto it YP25It’s because you are just in that situation YP45It’s just how it is, there is nothing else to do YP55It’s how you’ve been brought up and it’s just normal YP78

Academics studying gangs have well documented the influence ofcommunities on young people (Khan et al., 2012; Farrington andWelsh, 2007). Many suggest that the communities that they live inare increasingly disenfranchised and alienated as they experiencepoverty, unemployment, discrimination and alienation (CSJ, 2009;Marshall, Webb, Tilley, 2005; Deuchar, 2009). This can lead tocommunities and young people who create their own society (CSJ,2009). This was supported by discussions with young people in twodifferent geographical areas of the city, who commented that:

When people treat us as bad we get bad ideas. If they label us as bad thenwe may as well be bad YP105People feel marginalised and the issues that we had are blown out ofproportion. That person that caused those issues is one or two individuals,not the whole community YP122

Further, Deuchar (2009) points out that these alienated societieshave no valid expressions of masculinity for working class malesapart from gangs and violence. The hegemonic western masculine ideasof wealth , racial superiority and heterosexuality (McDowell2003:11) are not possible for them in cultures of deprivation andpoverty. This, according to Deuchar (2009) leads to a counterhegemonic or 'protest masculinity'. Moore and Vigil (1989) alsonoticed an 'oppositional culture' which sets the gang againstsocieties institutions, a culture reinforced by the subsequentrejection of gangs by society (Moore and Vigil, 1989; Lien, 2002).

These ten drivers are summarised on the Chart 7.

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fear

money

family issues

respect

boredom

belonging

drugs

media

peers/ normal

sectarianism

cultural

0

4

8

12

16

The Drivers of Groups of Young People (n= 75 responses)

Chart 7: Young People’s Views of the Drivers of Joining Groups

There are some drivers of gang involvement that are highlighted bythe literature yet did not appear in the data from young people.Multiple studies link poor achievement at school and exclusion fromschool as a driver for gang involvement (Khan et al., 2012; Aspire,2012; CSJ, 2009; Pitts, 2007; Deuchar, 2009; Farrington and Welsh,2007). The lack of success may drive the young people to seeksuccess in other groups, and may also dramatically increase the timethat they spend with poor role models (i.e. other street based youngpeople), and it decreases the likelihood of young people gainingemployment and so may lead to them seeking money through alternativeroutes such as the drugs trade. We did not ask the young peopleabout their educational history, but many of them were inalternative to education provision, suggesting that educationalfailure is a factor in gangs, although one that they have notidentified themselves, however, other young people were at collegeand university.

The young people did not mention poor housing, but a lack ofadequate housing, the concentration of deprivation in socialhousing, and homelessness (Aspire, 2012; CSJ, 2009; Johnson, 2009;Pitts, 2007) have all been identified as drivers in otherliterature. Two other drivers not mentioned by the young people butpresent in the literature are the prevalence of mental illness(2012), and sensation seeking (Deuchar, 2009).

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Practitioners felt that there were many drivers of gang involvementand violence, ticking between two and all 17 of the possible listeddrivers. There was an average (mean) of 11 drivers ticked by eachpractitioner. They obviously see gang involvement and violence as acomplex youth issue, involving many of the drivers identified in theliterature but not by the young people. The Chart 8 summarises theirresponses in the survey on EGYV.

Neglec

tAbu

se

Ill he

alth

Poor e

ducati

on

Parent

al vio

lenceDru

gs

Alcoho

l

School

exclu

sion

Conduc

t diso

rder

Mental

healt

h issu

es

Victim

isatio

n

Family

invol

vement

Early

offend

er

Peer p

ressur

eBor

edom Fea

r

Povert

y0

102030

Practitioners' Views of Drivers of Youth Gangs and Violence (n=49

respondents)

Series1Series2

Chart 8: Practitioners' views of the Drivers of Youth Gangs and Violence

The Home Office Peer Review (2013:35) identifies five related, cyclicaldrivers of gangs / serious youth violence. These are emotional – reputational – socio-economic – environmental – cultural. These are useful categories that can be used to cluster the ten themes that emerged from this data set. Home Office Drivers Drivers from the dataEmotional Families and belonging – the emotional need

for attachmentBoredom and lack of opportunity – the emotional need for fulfilment and purposePeer pressure – the need for acceptance and inclusionFear and the need for protection

Reputational Respect and statusSocio-economic Money

Drugs – as a route to acquiring money

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Environmental Music and other mediaCultural Sectarianism

Culture of violence and crime in the family orcommunity

Table 7: Home Office Drivers Applied to the DataWhilst there is a good match between the Home Office drivers and thethemes in the data, the data collected shows that there is a more complex relationship between the drivers than suggested by the Home Office’s cyclical diagram. Rather we propose a honeycomb style of relationship. The prevalent culture in which young people mature (shown in orange in the centre) is the principle driver as this, at least in part, drives the other factors. Around these are the core drivers that are all connected to one another through culture (shownin blue). To the outside of these sits the secondary drivers, only present with one or more of the other factors (shown in green).

Diagram 3: The Relationship Between the Drivers

5.3 Current GangsDespite the prevalence of young people saying that gangs did not exist, a number of discernible gangs were identified. 97 young people said that there were gangs in other areas – four young peoplesaid that they were everywhere, and two said that they could not answer as it would be too dangerous for them to identify them:

There are lots, but I am not saying who or where YP35

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Fear and protecti

onReputation

Boredom

Drugs

Peers

Money

Sectarianism

Music and media

Family and

belonging

Culture

S3, S4 and S5 were identified most frequently as having gangs. Some areas were not identified as having any gangs at all (S1, S12, S13, S14, S19, S30 and S35). The frequency of areas identified as having gangs are shown below.

S1 S3 S5 S7 S9 S11

S13

S17

S20

S35

Everywhere

0

5

10

15

20

25

Young People's Views of the Areas that have Gangs (n= 97 responses)

Chart 9: Young People’s Views of the Areas that have Gangs

The distribution of these areas is shown in diagram 4 below. Postcode areas with gang involvement are highlighted with a yellow star.

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Diagram 4: Map Showing Areas Indicated as having ‘Gangs’

The 8% of participants who said that gangs did not exist in 4.1.1were within the 41% of young people who did not identify gangs. Oneyoung person thought that there were many gangs in each area:

There are eight to ten in each postcode area YP13

But overall, the young people identified an average of 2 areas thathad gangs, and 2 gangs per area.Very few young people identified the names of gangs due to fear atdisclosing such details. The six gangs that were identifiedincluded:

The Park City Boys YP29S3 YP77In our area there was Somalian Man Down (SMD) and Broomhall Square Men(BSM) and the WS10 crew YP68They called themselves the PRU the Perry’s Road Union and its daft YP70

5.4 Summary, Recommendations and Further QuestionsThe data collected here has shown that there are ten drivers foryoung people to join groups of young people that are involved incriminal and/or gang activities. These ten drivers: respect andstatus, families and belonging, boredom and lack of opportunity,money, peer pressure, drugs, fear and protection, music and othermedia, sectarianism, can be linked to the Home Office’s five driversof EGYV (emotional, reputational, socioeconomic, environmental andcultural). The ten drivers described by the young people in thisresearch were complex and interrelated. The young people did notmention a number of drivers that were mentioned by practitioners andby the literature, notably; educational failure, poor housing,mental health issues and excitement.

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Despite some young people saying that gangs do not exist, there wasa prevalent view from the young people that there were gangs in manyof the postcode areas, and estates within postcodes across the city.The young people had a sense that gang issues stemmed back over anumber of years and that they used to be primarily postcode driven.There were mixed perceptions as to whether the gangs were now tiedto postcodes or not, and whether the gang situation was improving orworsening.

Given that the drivers for groups of young people to become involvedin criminal or gang activity are complex, deep rooted and interrelated, interventions to address them need to be similarly matched.This means that long term, multi-agency and systemic approaches areneeded that both divert young people and address the causes ofunrest, such as:

Job seeking skills Entrepreneur training Life skills Empowerment projects Community development projects

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6. THE FUNCTIONING OF GROUPS OF YOUNG PEOPLE

6.1 Recruitment and Initiations There was little information from the young people about the ways inwhich young people were recruited into groups. The factors thatdrive young people into gangs were, however, supplemented bystrategies that young people had to coerce or entice other youngpeople to join them, and these were clearly identified by thepractitioners as the coercion of peer pressure, family, territory,fear and intimidation, and the pulls of friendship, money, status,gifts, drugs and a sense of belonging. It seems that the youngpeople mobilise the drivers of involvement in groups explicitly asrecruitment techniques:

People get dragged in, persuaded, manipulated, and blackmailed. It’s like, ifyou do this, we’ll give you this…and now you’ve done one job, you can doanother job and because you are new, you are only risking a small sentenceYP107

friend

ship /

peer

pressu

rein

prison

they a

re fam

ily

bought

- mon

ey and

gifts

offere

d stat

us

offere

d drug

s

offere

d belo

nging

forced

by po

stcode

fear a

nd int

imidat

ion

04812

Practitioner's Views of How Young People are Recruited into Gangs

(n= 24)

Chart 10: Practitioners' views of How Young People are Recruited into Gangs

The young people acknowledged that there were some groups in schools, and these served as a link between the school and the

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street. From this perspective they can be seen to have a role in recruitment.

Gangs are in both the community and in schools YP18There are gangs in schools, I know of gangs in my school YP57Silverdale school has lots of racial tensions as two schools were merged together. There are tensions between schools and gangs often trash buses. Now the tension is Forge Valley vs Bradfield. Forge Vale is an amalgamation oftwo schools. There are tensions within in and those school rivalries carry on and go onto the street P111

Having been recruited, young people often then faced an initiation.Initiation into a group was sometimes through completion of anexplicit task, and for others it was a more incremental process ofgradually earning trust.

There are initiations into gangs. One of these is stopping a car at a trafficlight and then robbing the car. This is being 'crowned', proving yourselfworthy YP63Some people are peer pressured into it. They are asked to do big jobs to geta reputation. As soon as you play out with your mates, you meet people andyou meet more top people and then you’re in it boom. Because you get 100%trust and respect and back up from them, so we proper love them, they areloyal and don’t stitch you up. Some gangs even get you to sign a contractand would like, when you arrive they would throw you up against the walland then strip search you and then you’re set a task YP84There are initiations, gangs are held together by trust. In a gang you aregoing to have drug dealers and you’re gonna have crime and you’ve got toknow who’s got your back. How do you get trust – you get sent out on smalljobs to get trust YP107

These initiations seemed to only be for males, however, as thefollowing conversation illustrates, females also have to establishtheir ability to operate as a trusted part of the group.

YP 82 It’s even worse for a girl getting into a gang as…..YP 83 No it’s not, girls just open their legs….YP 82 Yeah, and then there is like the one that earns respect by setting upand being a runner and not grassing

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Having established that young people are recruited and initiatedinto groups, we will now describe what the range of groups might bethat they join.

6.2 Different Structures of Groups of Young PeopleAs already discussed, gang literature has sought to identifydiscernible ‘types’ of gangs. The main types are collated into thetable below.

Hallsworth and Young (2004) Three Point Typology of Urban Collectivities

Gordon’s (2000) Typology of Youth Groupings

Klein’s (1995)Five Point Typology of Street Gangs

Pitts (2007) Waltham Forest Gangs

Peer groupsGangsOrganised criminal groups

Youth movementsYouth groupsCriminal groupsWannabe groupsStreet gangsCriminal business organisations

Traditional gangNeotraditionalgangCompressed gangCollective gangSpeciality gang

Articulated supergangStreet gangCompressed streetgangWannabe gangsterCriminal youth groupsMiddle level international criminal businessorganisation

Table 8: Gang TypologiesAs discussed, these have since been problematised as oversimplifications of the complexity and fluidity of street life.

In this research we did not collect enough evidence to be able todiscern typologies in the groupings of young people that we cameacross, rather we have some loose descriptions and evidence of threedifferent types of gangs (publicly criminal, drugs businessoriented, family), and an awareness that a fourth by implicationexists (organised criminal group), although we did not have evidenceof them.

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The main two types of groups that we noted from the data weredefined by the criminal activity of those groups. Young peopletended to describe groups that were involved in petty crime,criminal damage, theft, auto related crime and serious violentcrime. These young people wanted status and reputation. They alsowanted the money that came with that lifestyle that could be accruedthrough acquisitive crime and some drug related business. The secondtype of group was almost exclusively drug active, their activitieswere therefore covert and undercover and they avoided public acts ofviolence unless they were marking out unpaid debts. These groups didnot want attention from the police, so they did not risk publiccriminal activity. There is some support for this distinctionbetween groups of young people from Spergel’s (1988) disorganisationand poverty theories. According to disorganisation theory,migration, immigration, family and personal disorganisation lead anoverall social disorganisation and this fuels violent crime.According to poverty theory, groups of young people become anunderclass who engage in gain motivated crime in order to right thesocial wrongs inflicted on them by poverty. We will turn to theevidence for each.

6.2.1 Publicly Criminal GroupsSome groups of young people were involved in publicly criminal acts,and were concerned about status more than anything else. Thesequotes exemplify the activities of people in these types of groups,and these areas.

It’s about power, we do vandalism, destroy stuff, and throw computers and chairsaround at school YP26They steal and fight for no reason YP3There is vandalism and drinking and smoking weed around the shops and some

theft YP5Parsons Cross is all families and Shiregreen is all gangs. In Firth Park you have aname and that’s it (reputation) – it’s just all about the name. Abrbourthorne is inthe east. There’s always stuff happening there. It’s all crime, all TWOCing,robberies and attacks YP107In my area we nick stuff. Not for trainers or ‘owt like that. We do it for the buzzand that like. We nick cars. I wouldn’t nick from a shop. I’m involved because of

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my family and my uncle’s got a big name. All the youngers want to take it off himand keep causing trouble. So it’s all about respect YP108

A feature of these groups also seemed to be a disregard for theconsequences of such criminal activity;

Kids nowadays are proper mad, they would shoot you for nothing, they feel likethey have nothing to lose YP76There isn’t such a thing as crime, it’s just a laugh. If the police come along itseven more of a laugh [smiling]. The more we get away with stuff the more stuffwe do. We like it. There’s fuck all anyone can do to make me change. It’s a laugh.Some crimes are a laugh, but there’s a line. Rapes crossed the line. It’s totallywrong. No matter what situation you’re in it’s totally wrong, but murder’s OKYP108

Many of the young White British men talked openly of public criminalacts, whilst young men from other ethnicities were quieter and didnot talk about vandalism and destruction. This may reflect that theywere more reserved about talking about them rather than not doingthem, and we did not have enough data to draw firm conclusions aboutthis. There was a trend that the younger members of groups tended tobe more visibly violent, the older they got the more undercover andrare these acts became.

6.2.2 Drugs Business Oriented GroupsOther areas of the city were identified as being involved in seriousdrug business. These groups of young people were more interested inthe money that they could make from drugs than status, althoughstatus followed the drugs and money. It seemed that these quieter,underground activities were carried out by older young people in arange of groups that were involved in the drugs market. As this formof group is quiet about their activities, we do not have any data toshow that they exist, and so this description must be taken asinferred from conversations, rather than drawn from direct quotes.

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6.2.3 The Family as a Gang StructureThere were 42 young people who commented about families acting asgroups (29% of the sample). Of these eight were from families whoclaimed to be gangs.

My real dad was in a gang. He was a smack head. And he used to bring peopleto my mum’s and so then she got dragged into the gang. When my dad gotsent to rehab in [place name] my mum got shit from the gang because mydad owed them money. They robbed stuff from my mum and when my dadcame out, they beat him up and he ended up in hospital. He just got straightback on heroin. In the end he went to rehab in [place name] and stayedthere YP107

Eight young people said that there were a lot of families who weregangs, one person said that there were quite a few. No one said thatthey did not exist. This view is shared by the practitioners whoalso believe families to be heavily involved as shown in the chartbelow.

Not at all, there are no families with

involvement

To some extent Many families have generations of involvement

06

1218

Practitioners' Views of the Extent of Family Involvement in

Gangs (n=49)

Chart 11: Practitioners' Views of the Extent of Family Involvement in Gangs

Families seem to pose particular issues in that membership ispermanent. In a family there is even less chance of leaving a familythan a group of young people, you are born into it and stay in ituntil you die. Families continue, they do not come to an end, and soissues become long standing, passed from one generation to another.

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Families that are gang involved are big. If you mess with a family memberthen be prepared for the rest of the family to come back at you YP56Gangs are caused by families and the area you live and your friends. It’s anever ending on going cycle. Your granddad might have started a fight thatstill goes on as revenge. Like one man hit a kid and now he’s in prison andthat fight will start again when he gets out. This is all normal to us as we grewup here, but other posher people would be really shocked YP75

As this practitioner says, the intergenerational feuding can becomeso great that young people do not even know why they are fightingother families, the original ‘wrong’ is so long ago:

Sometimes issues are passed on and in bred. Sometimes people don’t evenknow why they have fallen out with someone else…. That is really scary. Thenyou can get targeted for being with people and not even know anything aboutit. We try to break that cycle. P125

The other issue with families is that the behaviour within thembecomes normalised, the children having no sense of the extent towhich their behaviour is not socially acceptable.

If you are brought up there, it just seems normal. How much you’re involveddepends on who you are, where you are brought up and your family. Familiescan be good or bad. They might be good because they’re not involved, butthey are aware of the issues. And they might be bad, because they areinvolved and they cause something even bigger. One small thing can cause afeud for the next 20 years YP75

Families seem to be involved in gangs for the money that comesfrom drug trade, and to gain a reputation and power in the areawhere they live. Drugs, status and money are activities that needdefending with violence, so these families often feature a lot ofviolence.

Most parents in our area all know each other and we know of them. So it’s likea whole reputation. It’s all to see who can be king of Darnall. They all want tobe on top. And they fight to get on top YP75

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One young person spoke of the depth of trust in family gangs. Groupsof young people were cited as ‘watching each other’s back’, and thatwas particularly the case when family were involved. They wouldprotect you against anything, and seek a reprisal for any wrong doneyou.

I was born into it, the family. I trust half of them, half of them are in it forchillin’, but other half are trouble. I trust my family, my family I can trust morethan my mates YP108

In contrast another young person spoke of the internal feuds infamilies and the need for those involved to still present a unitedfront so that other families or groups of young people do not seethe internal feud as a weakness.

So there are quite a lot of family versus family issues. There are issues insidethe families but they never let that be seen outside. They have to show aunited front to win against other families. So it’s blood is blood around hereand you stick together despite internal conflicts YP75

A couple of young people spoke of their regret at seeing theirsiblings becoming involved, and acknowledged that they had a role intheir involvement. It seemed that they did not want their siblingsto follow in their footsteps and they felt powerless to stop them.

Now I’ve dragged my brother in. I was involved at 12-13. I introduced mybrother to guns and knives and crime and drugs and he’s taken my footstepsbut he’s selling weed, but that’s hear say. He says he’s not. He was with mewhen I was dealing drugs and he’s into it all. I feel guilty YP107

We were not able to speak to an entire gang involved family, so wehave used the Frankland Police Problem Profile (Jackson, 2012 pp.30-34) case studies to illuminate our understanding of what may happenin families further.

Case Study 1: Gang Members and Domestic Violence

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This case describes a family of 7 people – one father, two ex-partners and, betweenthem, four children. The father is a known gang member and has a criminal record.Both ex-partners work and are both victims of his serial domestic violence. Thedaughter and youngest son have also been victims of domestic violence and have nocriminal records. The older sons (18 and 22) are both charged with violence and havedrug and criminal damage offences.

This demonstrates how living with, and having children with agang involved man can create a family of young people affectedby, or involved in violence and crime. One father, in thiscase, has influenced the lives of six other people.

Case Study 2: A Young Person Experiencing Domestic ViolenceThis case study explores the experiences of one young person referred to the DomesticAbuse Partnership (DAP). Concerns about a young man’s behaviour at school promoted a referral to DAP. Aftera number of one to one sessions the young man discussed his experiences at home.His father was subjecting the mother to physical abuse and the children to emotionalabuse. The mother and siblings had once left the father, but he had found them again.This young man was now defending his mother which created more conflict in thehome. The young man was provided with a range of practical coping strategies toavoid and deal with conflict in the home, multi-agency services were primed to dealwith incidents at that address, and the mother was offered first language support.This young man has now left school and is in further education.

This suggests that the right intervention can support young peopleto survive domestically abusive situations, and is a possible areafor investment for Frankland City Council. Domestic violence is welldocumented as a mechanism in gang activity. The EGYV strategy (2011)cited that 75,000 children a year witness domestic violence and linkthis to children themselves turning to violence later in life. Inhis study of gang activity in Glasgow, Deuchar (2009) also foundthat violent behaviour in the home is passed from fathers to sons,and Johnson’s (2007) compelling account of his own experiences ofdomestic violence clearly shows the negative impact that it can haveon children’s lives.

Case Study 3: Multi-Generational Family Involvement in Gang Related ViolenceThis case study examines one close knit family known to be gang connected andinvolved in organised crime. There is evidence of intergenerational violence, use ofweapons, intimidation, serious violent crime, use and dealing of drugs and extensivedomestic abuse. The parents have four children aged 32 – 43 (one of whom was shotand killed). The three surviving siblings have partners aged 33 – 53. Between them

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there are 15 children (aged 3 – 31). This gives a nucleus family of 24 (there are no half-brothers, sisters or ex-partners shown). Nine of these family members are known asmembers of organised crime groups. Four are associates of organised crime groups.Three are victims of domestic abuse. The activities of this family have involved 20different services to date and thousands of interventions.

This suggests that tackling violent offending behaviour withinfamilies has to be a priority for the City Council as it creates animmediate intervention, working with those who are involved, and isalso intrinsically preventative, as any intervention will preventfuture generations of children becoming victims or perpetrators ofsuch activities.

This extent of criminal activity within one family is not unusual.West Midlands Police similarly found that over 40 years threegenerations of a single parent gang accounted for 78 arrests, 55convictions, and 13 prison sentences. This totalled a cost of £2.7million to the Criminal Justice System (West Midlands Police inEGYV, 2011).

6.2.4 Organised Crime Groups (OCG’s)

We did not find any data pertaining to OCG’s from young people. Itcould have been that we did not ask the young people explicitlyenough about this as an area, and / or, that the young people didnot wish to, or did not feel safe discussing this area with us, orthat it wasn’t known to them. The existence of a drugs industry andintergenerational family gangs, and the case study of familiesinvolved in OCG’s all suggest that they do exist. Additionally, thepractitioners surveyed did know of OCG’s, as shown by the chartbelow.

The Government Document Local to Global (2011) estimates 6000 OCG’s inthe UK half of whose crimes are related to drug trafficking,supporting our belief that our lack of evidence does not precludethe existence of this type of group in Frankland.

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Chart 12: Practitioners' Views of the Extent of Organised Crime

Having identified some of the types of groups that young people belong to, we will now describe some of the roles that are availableto them within these structures.

6.3 Roles6.3.1 Male Roles

All of the groups of young people that the young people describedseemed to have a typically hierarchical structure. There wascertainly an upper and a lower level of membership. This was oftenlinked to age, and the roles that people occupied within groups wereoften described as ‘olders’ and ‘youngers’. The olders had morestatus than the youngers.

As well as the adults it’s the kids that follow them. They’re wannabes. Tothemselves they don’t think they are bad until they carry weapons. That’s whatmakes them a gang. But they still might not call themselves a gang. 18-19year old might call themselves a gang member. Younger kids call themselvesmates YP75

The youngers were however seemed to count as members of the groups,as opposed to a lower level of young person called a ‘wannabe’. Thisterm denoted a younger young person who wanted to be involved in

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Unorganised and spontanious

Organised to some extent

Highly organised0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Practitioners' Views of Organised Crime (n=49)

group activities but were not, or had not been accepted into thegroup.

There are lots of wannabe gangsters - the younger ones YP63There are big people outside and wannabe gangsters in schools YP107You can’t trust youngsters or newbies. They don’t know how to behave yet YP108Wannabes – they want to join and want to get to the top YP141

The youngers seemed to have to give respect to the olders. They wereoften referred to as ‘boys’ or ‘boyz’ and this meant that they werepledged to protect one another, building belonging through thebestowing of trust.

Younger kids call themselves mates. And olders call themselves family. Theynever let themselves down. They say ‘I’ll be your boy’ which means back me upor you’ve done me over and if you stay out of the gang you will have done meover too. We are just people who want peace. We think it’s all pathetic YP75There is no separating me from my boyz, I would stick with them, they are mysecond family YP85

It appears that the lower the status of the level of membership themore menial the tasks. Youngers, also occasionally known as ‘cubs’could be asked to carry and sell small amounts of drugs for example.People progressed up the group hierarchy as they aged and as theydemonstrated that they were trustworthy.

The younger ones do break ins but the older ones get the younger ones to doall the break ins for them YP86

Data suggests that there were other people in groups who were on thefringes of activity. They were not full members, but could be calledupon, or paid to carry out criminal acts for the more elite members.These people were referred to as ‘links’ or ‘associates’. Known drugaddicted young people were also used to carry out criminal acts, asthey were reliably all desperate for money to purchase more drugs.

I used to know this Jamaican, [adult name] and he’d ask kids to do shit likeknocking out other people who gave him dirties to see how you would fight,

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and you would have to fight. There are the wolves like, wolves of the packthat’s how it is for me and you do what they say or you get burned. Wolf, he’slike got cubs who are the second henchmen, the second most dangerous, andthen there are the links, the people on the outside. All the contacts in myphone are links. Wolf can pay a smackhead £50 and a bag of smack to killsomeone it’s just a phone call away YP85

It appears that as young people progressed up the group’s hierarchythey had to initially carry out higher level tasks, carrying higherrisk, until they became part of its leadership group, at which pointthey could then command other youngers to do criminal acts for them.The middle layer of group membership could therefore be seen to posethe most significant risk to young people. One group of young peoplereferred to the group leader as a ‘wolf’ or ‘top dog’. We do notknow if this was the name assigned within one particular group, orif this is a name used for leaders of groups across the city.

My Mum and dad both in prison for high level stuff. They separate high end stufffrom the kids doing stuff. The high end stuff is the drugs and the drug runningand my mum was used for trafficking drugs and was driving in a range rover andliving the high life and dad was high up too…. You would never see the big peopleas they have runners and the people below them get sent down, you never eversee the big guys protected in the hierarchy YP68We live on the streets and want to be top dog or top boy like off the TV YP77There’s always someone to step up and go higher and higher YP142They all want to be at the top and when you are involved in stuff like that thenyou are nothing unless you are at the top as you then just answer to other people.You want someone to do the shit for you. It’s really hierarchical. They go aboutlike soldiers, I’ve heard that the person at the top keeps their hands clean, theynever get their hands dirty, other people keep their gear and that so that theycannot get caught. So they are clever and sly, not brave YP70

The role of females in groups differed significantly from thisdescription of the roles of males.

6.3.2 Female RolesThere were 39 comments about the role of females out of 143 totalyoung people, a 27 % response rate. Of those 39, 33% (13 youngpeople) thought that girls were in groups, and that they could be

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equally if not more violent than male counterparts. Indeed some eventhought that females were more frightening than males in groups, inpart because of their viciousness, but perhaps also, because of theway in which this behaviour contradicts gender stereotypes.

Yes they are involved, they are abused, but they are also abusers. They can bejust as bad as the boys, sometimes even worse, doing things I wouldn't. It’s anequal balance between being abusers and being abused for the girls YP17(M) They can be just as violent as the men, equally bad, like my mum, she's reallyhard YP25 (M) A few girls are involved, they are the slags of the gang, they are hard cockybitches too YP36 (M)Two months ago, a lad got stabbed at a party, because someone didn’t likehim and this girl stamped on his head after he was stabbed, that was reallybad YP82 (M)The girls are more dangerous than the guys as they will get away with things,the girls beat up guys they are just as violent as the men. Girls in gangs getextremely violent YP143 (F)Girls are real bullies in gangs and one girl got arrested she was such anextreme bully YP145 (F)

Females seem to be increasingly involved in gangs nationally. Theseroles are increasingly heterogeneous (Archer and Grascia, 2005; CSJ,2009; National Gang Intelligence Centre, 2009). As females assertthemselves there also seems to be a hyper masculine or fearlessfemale role (Archer and Grascia, 2005) both nationally and inFrankland.

Fourteen of the young people commented on the extent to which girlswere involved – we did not routinely ask about the numbers of youngwomen involved. Of those who answered and were White British orIrish, five thought that no women were involved, including youngpeople who were and were not group or ‘gang’ involved, seven thoughtthat not many were involved, 1 thought that lots of girls wereinvolved and another one said that they were only associates, ratherthan members. Ethnicity is significant as the Asian, Somalian,Yemini and Roma young people (both male and female) said that young

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women of those origins could not be involved because of religious orcultural reasons.

There are no Somali girls in gangs YP25 (Somali)His sister she never leaves the site, she lives in a little bubble and has no ideaof what goes on and what the real world is like. She is absolutely oblivious to itall but she has an arranged marriage next year, but she has a shock comingand has no idea what her two big brothers do YP70 (Roma)I can’t think of one gang situation with girls. For girls it’s stricter but for ladsthere are no rules in Asian families. The parents won’t let the girls out late atnight we are then less involved. Asians gossip and make stuff up and then itescalates but the girls are just talkers. Asian girls can’t go out and havetrouble as it’s even bigger when you get home. So there is no point to it YP75(Asian)Girls have it worse than we do, the girls stay in and we can go out and dostuff. Girls can come here in theory [youth club], but they are notallowed out of the families. They need a single gender place to go. We can doall that stuff but they can do nothing YP97 (Somali)Mostly girls stay at home and there is nothing for them to do. That is partlydue to religion. There are a few girls who go to a female youth club YP126(Somali)Girls are at home or have their own youth club. It’s our religion YP135

(Somali)

No one that we spoke to believed that there were any girl gangs inFrankland, and from what has been discussed above, girls areinvolved in male gangs to varying degrees.

That said, we will now identify the roles that are assigned tofemales who do join gangs. There were 39 young people of mixedgenders who spoke about this. It seems that there are a range ofroles that they are recruited into, or used for. The most commonlyreported use of females in gangs was for sex (15 references). Thereferences about females used for sex were on the whole derogatory,reflecting the exploitative nature of that role).

Girls are a piece of meat, they are used for sex, the 13 and 14 year old girls,but it’s getting younger YP9 (M)They are used as sex toys YP26 (M)

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Women in gangs are slags YP42 (M)Girls party and get pregnant, they sleep with men, they are slags. Some smokeand get violent and start drugs, they get laid, they copy and bounce off eachother like YP77(M)The people in gangs pester girls for sex YP86 (F)The boys are always the leaders those girls are called bitches and given norespect YP107 (F)The tarts sleep with men to get their money YP109 (F)

The next most frequently cited use of women, was as carriers ofdrugs or weapons, or as places to hide drugs and weapons. Thisdisplaced the risk from the males and was rationalised by bothgenders by the reduced likelihood of girls being searched at all,especially intimately by the police.

They are used for carrying drugs in hidden places YP11 I sometimes still keep stuff for him, I’ve got a big cellar that you can’t tell isthere and I keep stuff hid there, but I worry I will get done and then the policewill bust my world YP70The girls carry drugs, they are harder to spot as they look more innocent

YP80Yeah, and then there is like the one that earns respect by setting up and beinga runner and not grassing. A male police officer can’t search a girl and so westash stuff, when we go out we have bags in our bras and socks as we don’tget stripped YP83

Girls were also used as fighters. We have seen that they are viewedas equally if not more violent than males, and perhaps that is whythey have what was described as a ‘full’ role in gangs as fightersby five young people.

They are girlfriends and fighters YP13Girls can be involved; they follow the guys, pick fights and act cool. My ex-girlfriend is locked up for burglary and fighting and that YP143

This view is supported by the findings of the Office of theChildren’s Commissioner study (2011) which found evidence of womenbeing increasingly violent in gangs.

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It was acknowledged that some of this fighting could be for self-defence rather than offence:

They are mostly violent for self-defence YP32There are some ruthless little girls who try to protect themselves fighting YP36

Females may be increasingly violent (Wang, 2000) but there remainsoverwhelming evidence that women are still exploited, vulnerable andvictimised (Vigil, 2008; Young, 2009; OCC, 2012).

As well as carrying and hiding drugs females were also assigned twoother drug related roles, one was selling drugs for men:

[Young person’s name] would make me sell drugs in the hostel for himand I also sold munchies to make extra money YP86

Frighteningly, one young man also spoke of testing drugs on girls tocheck their potency:

Girls are like for testing, if you see lemmings you give dodgy gear to them totest YP77

Girls were also cited as being used to set up men from other gangs,creating ‘honey traps’ to lure them away from the safety of theirown territory or group (two references).

Girls are used to get [telephone] numbers and we set up meetings and we’lljump people. I’ve done it, I’ve set people up, I’m not proud of it YP83You might see a fit girl from another gang and she gives you the eyes and youFacebook each other and you go and meet her and that’s when you get hit.Girls are well intimidating YP84

One positive role did seem to exist for young women, in that five ofthe young men referred to them as ‘girlfriends’, and this role stoodin stark contrast to that of ‘slag’ or ‘bitch’. These seemed torefer to relationships that had some mutuality and respect in them –more so than the relationships with young women who were used for

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sex. There was also evidence that even ‘girlfriend’ relationshipscould be exploitative, as shown by this narrative;

He got controlling and was violent, he pulled my hair, and made me have anabortion when I was 4 months pregnant at 4 months. He gave me chlamydiabecause he was cheating on me and let his friends spit in my face. He wantedmoney to buy weed, and so I broke into cars to get money for him. He wouldhit me a lot and one time he pulled out a knife and accidentally stabbed me. Ifound out a few months later that I was pregnant again at the hostel,[boyfriend’s name] didn’t want the baby and when I was 3 monthspregnant he pushed me onto my belly to try to kill it. Then he tried to strangleme at 6 months, but now we have [child’s name] and we both really lovehim YP86

These different uses of girls in groups are shown in Chart 13.

sex

carry

drugs/

weapo

nshon

eytrap

s

fighti

ng

girlfr

iend r

elatio

nships

testin

g drug

s

sellin

g drug

s

0612

Young People's Views of the Uses of Girls in Groups (n=37)

Chart 13: Young People’s views of the Uses of Females in Groups

The Centre for Social Justice (2009) and the OCC (2013) reportidentify a similar range of roles occupied by girls in gangsnationally. Given the range of negative ‘uses’ for women in thesegroups, it seems surprising that they join them at all. There werethree different reasons for young women wanting to be a part of

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gangs. These were the desire for love, attention, and / or money,the need for protection, and the desire for status.

There were six references to young women wanting love and attention,and the financial or clothing gifts that the love brought them.

Girls are in it for the love and attention YP53Girls were happy and got what they wanted and it’s like, not like, all girls wholike that attention, but they like knowing that someone cares for thembecause they pay for them. It’s the young girls who have never experiencedthat attention and when lads go out buying them presents it makes themhappy. So that made the gangs want even more money as money alsomeans girls, and to a certain extent its true, girls come to them YP73Girly girls flirt and make the guys look good. Girls like it when guys buy themstuff, because they feel loved. It makes you feel worthless how they treat you.But then when they give you stuff, you feel loved and you’re like stuckbetween the two emotions. I felt cross sometimes when I was bought things;it was like he was buying me YP107

Sadly the love and attention can often be short lived, accompaniedby bouts of domestic violence. Young woman 107 above found herrelationship deteriorated into violence:

I had kept it all inside, but once I got beat up so bad I stopped lying and mymum helped me out. I made excuses for him all the time because I loved him.I turned up with a black eye and my mum saw and it was time to tell her. Andthen she kicked off and went around there and got my stuff and I movedhome YP107The guy that I was with was an ex-gang member but that behaviour never lefthim and he was violent and then he’d buy me stuff to make up P110

Two young people commented that girls join because they want areputation and status, but two young women also claimed that girlsare not as bothered about status as men, so the role of statusclearly varies from girl to girl.

They have a bad reputation. They want a reputation and respect, and to be asbad as men, they want to prove that they can do stuff YP4We don’t care about status or anything we just want to be friends YP75

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Four young people said that girls also join groups for theprotection that they think the membership will afford them. Wingoodet al. (2002) point out that although girls join gangs forprotection, they often get further abuse and victimisation, andCheng (2004) has described this as risk amplification – girls whoseek protection from risks at home, then end up facing greater risksfrom the groups that they joined to protect them.

These findings suggest that there are a range of roles, and multipleroles that girls can occupy in groups. One of the young womensuggested that this is down to the type of girl – there is thevulnerable girl who will be abused, and there is the violent girlwho will get status. It is also apparent that there are also thegirls who cannot actively participate in street life for religiousor cultural reasons, but have a role nonetheless in trying toinfluence their men once they are home.

Girls also get passed around the gang members. If they are vulnerable andeasily led then they have no chance do they. Some have got respect and statusand fight too, they are different types of girls YP83We’ve tried keeping him inside, but he worries he’ll lose his status if he doesn’tgo out. So he will go out and risk fighting, rather than being a wimp. He getsjumped and attacked a lot and his probation office is around every week. It’s avicious cycle. I worry all the time. There is no solution. He’s in a PRU and mightget kicked out of there. He needs to be more mature. By the time he realises it,it’ll be too late. My mum is despairing YP75

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Whichever way we looked at this data, it seemed that the range ofroles available to girls was oppressive. Even if they are not beingdeliberately exploited then they risk violent relationships, or haveto defend their status through violence. This is perhaps what ledone young woman to conclude:

There is no life outside the gang YP83

The literature on gangs paints a similar picture, but on a largerscale. The Metropolitan Police found that reported gang rapes hadincreased from 36 in 2003/4 to 93 in 2008/9, and found 15-20% of allgang related fatalities had female victims (Metropolitan Police).The data collected in Frankland would not suggest that there is suchan alarming level of violence against or involving young women ingroups, although there are clearly varying degrees of sexualexploitation. The practitioners also identified that there wassexual exploitation within groups in Frankland as Chart 14 shows.

Not at all To some extent Extensively0

5

10

15

20

25

Practitioners' Views of the Extent of Sexual Exploitation in

Gangs (n=49)

Chart 14: Practitioners' Views of the Extent of Sexual Exploitation in Gangs

There seemed to be little awareness in the boys that their treatmentof females was inappropriate as demonstrated by the following quote:

If a pakki girl came and was with our gang we’d all try to jump on it and ride it like abike YP84

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To an extent, the sexual activity within groups seems to have becomenormalised (Warrington 2010; OCC, 2011; OCC, 2012; OCC, 2013), aswith other behaviours. This means that it is also likely to be underreported because of normalisation, fear of retribution, or a lack ofconfidence that they will get help. The Need to Belong report (2013)suggested that gang involved women are three times more likely to bevictims of sexual abuse. The most recent OCC research found that 50%of men did not recognise their behaviour as sexual exploitation, 65%of the females interviewed had been coerced into sex, 50% exchangesex for status or protection, 41% had experienced perpetrator rape,39% exchanged sex for goods, 31% created set ups, 30% used sex todisrespect, 1% had experienced rape with a weapon, and 7%experienced multiple sex initiations. In 2011 the OCC had estimatedthat this involved 12,500 young women directly and affected afurther 12,500 indirectly. Whilst we found no evidence of malesbeing sexually exploited national research has found examples ofthis situation.

This points to sexual exploitation in gangs as a safeguarding issuethat needs local and national responses such as the frameworkproposed recently by the OCC (2013).

6.4 Criminal Activity6.4.1 Criminality overall

The practitioners had clear views of the role of criminality ingroups of young people. They identified that its main role was insecuring income for the groups, and secondarily, providing them withstatus. This status could accrue from the criminal activity itself,and from the money that it brings. Other reasons for criminalitywere that it was a source of consistent income, a business,especially when drugs related. Some believed that it gave the groupsa purpose, something to do. Other views were that it provided thegroups with excitement and adrenaline, that it brought them togetherand gave them a sense of belonging, and that it allowed them toestablish territory. These are summarised in Chart 15.

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incent

ive to

join

money

escape

belong

ingsta

tus

fun /

excite

ment

territ

ory

busine

ss

purpos

e0481216

Practitioners' Views of The Role of Crime in Gangs (n=26)

Chart 15: Practitioners' Views of the Role of Crime in Gangs

We did not ask the young people about the role of crime per se, butthere were a range of 34 comments about criminal activity. Rather weasked them about certain types of crime that are thematicallyanalysed in the proceeding sections.

Fighting was the most commonly cited activity, and was distinguishedfrom muggings which were carried out on innocent people in order toshow status, or to acquire material goods. Vandalism was common, andwas often referred to as ‘just destroying stuff’. Burglary was also mentionedas an activity to secure money. Stabbings were openly talked aboutand seemed a common occurrence. These different activities aresummarised on Chart 16.

burglary vandalism fighting muggings stabbings0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

Young People's Views of Criminal Activity in Groups n=34

Chart 16: Young People’s Views of Criminal Activity in Groups

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Whilst we will discuss violence and drugs as separate themes below,there are strong links between them both and status, as shown in thequote below.

Violence, drugs, and gangs all come together, you can't separate them YP23

6.4.1 Weapons and ViolenceThere were a range of views about the weapons used by young peoplein groups. The total range of weapons included; a variety of knives(Stanley knives, kitchen knives, machetes), a variety of guns (BBguns, hand guns, shotguns), a variety of bats (baseball, batons),broken bottles, petrol bombs and tasers. There seemed to beconsensus that knives were the most easily available, and thereforemost used weapon.

Knives and bats are the most used weapon, baseball bats, and stanley knivesbecause they are easy to get. We've all been chased by gang members with allof them, machetes too YP7

One interesting distinction was that people on foot were more likelyto use knives as they are easy to conceal, they were everydayweapons. Guns tended to be used deliberately and were oftentransported in vehicles in order to conceal them.

They carry knives on foot and guns in cars. Everyone does YP22

One young person pointed out that weapon use changes as levels ofviolence change, and as technology and accessibility on the streetchanges. They are not a static phenomenon.

The thing is now as well it’s not just guns and knives, but it’s also brokenbottles and petrol bombs… They use knives, tazers, petrol bombs, they have tokeep evolving to keep on top YP70

There were some conflicting views about firearms. Some young peoplestated that they were easy to acquire and inexpensive;

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Guns are cheaper than trainers. Kids nowadays are proper mad, they wouldshoot you for nothing, they feel like they have nothing to lose. Guns are reallycheap too, especially shot guns. You can get a knife out of your kitchen …wimps use knives, real people fight with hands. But then you need to becareful going in and they might pull a gun or knife on you YP76

Whilst others pointed out that they were difficult to acquire andexpensive;

I know someone who pulled up with a boot full of guns. They’re not expensivebut how do you know if it’s a real gun or not, it could be a BB or tamperedwith or not have bullets in it and then you’ve wasted your £400. You can getone that was made 2 weeks ago and you just don’t know if it’ll work. Getting aknife is easy, but you have to think about getting a gun. The person who dropsit off wants to know why you want it and you need a good explanation. Theywant to know where it’s gonna be used and they need to clean theirfingerprints off it. It’s dodgy for them YP83

The increased abilities of the police also seemed a deterrent tousing firearms;

Less people use guns they still carry them but don’t use them. A lot of people Iknow got locked up for possession of a firearm and murder but now likepeople carry things but don’t let them off as much as they are more scared asthe police force is stronger and they are everywhere and they have moretechnology of finding out who it is so it’s all a big risk YP73

A summary of the types of weapons mentioned by the young people isprovided in Chart 17.

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Knives / machetes33%

Guns / BB / shotguns33%

Bats / batons7%

Broken bottles2%

Petrol bombs2%

Tazers2% Fists

22%

Percentages of Weapon Use as Identified by Young People(n= 21)

Chart 17: Percentages of Weapon Use as Identified by Young PeopleThe Police statistics for youth crime in the city would suggeststhat firearms are used less than the young people perceive them tobe, as they were only used in 5% of personal robberies (a total of24 offences), in 5% of serious violent crime and in 0.4% (9incidents) of assault with injury. Knives seemed to be as prevalentin the crime statistics as the young people perceive as they areused in 24% of personal robberies, 58% of serious violent crime and2.2% of all assault with injury (Jackson, 2013).

The reasons for violence identified by the young people correlatedto the reasons given by the practitioners. They included; status,power, amusement, protection, money, drugs, racial tensions,retribution and also being reasonless.

Power and status seemed to be the most potent drivers of violence.Violence to outsiders or other groups was used to prove the youngpeople’s status to one another, and violence within groups was usedto establish the hierarchy. The quote below shows the complexity ofits role;

Violence is pleasure, amusement and power for the gangs. Members getauthority and power from violence, and take part in competitions, working outrivals, peers and community standing. I change my behaviour when I go intodifferent areas so that it’s clear that I won't tolerate any violence YP9It’s all about image, power and control YP26

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Violence in gangs is all about personal protection, you have to look afteryourself, and your image. Gangs are all about power and image and control.Yes, they use weapons for their own safety and they are watching their ownbacks. There is a reason for everything YP25If you get known for summat bad like rape or sexual offence then you aredone for, but if you are known for murder and everyone knows who they arethen you will get hit, but if you murder someone that they all thought was ano life, or bad, then it’s ok and you will get more respect. If you are known fordrugs then you get respect, big respect and if you grow bud [cannabis],and it’s how you get known like. What you are known for is what you areYP84

Territory was the next most frequently cited reason for violence.Violence was used to demarcate an area (postcode or otherwise) thata group of young people controlled. Being from a different group, orin a different area seemed to be an open invitation for violence.

Yes over turf wars, there are some places we can’t go now YP12Postcodes fight, they wear bandanas to show who they are YP36Like, for instance we were talking about postcodes and in 2011 in March oneof my friends was, he knew some people and hung out with them and thensomething happened between the two groups and he ended up getting runover in Darnall in 2011 YP73All my life we have fought with different areas and it’s just mates fighting.People want to call it gang stuff but it isn’t YP122

The practitioners' survey showed that they believed that territoryissues were significant in Frankland, as shown in Chart 18.

Not at all To some extent A lot02468

1012141618

Practitioners' Views of the Extent of Inter-Gang Rivalry

(n=49)

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Chart 18: Practitioners' Views of the Extent of Inter-gang Rivalry

A key aspect of the young people’s descriptions of violence was theway in which it escalated from something potentially minor, likelooking at someone the wrong way, or disagreeing with them, into aseries of increasingly violent reprisals.

Even in a poxy argument it gets violent, they can end up burning down ahouse from a dirty look. There was an argument in a petrol station ‘cos a guygave a man a dirty look, and then he hit him and he fell down and died and sothe man is like in prison now and missed his family’s funeral and so there willbe retribution when he gets out. It’s absolutely crazy YP74If you get a dirty it can kick off a fight and especially if it’s a rich person thatlooks at you, then we want to rob them YP7820 of them have come around the bushes with bottles and things, and thiswas about 2 or 3 years ago, and they came in numbers to fight against 6 of usbecause someone had an issue with another and instead of talking it out andresolving they fought YP73

As well as using weapons offensively, the violence in gangs is alsoof course a form of defence, and many of the young people mentionedcarrying weapons as a form of defence. They were well aware thatthis carried risks, as a weapon that they carried could always beused against them, yet they still felt that having the weapon wassafer than not.

Violence in gangs is all about personal protection, you have to look afteryourself, and your image YP25Young people carry weapons as a defence YP12

This was particularly the case when drugs, and the money from crimeand drugs was involved. Violence was used to acquire money, toprotect drugs and as a punishment for debtors.

They use weapons for protection, to keep their income safe YP16Yes, can get shot and stabbed for drugs and money, it’s happened to mebefore YP53

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Racial tensions were also identified as a driver for violence bythree young people.

The tensions that lead to violence are now between Pakistanis and Slovakiansrather than Jamaicans and Somalians YP69Culture has an influence. In our area there’s a cultural mix. But Manor andPage Hall are really racist. It’s massive there. 30 year old men from othersareas come to fight 17 year old boys after school. At 15 my brother got chasedby White 21 year old lads when he came out of school. They had baseball batsand chased him down to the bridge. We reported it but the school would donothing. The school didn’t want to get the police involved YP74

Three young people said that the violence seemed to provide thegroups with something to do – either for amusement or as a purpose,and one young person identified it as mindless, however, the dataabove would seem to suggest that it has a more substantial role ingroups.

A consequence of the widespread fear of violence and weapons amongstyoung people is that they then carry more weapons themselves, andmove around together in larger groups as they sense that thisprovides protection. There were many stories of young peopletargeted on their own which would understandably make young peoplewant to hang out in groups, for example, one story cited a group whowaited for weeks, following a young man until he was on his ownoutside Primark, where he was stabbed away from the protection ofhis own group.

People were fighting one and one and the gangs would be even both with fistsand if anyone jumped in then we would, but now, if someone says somethingit’s the whole lot of them who come for him on his own and it’s not like they goto their area as they will be outmatched and so they wait for them and I’vebeen with people who have been looking for someone and they phone forothers and then in half an hour they are all there and then they go and gethim as he is on his own. Even in Meadowhall you see people in big groupsbecause they are scared YP73

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The reasons for the violence identified by the young people aresummarised in Chart 19.

power

and st

atus

amus

ement

/ purp

ose

protec

tion

territ

ory money

drugs

racial

retrib

ution

withou

t reas

on048121620

The young people's views of the reasons for violence n=49

Chart 19: The Young People’s Views for the Reasons for Violence

Because the young people were aware that their criminal activitiescould create issues for them, they sometimes developed complicatedcommunication systems with different phones, code words and codenumbers, allowing them to evade police detection.

I’ll go close and make a smoke and spliff if I know it’s good, but if I wanted mycrew to come and help I would just send the code from my phone and boomYP85

The literature on gangs presents a similar picture to that describedabove. Deuchar (2009) identified that fear and self-protection,racial intolerance, sectarian violence (asylum seekers and refugees)and football sectarianism were the prime drivers of violence ingangs in Glasgow, whilst others identify the triggers for violenceas; inter group rivalries, turf wars, interpersonal disputes,retaliation, jealousy and debt (Aldridge and Medina, 2007; YJB,2007). Together these correlate with all the drivers of violenceidentified in Frankland. Campbell (1999) makes an interestingdistinction about the role of violence for different genders,proposing that it is power based for males and protective forfemales in gangs. Whilst there may be some resonance with this (fromthe discussion of the roles of females in 6.3.2) it is certainly nota clear cut distinction as many girls were reported to be

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purposively as violent, or more so, than male counterparts. TheCentre for Social Justice (2009) states that nationally violence isstreet currency, and under reported, and this could be the case inFrankland.One thing that struck us as researchers was that there was acomplete suspension of empathy for others, and a suspension ofmorality when acting in violent ways. For example;

A guy was sniffing on the kitchen counter at a party and the guy whose houseit was said don’t sniff there, I make my kids food there, and the lad sniffingpunched him and so he [the house owner] dropped him. The lad wasout cold on the kitchen floor. The guy went away and came back in 20 minutesand stabbed him lying there on the floor. Then a girl came in who wasn’tinvolved at all and stamped on his head. That’s how quickly it escalates YP52

The thought processes that lead a person to stab someone who isunconscious because they snorted drugs from their kitchen worktop ishard to understand, as is stamping on someone who is unconscious andstabbed.

These extreme actions can perhaps be explained with Spergel’s (1988)disorganisation theory as an increasingly fragmented society canallow young people to see other people as ‘others’, different tothemselves, inferior, and therefore deserving violence. Anotherinteresting perspective on these phenomena comes from implicittheories which show that people will develop a sophisticated networkof beliefs about the world that enable them to frame violence as anacceptable way of exacting revenge, having fun, increasing socialstatus and securing material needs (Ward, 2000; Polaschek andDonavan, 2006). From this theoretical perspective, addressingviolence in the city would imply exploring and attempting to changethe implicit theories that young people hold about violence thatlegitimise their actions.

An alternative possibility is that such actions may also benormalised over time, so although a young person may not think thatit is acceptable, they get so used to seeing violence that they nolonger question it at all. Two young people mentioned thisnormalising process:

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I have seen people get stabbed. When you see it once you feel sick, but thenyou see it 2, 3 4 5 times and get used to it YP21Young people see others doing it, so it becomes a tradition YP36

Legitimising implicit theories and normalisation may existconcurrently as processes that allow young people to act violently.

6.4.2 DrugsAs has been discussed, drugs are closely linked to violence andmoney, and the practitioners' survey showed that they primarily seedrugs as a business for groups of young people, as a vehicle tomoney.

Fun

Recrea

tional

use

Addict

on

Busine

ss

Contro

lIma

ge0

10

20

30

Practitioners' Views of the Role of Drugs in Gangs (n=49)

Chart 20: Practitioners' Views of the Role of Drugs in Gangs

Pitts' (2007) research into Waltham Forest illustrated thecomplexity of the role of drugs in gangs with everything from a blagto a business, and a hierarchy of roles; uppers (wholesalers),middles (the faces), the gangs (shotters), the users and dealers.The relationship between gangs and drugs has since been reinforcedby national research (CSJ, 2009). The young people in groups inFrankland similarly considered drugs to be a significant aspect ofthe groups that they belonged to.

Drug use was the area that most of the young people had something tosay, 86% of them commenting about the links between gangs and drugs.They seemed intrinsically linked;

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These two go hand in hand, they are the same thing as the drugs are thebusiness of the gangs. You can't separate them YP25

Most young people saw a connection between groups and personal druguse, with the exception of Broomhall where drug use was denied.Group membership and drug use seemed to be something of a two waystreet in that some young people became a group as they had shareduse of drugs, whilst other only started using drugs once theybelonged to a group who were all using drugs.

We smoke recreational cannabis all the time, it’s so easy to get YP31Yeah and then that starts them on the path YP30A spliff makes you the happiest kid in the world and in the downer you can bethe most evil kid in the world YP77

One young person acknowledged that this was problematic;

Yes they do take drugs, and then that can cause mental health issues, and sothen they fight even more. It just gets into a cycle and gets worse and worseYP16

It appears that when a young person joined a drug using group, thenew member could gradually progress up a group defined drug careerpath, starting as a user, then seller, dealer, business andimporter. This resonates with Pitts description of Waltham Forestabove.

There are kids at 10 selling drugs, weed and cocaine that family and friendsgive them. He will be someone’s boy and will smoke and sell it. Kids get statuslike this early on and hope that it means they will be top dog when they areolder YP74It’s all about who’s at the top, so kids start early. My brother in year 5 is sellingbubbly gum illicitly and making money. If he carries on [sellingsubstances] the police will get involved. 12 year olds are shooting [up]and even at 10 they are using. They target the younger kids to get them inearly. Kids hold weapons like screwdrivers and sell weed because family orolder people tell them to YP75Young people start as wannabes. They start acting up and at 10 they startselling drugs and running drugs. They don't even realise what they are gettinginto. It's just a pressure thing. Then they get more serious as they get olderand progress into having a drug business and then it becomes a career YP71

Some people therefore are just selling drugs occasionally, when theyget the opportunity, or when they are told to by their elders. Young

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people were identified as selling and using cannabis on a regularbasis. To make money they often sell less than the agreed weight;

The posh people buy and the poor people, and the uni students, everyonewants to buy drugs. You buy a 10 and sell just over 5, that way you makemoney, you sell 28 grams and make £310, it’s a living. You gotta cut it to makeanything. In Darnall we sell an ounce, if he buys a 10 I snip it and get full pricefor it. Its business YP77

It was older and more senior young people that were involved inselling class A drugs, and no one spoke openly about using class A,unlike cannabis (class B) which they freely admitted to using.

There’s the quick and easy money from bud and weed, and then there is classA where you make a real deal, like cocaine and heroin and that’s where theymake the big money. So the Pitsmoor / Broomhall beef is all about money anddrugs YP92

At the other end of the spectrum are people who are growing bulkcannabis to sell on, or who are importing class A drugs fromdifferent areas of the UK or beyond.

Someone I know had a plant business and within that he grew weed and gotaway with it. And now he’s importing and exporting P110

Once a group has an established drug business then the role of thedifferent members consolidates further into a hierarchy as describedhere;

Young people start as wannabes. They start acting up and at 10 they startselling drugs and running drugs. They don't even realise what they are gettinginto. It's just a pressure thing. Then they get more serious as they get olderand progress into having a drug business and then it becomes a career YP71You give out little jobs and you say ‘here’s a ten of draw and you’ve got to dropit at this guy and bring the money back’. Money is motivation. If you get anounce and split it into tens and eights and you get all the money back and setaside the costs of the next ounce and pay the runners and what’s left is yourprofit. So they get trusted to carry the drugs and bring the cash back. [Man’sname], down Firth Park, he doesn’t use so he’s got money and flashes it. He’sgot loads of cars. But the local druggies can’t flash their money because theysmoke it and so it becomes a cycle YP107

Having drugs businesses means that the groups then have money whichthen brings the group status and power.

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It’s a business, so it gives them an income, and that business also gives themstatus and power. The more selling power you have, the more you get yourname recognised, and then people know who you are and you're sorted. Ihave a business, and I'm trying to get my name more known, I'm on thatladder YP16

selling dealing personal use

image / stauts / power

money business02468

101214

Young people's views of the role of drugs in groups n=118

Chart 21: Young People’s Views of the Role of Drugs in Groups

6.5 Summary, Recommendations and Further QuestionsThere were a range of ways in which young people were recruited intogroups including; peer pressure, family pressure, postcode pressure,fear and the offer or allure of status, drugs, belonging and moneyand gifts. Once recruited, young people sometimes then had tocomplete an initiation.

Some groups of young people were involved in public acts ofcriminality whilst others remained undercover as they operated drugsbusinesses. There was good evidence of families that operate asgangs, but no evidence was collected to show the prevalence orabsence of organised crime groups. No typologies could be developed.

Male roles were typically hierarchical and were defined by age,money and reputation for violence. Younger group members were inservice to older members to prove their trustworthiness. Femaleroles differed and females were generally of lower status. There wasevidence of the exploitation of girls in a range of ways.

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Young people in groups were engaged in a range of criminalactivities including theft, vandalism, fighting, muggings,stabbings, possession of firearms and drug use and trading. Anextensive range of weapons were used by young people includingfists, knives, guns, bats, bottles, petrol bombs and tasers.Violence was driven by the desire for power and status, territory,retribution, defence, racial tensions, and the need for a grouppurpose. Young people had normalised attitudes towards such acts ofviolence.

Drug use was prolific. Cannabis use was normalised and open, butclass A drugs seemed to be used for dealing rather than personaluse. There was clearly a career in selling drugs in groups from theage of 10 upwards. Selling drugs provided the young people withstatus and money.

We have summarised these structures, roles and activities in thediagram below, which is modified from the Centre for Social Justice(2009). The diagram shows three aspects of groups – one is drug use,one is public criminal activity and the central element is thestructure of the groups. These are each divided into three levels,at the lower levels there are drug users and runners, or peopleinvolved in a lot of low level high frequency visible crime. Theyoungest and lowest members of groups carry these out. At the upperlevel there are the organised crime groups, who import drugs andcarry out infrequent, but high severity crime, such as murder. Theintermediate levels are accordingly mapped. We have also mappedfemale group involvement into this diagram, showing that they areusually in the lower and middle areas of groups, rarely in the top,and reflecting the different roles that they have to young men. Thisdiagram clarifies the rather complex structures and functions thatwe have described in this chapter from the data collected.

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Diagram 5: The Functioning of GroupsOn the basis of these findings it would seem that recruitment may bedisrupted by addressing some of the core reasons why young peoplejoin, such as providing alternative means of gaining moneylegitimately, belonging to secure families, and feeling safe on thestreets.

Groups of young people should be viewed as flexible and dynamicformations, some of whom engage in a range of changing criminalactivity. Services to address such groups need to be responsive andfluid to match the group – attempts to create types of services toaddress types of groups are unlikely to be successful.

Paths to success need to be created for young males as analternative to the hyper masculine success modelled in groups ofyoung people. Sexual exploitation services need to be created tosupport young people of both genders, and there additionally needsto be gender specific work to support the different experiences ofyoung women and men. Services could focus on raising awareness ofhealthy relationships and domestic violence, as many of the youngpeople we spoke to had little idea that they were being treated

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badly. This could be promoted universally through educationalprovision across the city.

Criminal activity, including violence and drugs was largely focussedon gaining money and status. This would suggest that services thatprovide legitimate routes to status and money could divert youngpeople from criminal acts, especially when accompanied by lawenforcement to penalise those that persist. Alongside this,universal services such as schools could deliver work to explore theethics of citizenship to encourage healthy attitudes to violence andcrime against individuals, especially in the middle layers of groupswhere there is heightened risk. Services could focus on bestowingrespect and status on young people in non-monetary forms, weakeningone of the primary drivers of group and ‘gang’ involvement.

Questions remain that would be worth pursuing. We were unable to mapexactly where groups were involved in public criminal acts asopposed to drugs activity – it may be that this intelligence alreadyexists in the Police, if not, it could aid service planning. Thesame applies to the numbers of families who are criminalised, andwhere links exist to organised crime. Mapping work is alreadyunderway to understand female involvement in gangs, a useful furtherdistinction would be to map how many are victims or perpetrators ofcrime in groups.

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7 SUSTAINING FACTORS

7.1 Sustaining FactorsHaving joined a group of young people, this section asks why youngpeople remain in them. We spoke to many young people who expressed asense of regret that they were involved in some groups yet feltunable to leave them, here we explore why that might be. There were26 different views of why young people might remain in groups ofyoung people. These were largely the same as the drivers, but withsome significant nuances and differences.

7.1.1 Money Young people cited money as the prime motivation for remaining ingroups of young people (12 respondents).

The sense of belonging, the money from organised crime, like robbery andexploitation YP9Well they stay because of money and because they want to be part ofsomething YP17Fear, money YP31Because of the money YP48Money is an addiction, it’s all about money YP17It’s all money and honour YP70It’s the money. You earn big money a month. Like £200 at like 11 or 12.They’d stop if they had jobs and other ways to earn money. I used to spendmoney on sweets and weed. Money is motivation YP107

7.1.2 Belonging

The alternative or surrogate family was the second most frequentreason for remaining in groups (9 respondents). Feeling a sense ofbelonging, trust, and having people ‘watch your back’ were importantto the young people.

They stick up for one another and it kicks off and then they all get involvedYP7The sense of belonging YP9They stay because they are bored, peer pressure, no money. Because of badhomes, revenge, anger, because they are thrilled to be in it, it’s exciting YP13It gives them a way to escape from the violence that they might have at home,and helps them stop being victimised. They become a new family YP16

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If I witness a murder you have to keep strong with the people that you saw itwith, you stay connected to them forever, and all those people in gangs seestuff all the time and so get bonds with them. Those bonds are like family. It’sreally hard YP70They get welcomed and get a good impression and then they feel good andhave good self-esteem and self-confidence YP25

7.1.3 Fear and protectionAllied to both belonging and to respect and status came the dualpush and pull of fear and protection. Membership of certain groupsbrought protection and assuaged young people’s fears. Belonging to agroup also heightened the risk that young people were exposed to,and so, paradoxically also heightened fear. Equally the status thata young person had within a group offered them protection but alsoexposed them to more challenge from other group members. Leaving agroup was impossible because of fear of reprisals from that group,compounded by fear of the loss of protection of the group.

They stay because no one cares, and don’t have the will to do anything, fearand the sense of being something YP28Fear, security YP29Fear, money YP31

Deuchar (2009) has linked the sense of belonging that young peopleexperience in these groups to kinship. In his research on Glasgowgangs, he explores the links between social capital and gangmembership. He proposes that gang membership is like a bonded socialcapital in that it provides young people with a sense of belongingand an immediate support network, and simultaneously limits thepossibilities of them networking more widely acquiring a bridgedsocial capital.

Whilst the young people’s comments have presented the gains thatbelonging to a group provides, the literature suggests that thisalternative family also helps them avoid dysfunctional homesettings. Further, strong links have been made between earlyexperiences of domestic violence and abuse and later violence andoffending, as such acts have to some extent been normalised, andcreate powerful life scripts (CSJ, 2006; CSJ, 2008; Johnson, 2007).

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Some young people had experienced double rejection – they had joinedgroups to find an alternative family, and then discovered that thisgroup was not trustworthy, and was, perhaps, just as dysfunctionalas their families:

They seem like families and so you feel secure in them, but they don’t reallycare for you, and so when the police turn up and there is trouble, they justleave you and split on you and then you get stitched up. That ain't a family,that ain't even a friend YP13

This double sense of loss or rejection, or being let down couldcompound any relational and attachment issues that young peoplehave.

7.1.4 Inter-group ReprisalsHaving ‘beef’ fuelled continued violence. Groups of young peopleseemed to get caught in cycles of inter-group and intergenerationalconflict. They had long held issues with one another, one incidentled to another, and so on in escalating cycles of violence. Theseoften became a reason to stay in a gang because they prompted asense of loyalty to one group, and they made it dangerous to leavethe protection of any group. This theme therefore has strong linksto fear and protection and reputation (6 respondents).

Because of bad homes, revenge, anger, thrilled to be in it, exciting YP13One guy was pissed off and talked about one person with beef being againstanother person and then they turn into a group but it gets labelled as an area,but that is not what it is, it’s about individuals with mates YP96I feel safe around here because I ain’t got beef with anyone YP108You stick by your friends. I know people that have been shot and stabbed. It’sabout revenge. Fights turn into knives, or you feel weak. We stick together. If[area] come you’ll get helped out. People are there to protect you YP132The situation is not going to calm down ever as you get generational and thenext generation is more vicious than the older ones despite them being lockedup YP148

7.1.5 ReputationStatus, respect and the power that come with them were a key part ofremaining in a group, and links to the theme above of fear andprotection (5 respondents).

Money, being part of a gang family, status, power YP26

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Status and protection make them stay YP34They beat up the weakest members to make themselves look good YP43If you are a dealer you have power over the people you deal to and that’s whatgangs are all about, having power YP70It’s all how you are known in your end [turning to the group] how areyou known? - Runner- Vandalism- Thief- Just as me- A brother- ArsonIf you get known for summat bad like rape or sexual offence then you aredone for, but if you are known for murder and everyone knows who they arethen you will get hit, but if you murder someone that they all thought was ano life or bad then its ok and you will get more respect. If you are known fordrugs then you get respect, big respect and if you grow board, and its howyou get known like. What you are known for is what you are. When I wasyoung I was a fighter and so I’m known as a fighter YP79-85

7.1.6 Boredom and lack of opportunityYoung people thought that they remained in groups, in part, becausethere was no viable alternative activity. Young people primarilyreferred to the lack of job opportunities and legitimate ways ofmaking money, but this theme also included alternative youthactivities for younger people engaged in groups (5 respondents).Some of the respondents pointed out that it would take greatmotivation for the young people involved to find more gainfulemployment given the obstacles in their way and the incentives forstaying involved in criminal activity.

They stay because no one cares, and they don’t have the will to do anything,fear and the sense of being something YP28Some people have new cars at 17 and new clothes, £100 trainers, new X-box,games that just came out and still got money – what job can give you allthat? When people struggle financially young people hear, and then thatmakes them not want to be someone like that, and you see students in debtand no guarantee for a job, so why would they try to get a job or try to get to

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uni. If people who go to school, college, and uni and still have no jobs and sowhat’s the point for people like us from the rough estates. It’s all a lie YP77I could go straight back into the drugs and get the money, but I don’t wantto fuck my life up again. There are people in gangs that all do business, buthalf of them doing it don’t want to do it. They can’t get real jobs because oftheir criminal records YP107

7.1.7 DrugsDrugs have been kept as a separate theme, but are integral to moneyas a sustaining factor, as money is made through the drugs trade (2respondents).

It’s all money and honour. And drugs is the top of that 100%. There is somepetty crime to defend themselves and support the drugs, but it’s all aboutdrugs and money. We was doing weed, but now he’s on cocaine and crackcocaine, and pills. I don’t trust it, I won’t take them as you don’t know what’s inthem. If you are a dealer you have power over the people you deal to andthat’s what gangs are all about, having power YP70

7.1.8 Peer pressurePeer pressure could be included within the themes of belonging asthis need is clearly met by the peer group, it also connects torespect and status, as the peer group is the source of that power,and it connects to fear and protection, as this is the group thatbestows that protection, and/or causes the fear.

People copy and bounce off each other. We copied people who were not nice.My role model got into robbing and gangs and so I did. I got involved in agang…its stepping stones YP77They are probably bullied into staying YP4

7.1.9 ExcitementTwo young people mentioned the excitement that accompanies criminalactivity in groups:

They stay because they are bored, peer pressure, no money. Because of badhomes, revenge, anger, thrilled to be in it, exciting YP13It’s like when you first smoke and you are buzzin’ and you want more buzz, itsteps up YP77

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Stenberg (2008) theorises that adolescents have a higher propensityto take risks, and seek sensation due to neurobiological factorsthat occur at puberty including increased dopamine. If this risktaking is endorsed by the peer group, then this satisfies theheightened sense of approval that adolescents have due to increasesof oxytocin receptors that also occur during puberty according toSteinberg. This argument does not however explain why some youngpeople turn to criminal rather than legitimate sources of sensationand social acceptance.

7.1.10 Music and mediaOne young person talked about the continued role of music to keepyoung people involved in groups, and its role in normalisingcriminal behaviour:

It’s all in the music and the films and so then when you see it for real it’s notshocking. We live on the streets and you want to be top dog then like off the TVYP77

The Centre for Social Justice report (2009) supports the view thatthe continued glamorisation of gangs in rap and grime supports youngpeople’s involvement.

7.2 Complex sustaining forcesThe complexity of the relationship between these factors is bestdemonstrated by the following quote:

It’s all money and honour. And drugs is the top of that, 100%. There is somepetty crime to defend themselves and support the drugs, but it’s all aboutdrugs and money. We was doing weed, but now he’s on cocaine and crackcocaine, and pills. I don’t trust it, I won’t take them as you don’t know what’s inthem. If you are a dealer you have power over the people you deal to andthat’s what gangs are all about, having power. If I witness a murder you haveto keep strong with the people that you saw it with, you stay connected tothem forever, and all those people in gangs see stuff all the time and so getbonds with them. Those bonds are like family. It’s really hard. YP70

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The need for respect is fuelled by money and drugs. Once you belongin a group and have their respect, the crimes that are committedfurther bond you together. Any of these factors alone could sustaina young person’s involvement, but put together they become a web offactors that meet young people’s developmental needs (safety,belonging, financial security, identity), whilst also putting themat great risk.

Sectarianism and cultural issues were not highlighted as factorsthat kept young people in groups, but can be expected to endurebeyond their initial driving forces.These ten sustaining factors are summarised in Chart 21.

fear

money

belong

ing

respec

t

boredo

m and

lack p

rospec

ts drugs

media

peers

/ norm

al

sectar

ianism

cultur

al

excite

ment

repris

als048

12

Young People's Views of Factors that Sustain Groups of Young

People (n=26)

Chart 21: Young People’s Views of the Factors that Sustain Groups

The literature pertaining to gang activity and criminality supportedthe multiple and complex factors that sustain young people’smembership. For example, Harris et al. (2011) researched ganginvolvement for the Ministry of Justice and concluded that gangaffiliation and gang identity were supported by praise from peers,the status gained from inclusion, and financial reward, and theavoidance of negative consequences like rejection and victimisation.They also found that territorial disputes had a role in maintaininggang cohesion and therefore membership.

The practitioners also thought that there were multiple sustainingfactors in group memberships, with each practitioner ticking betweenone and all of the factors presented in the survey. An average of 3

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factors was ticked by each practitioner. These factors are shown inChart 22.

Belonging Nothing else to do

No incentive to leave

Fear of reprisals

Money making

Status05101520253035

Practitioners' Views of What Keeps Young People in Gangs (n =

49 respondents)

Chart 22: Practitioners’ Views of what Keeps Young People in Gangs

7.3 Summary, Recommendations and Further QuestionsYoung people stay in gangs for a range of interrelated reasons. Oncethey are in gangs they often have access to money (usually from drugrelated business) and they gain a sense of belonging. Belonging to agroup provides young people with protection and can help them gain areputation and status, but membership also carries risks orreprisals from within the group if you infringe a boundary, orreprisals from other groups because of membership. Boredom and alack of opportunities helps sustain young people in groups as thereare no other legitimate means of earning money, nor any otheropportunities that offer such excitement. Peer pressure to stay ingangs is immense, so much so that some young people see leaving asimpossible. The glamorising role of music and other media also helpsustain young people’s involvement. As these factors are complex, soresponses to them need to be sophisticated. Creating diversionaryactivities alone will not enable young people to leave. We willexplore the factors that do promote desistance in the next chapter.

We recommend that preventative strategies address the factorsdescribed in chapter 5. ‘Gang’ interventions, however, need to betailored to the factors described as sustaining young people ingroups as described above. Whilst they are similar to the factorsthat promote young people to join, they are not identical. Thecomplexity of the factors that sustain membership need to be

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reflected in any intervention, and the next chapter seeks to explorewhat these factors might look like.

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8 TRAJECTORIES

8.1 TrajectoriesThis section identifies what happens to young people involved ingroups by plotting a range of trajectories. There were three maintrajectories identified: death, prison and desistance. Only 31 ofthe 149 young people talked about where their membership of groupscould lead. These are described below, and neatly summarised by oneyoung person:

There are only three ways out of stuff;a) realising before it’s too lateb) realising too late and going to prison c) not realising and getting killed YP73

8.1.1 Injured or Dead The young people were all very cognisant of the possibility ofinjury and death through membership of certain groups. They all hadstories that they had heard, witnessed, or experienced themselves ofinjury and death, and they knew that this was a very real and likelytrajectory for them (8 respondents).

They end up in hospital YP1They get sent down or killed YP16They die or go to prison YP27We either get hurt or get a bad [respect] name YP34We beat other people up, or get beat up, or end up in prison YP54I got stabbed because I had a knife and as he stabbed someone and the knifegot turned on me and I got stabbed. One of them got stabbed in the back andit was one inch from his heart and it’s the worst thing ever, it’s like a hot knifeand salt, it really hurts YP115

8.1.2 Prison The young people were also highly aware of the penalties forcriminal activity (eleven respondents).

Some of them get caught and some get away with it YP3 They get sent down or killed YP16

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My mate took a car and I was in the passenger seat, the steering wheel lockedup and so I got out of the car when it was moving and rolled, then he crashedthe car and it stopped right by my head. The police eventually arrested us allfor stealing it, and I might get prosecuted for it, but it was them, and theywere gangsters, I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time YP25Locked up, or your status in gang gets higher, or caught by youth offendingand carry a tag [he was on tag] YP26You might die or go to prison YP27We might get locked up, we don’t want to get killed YP31We beat other people up, or get beat up, or end up in prison YP54Vandals do petty shit and robbing, then TWOK, but drug dealers stay clean ofthat shit so they don’t get nicked. But in the end they all get into prison YP79

Prison did not seem like a deterrent for many of the young people,as it just sends the criminal activity underground, or makes way forthe new generation of wannabe’s:

The Parson's Cross lot have been arrested, but there is still a lot that goes on.It’s just all gone underground YP55

The most extreme view of this kind is quoted in full below:

There isn’t such a thing as crime, it’s just a laugh. If the police come along it’sthen even more of a laugh. I got a tag for doing stuff, I had to be in for 7. AndI just got £600 court fine. And I got 4 points on my licence with the fine[smiling]. The more we get away with stuff the more stuff we do. We likeit. Prison ain’t bad, the only bad thing is that you wouldn’t get any clothes –but then my mum would bring them in for us. In prison there’s bigger gangsthan them what’s out here. I know quite a lot of people in there, my uncle andcousin are in, and friends. There’s fuck all anyone can do to make me change.It’s a laugh. Some crimes are a laugh, but there’s a line. Rape’s crossed theline. It’s totally wrong. No matter what situation you’re in it’s totally wrong,but murder’s OK YP108

One young person we spoke to even wanted to end up in prison sothat he could see his older brother serving his sentence in aprison.

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8.1.3 DesistanceWhen asked about what happens to young people in gangs there werevery few comments about desistance. It could be that this reflectsthe difficulty of desisting, or that it is something that thoseyoung people have not considered. We did however speak to five youngpeople who had, or were in the process of desisting, so it is apossibility, and we discuss how to desist through the lens of theircase studies in 8.2.

Work is a way out YP30They are selling drugs young, they only get out of it by being jailed or killed. Toget out you have to stop doing everything and move, a new start. Zebras don’tchange their spots. You have to stop and then be poor YP71There are two ways for the future; prison or going straight YP77

Chart 23 summarises the themes above.

Injury / death Prison Desistance0

2

4

6

8

10

12

Young People's Views of Possible Trajectories (n=31)

Chart 23: Young People’s Views of Possible Trajectories

8.2 The Process of DesistingYoung people had lots of ideas about stopping being involved ingroups. They did not think it was impossible, although extremelyhard, and there was a clear sense that stopping would be a goodthing. There were 114 young people who contributed ideas about whatwould help them stop. Five young people had stopped being involved(3 females and 2 males), and their stories of desistance are drawnon in more detail.

8.2.1 Diversionary Activities

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The most common answer to the question, ‘what could be done?’, wasto provide more activities (18 respondents). There was therefore, aclear perception that not having viable positive activities (becausethey are too far away, too expensive or not provided at all) ledyoung people into criminality. The activities alone could providemore positive ways of spending time, and they also linked topositive role models, in that other young people, not involved incrime, could or would be attending. Engaging in these activitieswould therefore increase the chance of young people developingpositive peer relationships and developing a bridged social capital.

More youth clubs, programme over the summer, events at holidays, policeofficers who know the communities YP5More events like football, and dance, activities, more volunteering, moreapprenticeships, more money, more support for young people in care YP15More youth centres, give them something to do YP29More for teenagers, youth clubs, more activities like football, dance, musicYP31More jobs, more events, youth clubs as there is too much vandalism in parksYP35Could be more attractions, sports areas, interactive things, stuff to do over thewinter YP40There needs to be more college placements, more things for kids to do,otherwise they just go out and get up to shit YP53Grandma was really key as was doing other stuff, like my nan paid for me tohorse ride and other things with other white posh friends, and that meant Ihad something else to compare it [gang life] to, like another world andthat was unique, other people do not have that. So activities and the otherpeople who do them were important YP68We want after school study groups back for kidsWe want stuff to go toAfter school clubsWe want this open more than once a weekWe want stuff on in the holidaysWe want sporting stuff YP89

It was also clear from what was said that the activities need to beprovided by high quality staff who can build rapport and trust,offer unconditional regard and start to build positive attachmentswith the young people;

I love my youth club, its family. It’s sick and [adult’s name] is ace. Andthey’re all Christians and they don’t judge you and look down on you. Theysay they will pray for you. So that means they care and don’t judge and that’s

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just what you need. If there were more people like [adults name] and[adults name], it would be wicked, because they don’t judge YP108A youth worker has not been through anything that bad [like gangs]and so they can’t relate to the young person, so how do you know, the youthworker is stuck, they can’t reassure them. I am not proud of what I have donebut I have had a lot of experiences and I can pass it down to people andrelate to people and kids, like I can talk to my kids about it for real YP73It’s great here, rather than being angry we vent in the gym. The staff talk toyou like an adult, the teachers are on your level. We can talk to them aboutanything and they don’t pass it on. We get taught independently instead ofas a class and it helps. I really like it here. We’re staying till we finish year 11YP78Working with young people is 95% about relationships and people skills sowe need them here, we need people dedicated to talking to young people.There is so much that could be done here:• Career advice sessions• Sex education• Drug and alcohol advice sessions• Homework clubs YP126

One young person was sceptical about the value of activities,believing that they are the easy to name, but ineffective inpractice;

I’m sick of people asking what should be done because they do fuck all, needa place to hang out and be, somewhere safe, nothing for the kids to do,needs youth clubs and activities, and enough benefits to feed them YP40

8.2.2 Positive Role Models

This was the next most frequent answer (13 responses). Positive rolemodels included parent figures, figures in youth services, communityleaders and peers. The key aspects of the role models is that theydisplayed care for the young person concerned, and the young personlooked up to them for some reason. The role model is perhaps then apositive attachment, replacing the many negative ones that someyoung people have experienced already in their lives. All the youngpeople who had desisted could cite positive adult role models whohelped them get through.

Give them a social life, a sense of legitimate belonging through youth clubs,do more cinema offers, do something constructive and get them off the streetsas they can't afford to go to the gym and that YP9

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Family have a big impact on them, as the choice is between the family or thegang YP17My family tell me to go straight, I stopped for a while because they told me to,but now I keep two separate lives so that I don't hurt or worry my family.There are two sides to me a family side and an angry side YP21I got taken into care when I was 12 but me and my sister ran away to my nan.She brought us up in a really good way and stopped us ending up like usmam. We beat the stereotype and that was our goal. We’d typically be in apark and get chased and we would run and run and that would just be what itwas like. It was always violence. I’m now doing A levels and I want to go to unimy grandma gave me support and knowledge and boundaries to stay on theright path. Nan was a positive role model. YP68I was a naughty child with crime and drugs and gangs but family stood by me.I nearly got locked up for theft and GBH but my mum was always there,standing by me in prison and giving me strategies. She’s my inspiration.YP108It’s hot headed people and status. But people can realise that you can getstatus positively. Like taking a positive role model. Then the trend will changeYP129

8.2.3 Education, employment and training

Legitimate routes to success were also named as key factors indesistance. Many of the young people in groups do not feel that theycan access these, let alone succeed at them. Providing progressionroutes from the street into employment is therefore vital. Youngpeople spoke of the need for enterprise courses, educationalprogrammes, traineeships, apprenticeships, volunteer positions andjobs. Two of the young people who had desisted had found this acritical part of their success.

We need courses, like music so need more to do with it YP30Apprenticeships or work maybe, but if they don’t work then people will stay ingangs. People don’t think about it. The desire for money and there is nothingto do and so people turn to gangs, so you have to sort out something to doand money YP20Work and money gets young people off the streets, all they need is a job - all Ineed is a job YP22Show them care and give them something to do, need ideas, he wants his ownbusiness, enterprise, own garage YP26I decided not to be involved any more so I grabbed this opportunity. Lots ofpeople like me don’t get opportunities like this, and I don’t need to worry nowand police worries people and I don’t want that. YP73

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8.2.4 Wider Support Services

Allied to the complexity of the needs that young people faced inleaving gangs was the need for a range of support services. Youngpeople named the NSPCC, youth support workers, sexual exploitationservices and counselling as support mechanisms that they might wantto draw upon (7 respondents).

The NSPCC need to help the girls who are abused. It varies, support isindividual, but it could include yourself, peers, the family, job offers…. Someyoung people are so desperate they think of suicide YP9More support for young people in care YP15Counselling sessions with family and police YP27Young people can be helped out of gangs through sexual exploitation services[this is what helped her], they were good, she was very vulnerableand she could speak to them YP53

8.2.5 Law Enforcement

There were mixed views about the police (7 respondents), some youngpeople felt that additional law enforcement would be useful (mainlythose that were not involved in gangs), whilst others weredisparaging about its efficacy. There were also mixed views aboutwhether detaining people in prison drove criminal activityunderground, or reduced criminal activity.

Make it more strict, make them spend more time in prison YP27Prison deters them YP36There needs to be more CCTV YP52UK law is too soft for stuff like this YP147

Then there was another group again, including those that haddesisted, who were absolutely hostile to the police as individualofficers, although not opposed to law enforcement per se.

I hate the police I have a vendetta against them, they have never done a goodthing for me all they have done is caused trouble for us [Romas]. And thenthere are specifics like when they broke in to search, just because I knew [YPname] and wouldn’t let me to my baby who was screaming terrified upstairs,and they wouldn’t let me go to him, that’s really bad like. YP72The police say that they thought they saw something black in your hand, like aweapon, and use that as an excuse to stop and search you, or do whatever.The coppers are always saying we’ve got something. They use it as an excuseall the time. YP72

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The thing is also the police don’t really, like care, when my mate got run overthey left his body on the street for 3 or 4 hours and that was a long time in thestreet. Lots of them don’t really care about people, they are more focussed onother crimes like drugs. It’s good that they are about but they don’t focus ongangs. But they don’t seem to take it serious like YP73Operation Mach was bad as the police went undercover and were trying tobuy crack. Lots of people were arrested. Innocent people got arrested. Theytricked us. They were offering good clothes – like Armani – for information,and then they arrested the informants anyway. We don’t trust them no moreYP140It’s normal to get stopped and searched. Especially if you are running with ahoodie on. It happened to me tonight coming here. They said I shouldn’t beout. Just ‘coz I live here doesn’t mean I’m doing it YP143 If there’s three or more of you, you’re stopped by the police. It’s a waste oftime. If it’s past 9pm you’re stopped. I know where they are coming from, butit’s a waste of my time. You’re in big groups because you don’t want to be onyour own. Like not even going to the corner shop – I’d go with my mate. Andwe’re punished for it YP145

These relationships with the police need turning around in order forthe police and communities to work together.

8.2.6 Maturation

Some young people cited the very process of growing up as enablingthem to desist from criminal activity (9 respondents). This themeincluded young people who had grown up because of newfoundresponsibilities such as a serious relationship or pregnancy. Thisthen led to them deciding to desist. This was marked also by a shiftin awareness that things could, and indeed, had to be different, andan ability to think beyond the day to day, to develop long termplanning skills.

I was pregnant, and the gang knew who my family was and they were moredangerous so they had to let me go YP32People grow up and leave YP36The big wigs grow out of it or get arrested YP68I got out because I got to be my own person and I got a girl YP78My focus back then was family and my girlfriend and we were serious and Iwanted to support her and selling drugs wouldn’t work. I have been throughall this and everything already and I am talking about experiences with drugsand gangs and making money illegal ways and I got tired of it all and peoplewant to find a way out, a lot of them do, but then there are them people whatget a buzz out of it but I got tired and wanted to do something. Like I would

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realise but only a little bit that it was risky and bit by bit I realised a bit moreand it got to the point where I saw people get killed and I didn’t want to beinvolved any more and it scared the shit out of me and I decided not to beinvolved. I was lucky, I met someone and like she was not into it she knew Iwas and who I was but she knew what went off and I couldn’t hide it from heras it was not right and she didn’t like it so I gave up everything, but I didn’treally like I should have. I cut down seeing people and saw people so I cutdown but was still doing things like and she got angry about it and then myfamily found out and I got their disappointment at me and that was hard. So Iwanted to prove that I was not like everyone else that is stereotyped that allyoung people are bad people so I didn’t want to be like that. YP73

Another aspect of maturity came from wanting respect from peoplearound you, rather than disapproval. A change in focus from gainingdisapproval from rebellion to gaining approval through positiveactivity;

So I decided like to get a job, when I got this job, like, it’s a good thing thatdon’t come often…..People look at me smiling, and they are happy for me, butif I did what I did then I would be different inside and they would bedisappointed if they knew. I don’t like letting people down as I know how theyfeel and its bad. So I decided that it was time to fix up really. YP73

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8.2.7 Safe Homes

Three young people who were homeless discussed how difficult it isto stay out of street life when you live on the street. They had allhad a number of placements in hostels that had failed, and they hadall spent significant amounts of time on the street, and inevitablyjoined street based groups of young people.

You need to get them somewhere else to live, eight times I have been on thestreets now, and they really need to buck up their ideas. I mean I don't mindover, but I worry in the dark, and sleeping in bushes I get bitten by bugs. AndI’ve been chased by a gang with a machete, it’s not safe. My dad and step dadare in prison and it’s a bad pattern, but I’m in here [Star House] because Iwant a job, I want to go legit and get a job and have money. So I need supportto do that, it’s hard from a hostel, I really want the help to do it YP14Housing and security are important. I wanted a flat more than anything and Igot one, but then I lost it because people smashed windows and that. Doorsgot kicked off and so I left. I lost loads of money in rent arrears and now I'm indebt. I can’t eat regularly and am losing weight. I'm here [Star House] fora food parcel. It would be so easy to get involved [in criminal activity] to helpwith all those issues YP25

8.2.8 Gang Education

Three young people thought that it would be useful to educate youngpeople about gangs, none of these young people were gang involvedthemselves.

They need ex-offenders to talk them out of it YP4Youngers have learnt from the olders in like formal sessions. They’rehearing and learning from their mistakes YP136

This type of intervention already exists in the city – asdemonstrated in the projects detailed in the appendix.

8.2.9 Planning Alternatives

The young people who were in the process of desisting (5 youngpeople) all spoke of their awareness of alternatives, as if theybecame aware of the future for the first time. They spoke of the‘here and now’ mind set of young people involved in gangs, a mindset necessary for the risks involved in criminality. A significantaspect of wanting to leave this activity was developing thoughtsbeyond the immediate, and awareness that they could create a

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different future for themselves. This links strongly to the theme ofmaturity. Sometimes it was time with positive peers that led to therealisation that things could be different, sometimes it was a newopportunity that made the difference, sometimes it was maturationand sometimes it was seeing something bad happen as shown below:

I wanted to get out and move on and when I thought about it I didn’t want tostill be in it in 10 years. I think that a lot of people that I know who were intheir 20’s are mostly got friends who are dead or in prison or just getting awaywith it and I decided it was time to move on. In 10 years time where do I wantto be – I got a plan and so I wanted to change, they just live day to day YP73

Realising that something could be different was the first step tomaking things different. This resonates with Maynard’s (2011)Framework of Empowerment that maps ‘realisation’, and then ‘wanting’as the early stages of empowerment in young people’s lives. A keyaspect in promoting desistance is therefore enabling young people tosee that things do not have to be as they are – providing them withcritical awareness of the possibility of being involved in a widerange of different groups of young people, not just those on thestreets where they live.

8.2.10 Community Ownership

Young people, adults and practitioners from Broomhall stated thatthey had youth violence and criminality in hand. They had made thatchange through owning it as a community. These were the only peopleto speak of community based solutions. They specified that onlypeople who are known to the young people will be successful inproviding interventions, and explained how the community leaders,and then oldest of the young people were protecting the youngeryoung people from involvement in issues from the past with youngpeople from other areas. The community ownership links with positiverole models, as it also provides such figures as well as modellingself-responsibility and empowerment.

You can’t run successful projects with outsiders, people come here because ofwho runs it. It’s gotta be someone who is respected and here all the time. Itwould be great though to get additional support like 50% community and50% professional. Most of the people who use the gym are 18-21 now, butthey were 14-16 when they first came. The only other services available tothem then were run by outsiders, and they came in and made a profit fromthe issues that the young people had and then moved on, that’s no good like.There is no profit here, it is a home grown community organisation for the

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community. My concern is that the funding follows deaths it is not used forpreventative stuff. We are at a turning point now. We have taken ownershipof it, we have done it ourselves, sorted our own issues and not had anymoney to support us. We have grown young leaders, we have changed whatwas going on and now young people hang around here, it is a positive place.It shows that it can be done. For young people to engage they have to reallywant it, there has to be a benefit to them, it has to be part of theircommunity. The essence of why it has worked is that people are takingresponsibility for themselves here. We didn’t like what was happening andwanted to take responsibility for ourselves. We wanted to stop what washappening to our young people. Events had an impact on us and so wewanted to sort it out and look after their interests, and looking after theyoung people’s interests also looks after our interests as then the area gets abetter reputation, so we trigger a positive cycle. YP122

This community empowerment approach was also advocated at a gangconference hosted at Brathay (2007) as a meaningful and sustainableapproach.

8.2.11 Parenting

Only one young person said that parenting interventions would bebeneficial, although parenting had widely been acknowledged as adriver of involvement in groups of young people.

Parent schemes need to be more strict, as they have learned it from theirparents YP4

8.2.12 Benefits

One young person thought that having more money through the benefitsystem would also help resolve issues.

We need enough benefits to feed ourselves YP40

Chart 24 below summarises how young people thought they could beenabled to join positive groups, and stop joining groups that arenegative for them and the communities that they live in.

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Young People's View of How To Desist n= 114

Chart 24: Young People’s Views of How to Desist

It becomes clear that there are predominantly state interventionsnamed such as; activities, education, parenting, role models,education, employment and training opportunities, housing, supportservices, law enforcement, and increased benefits. There are onlytwo things that young people acknowledged that they could dothemselves; mature and plan alternative lifestyles. Having positiverole models in a community that has taken ownership for itself was afactor that would support this, and that could not be provided bythe state. It would seem that a combination of three factors wouldgreatly enable desistance, the combination of state, community andindividual resources deployed at the right moment as shown indiagram 6 below.

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Diagram 6: Support mechanisms for desistance

8.2.13 Identity ChangeDespite young people feeling that many of the state and community factors were not in place, five young people that we spoke to were in the process of desisting. They described the changes that were necessary as a complete identity change.

To stop all that bad stuff you gotta get out of the situation. You gotta say no[stands up and writes ‘easy’ over the positive route and ‘hard’ over thenegative route drawn on the flip chart]. There is no separating me from myboyz, I would stick with them, they are my second family so it’s too hard achoice YP78The only way out is to stay in and pretend to revise and that. You need tomove people getting’ out, like taking that flip chart picture [points toflip chart] and cutting it out and taking it somewhere else. I’d rather rideand die for my boyz, its really common for my people. Low rankers in gangscan leave easy, but if you’re the wolf of the pack you would have to sign it overto someone else. We’d respect his views because he’s like a total nutter and apsycho and a big man, so he would also be safe YP79So I stopped seeing people and going to certain areas, not because I can’t butbecause it’s better as otherwise I could end up stabbed or involved in thingsagain. I don’t want it to happen so I don’t go there. It’s not that I can’t gothere, but I don’t want to. I now go to places where I don’t get dragged up instuff. Five things got me out: first my job, my football, my family, my

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Catalyst for

change

State support services

Community

support

Personal motivati

on

relationship and experience and realisation that things happen and I need tostop and move on. It seems a lot but when you are involved in things and intothings you need a lot, a combination to get you out. Just family alone are notenough to make you stop. The only way you leave a job is being fired orthinking it’s not the right job, it’s the same with this street life. You get stabbedor realise that its bad and that is how you get off the streets, usually whensomething indirectly happens to a mate, or something small happening toyou like being robbed. It has to make you realise but not be too late, it has tobe just in time. The timing is one of the hardest parts of being involved,nobody knows about timing. People say right I will do it for now but in a fewweeks I will stop … but in that time something can happen that can end upwith you dead or close to dead, or you are gonna get to the end of the timeand check your pocket and you’ve got lots of money and think well it’s easyand nothing has happened, so I may as well carry on. It’s a big circle until it’stoo late or you get out just in time. I think in a way that I am really lucky to have got out the way that I did, butthen there is still always that thing of people wanting to stab me up andbecause I got out of it and stopped seeing them. The people that set me upand I told them I’m not coming back and so obviously said we’ll see whathappens to you know. And I said yer, alright we will see what happens. Onceyou are in it you cannot ever get out of it completely. The only way is to movecity or move country. It’s a complete new life, that is the only way to get fullyout of it because being in the same city as everything kicking off there ispeople who are not going to like it and who want revenge on you so you mighthave even of been, well not in a gang because I don’t think there are gangs,but in my past when people had conflict with different areas I have had topunch a few of them up as they were punching me and I would have ended upin hospital otherwise, especially when they are pissed off. And if you hurt oneof them they won’t forget it, so even though you move on and stop seeingpeople they are out there looking for you. People seem to think, especially theupper people like the council and police think that once you are out of it youare completely out and that they can save people who are in of it, but that isso naïve, and so they leave people once they are out but you can’t completelyget out unless you move country or city. There are still people out therelooking to get me.I think that being totally out of it is still in the future for me somewhere, so atthe moment I deal with it by doing what I need to do and letting things go.It’s like starting a new life, little things like changing your number all the time

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and that means that people will not get on your phone asking if you have stuffin and that would make you think you could have made £200 today and thatyou are missing out so it’s better to not have them ringing you. It’s a big circleand it always comes back to the money. If people can’t ring you then theycan’t drag you back in. You need to get off whatsapp and change yournumber with the good friends that told you to keep out and you ignored. Thatdecreases the risk of getting involved again. It seems to be working for me. No one has my number apart from family anda few friends. It’s so long since I had loads of contacts but now I hardly haveany contacts and I’m not waiting for my phone to ring I can relax more. If youfind a job that is a huge thing as you get money, it’s harder, but it gets intoyour mind set that when you are older you need to work longer hours for lessand so you get to think about it being possible to have a job when you areolder, you think longer term. And when you have a job you are not feared ofthe police you are alright, search me, I’ve got nothing to hide.If you think about it [the risk of reprisals] like that you will getscared so I just think that I have to be aware and know what is going onaround me and then I will be alright. When you fear people you can get overparanoid and can lose your confidence and stop seeing certain people theonly thing you can do is keep being strong and keeping going. I know a lot ofpeople who have got out, like elders who have done it for years and then gotout and so I listened to them about keeping alert because they have beenthrough it all. YP73

These lengthy narratives of desistance demonstrate the complexchallenges that young people face in stopping associating withcertain groups of young people. It is not as simple as choosingto stop talking to them, it requires a whole change of life;home, friends, activities. Ebaugh (1988) describes change atthis level in terms of identity change. In asking young peopleto desist, we are asking them to exit personally meaningfulroles which are linked to their identity. Exiting this role,exiting the very way that they define themselves is therefore athreat to self-identity. Any new role needs negotiation andreintegration into the new self-concept before stability andsecurity are re-established. Support services are needed thatunderstand this process of identity change and that can supportit practically and psychologically.

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Identity change is a difficult task for an adult to accomplish,and perhaps an even more difficult task for an adolescent whomay be vulnerable, marginalised and experiencing heightenedrisk. Perhaps this is why one young woman concluded that:

You can’t have your own life, there is nothing but the gang YP83

These findings are also congruent with the work by Harris etal. (2011) for the Ministry of Justice on desistance from gangoffences, and the research of Maruna (2002) on desistance fromoffending generically. Their interviews with prisoners who hadbeen gang involved showed that desistance was achieved througha combination of maturation and having a new role in life.Catalysts for re-evaluation and critical reflection were oftenfeeling let down or abandoned by the gang. The offenderspresented themselves as wanting to be in control of theirjourneys out of gangs and of needing support, especially ifthey remained in the same area. A key complaint from theoffenders was the justice system did not recognise the positivechanges that offenders did make (they overlooked them), and thejustice system’s current over simplified plans, were cited asineffective by the offenders.

The practitioners had a different priority order of factorsthat promote desistance. The most frequently cited factor indesistance was aspirations of alternative lifestyles. This wasclosely followed by self-esteem and maturation. Althoughpositive role models were viewed as highly significant by theyoung people, they were only thought to be important by 17 ofthe 49 practitioners. Rather, they rated family as a far moreimportant factor in the young people’s lives than the youngpeople did. Practitioners also thought that having differentactivities to do, and legitimate opportunities to earn moneywere critical factors in desistance. These factors are allshown in Chart 25. It is alarming that there are discrepanciesbetween the young people and practitioners views, and perhaps

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this is an areas where young people could be consulted withmore widely.

Peer g

roup r

ole mo

dels Fam

ily

Aspira

tions

Someth

ing be

tter t

o do

Legiti

mate w

ays to

earn

money

Increa

sed se

lf res

pectMat

uratio

n

Fear o

f inju

ry / d

eath /

priso

n

0102030

Practitioners' Views of Desistance (n=49)

Chart 25: Practitioners’ Views of Desistance

The practitioners were also asked to describe aspects of theservices that they provided that they thought were effective in anopen question. There was a 39% response rate to this question (19practitioners). Most of the services that were effective werethought to offer education, employment and training. The next mostfrequent answer was mentoring or other one to one support work.Group work (2 answers) and universal youth work (1 answer) was alsosuggested as effective, but less so than individual work. Activitieswere also suggested as effective, some of these were namedspecifically, and arts based activities and sports based activitieswere equally frequent answers (4 each), whilst generic diversionaryactivities were mentioned three times. Remediation, mental healthsupport, life skills and community based projects were suggested aseffective by one practitioner each.

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mentor

ing sport

youth

club

mental

healt

h supp

ortgro

up wor

k

remedi

ation

divers

ionary

activ

ities

educa

tion,

employ

ment a

nd tra

ining

arts b

ased w

ork

life s

kills

commun

ity pr

ojects

02468

Practitioners' Views of Existing Effective Services (n=19)

Chart 26: Practitioner’s Views of Existing Effective Services

The literature on gangs in the UK supports the view that the rootcauses of gang involvement need to be tackled to effect change,rather than the gang behaviour itself. This could include moreparticipation for young people in political processes, alternativesto education, employment routes, role models, tenant ledinitiatives, mental health services, and sexual exploitationservices (Kenny Report, 2012). Empowerment is cited as criticallyimportant in this literature as many of the young people involved ingangs feel powerless and alienated by modern society (Need toBelong, 2013; Harris et al, 2011). Such approaches have been shownto work, the research participants in the Need to Belong report, forexample, were supported back into education (25%), with healthservices (20%) and with housing support (5%). 90% of them overallaccepted support suggesting that young people will accept help if itis presented in the right way. Such activities require a fundamentalchange in service provision and a commitment to multi agencyworking. Addressing the symptoms of the gang activity have notproved successful (Tackling Knife and Serious Youth Violence ActionProgramme, 2011). This long term, systemic approach, promoted by theCentre for Social Justice (2009) and Ending Gang and Youth Violencestrategy (2011), is the only way to divert young people from groups.

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8.3 Summary, Recommendations and Further Questions

Young people end up injured or dead, in prison, or desist from theirinvolvement from groups. Desistance is a difficult path for them tonavigate. Young people identified a wide number of mechanisms tohelp them desist, including; diversionary activities, positive rolemodels, education employment and training, wider support services,law enforcement, maturity, safe homes, gang education, planning,community ownership, parenting and increased benefits. Ideally,individual motivation to change, community support and state supportwould be available together ‘just in time’ to support the young people outof criminal activity. The desire to change came from a range ofcatalysts including a change of role (e.g. parenthood), a newopportunity (e.g. work) and significant relationships (e.g. meetinga positive role model) and fear of risks continued involvementbrings.

Desisting was a difficult task involving a complete change ofidentity and the replacement of as many benefits of membership (thesustaining factors identified in Chapter 7) with similar legitimatealternatives. Young people will need significant support to effectthese changes. Such interventions will be complex, multi-agency,and long term. The trigger for these interventions need to beindividual, as young people who are not open to change will not makeuse of them. This is probably the most significant challenge forservice provision, and a good argument for community based youthservices, as it is these long term relationships with young peoplealone that can show when a young person is ready to make profoundchanges to their life. Further consultation with young people wouldbe useful in this area.

It would be of great interest to know how many adults have desistedfrom involvement as young people in risky groups, and to understandthe factors that precipitated and supported that change. It would beuseful to compare desistance of young people from criminal and non-criminal family backgrounds to understand the extent to which thisconfounds desistance.

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From these findings we recommend that desisting should be consideredas complex a process as witness protection. Timing would seem to becrucial – young people may not want to desist until they matureenough, or have an experience that is a catalyst for change. At thatpoint support services need to be available. In order to detect whenis the ‘right time’, there is a need for young people to accessregular youth services with youth workers that they trust, who cansignpost them on to the right provision. There are already a numberof highly successful interventions in Frankland, and these need tobe capitalised on and supported in the future. See for example thepractice case studies in Appendix 5.

Young people who have desisted are keen to share their experiencesand to help other young people. They have credibility with otheryoung people as they know what they are going through. There ispotential therefore to mobilise these young people as a workforce toassist other young people out of groups, a job that would equallyhelp consolidate their continued desistance. Given the territorialissues, these may need to be young people who are out of area.

Questions remain as to how a flexible multi-agency workforce canstand by for young people and how they can respond in a timely way.Perhaps examples of multi-agency practice from other cities may bedrawn upon to inform a response in Frankland.

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9 Comparison of Frankland to other Cities in the UKThe number of young people who are involved in groups in Franklandis unknown, so it is difficult to make comparisons on scale. Londonhas the largest documented prevalence of gangs with 171 gangsidentified out of a population of 7,500,000 (Metropolitan Police,2014). Glasgow also has a high prevalence, with 171 gangs (CSJ,2009) out of a population of 600,000. Intelligence suggests thatthere are 42 gangs in the West Midlands, and 15 each in GreaterManchester and Nottingham, whilst Liverpool features only two gangs(CSJ, 2009).

City Number of Gangs

Population Ratio gang: population

London 250 7,500,000 30,000:1Glasgow 171 600,000 3509:1Birmingham 42 1,074,000 25571:1Greater Manchester

15 2,680,000 178,666:1

Nottingham 15 305,700 20,380:1Liverpool 2 465,700 232,850:1Frankland Unknown 555,000

Table 9: Numbers of Gangs in UK Cities

London gangs seemed to feature a high proportion of Black ethnicityyoung people (CSJ, 2009), whereas Glasgow is predominantly a WhiteBritish gang population (Deuchar, 2009). Birmingham gangs conflategang and ethnic tensions and feature White British, Pakistani,Somalian and Black Caribbean gangs (CSJ, 2009). Literaturesuggested that gangs in Liverpool are a predominantly White issue.The ethnicities in Manchester and Nottingham are unknown from thislimited review. From this comparison, Frankland gangs would seem tobe more like Birmingham than London.

City Main Ethnicities InvolvedLondon Black British and Black Other EthnicitiesGlasgow White British, Pakistani, Somalian and

Black CaribbeanBirmingham White British, Pakistani, Somalian and

Black Caribbean

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Greater Manchester UnknownNottingham UnknownLiverpool White BritishFrankland White British, Pakistani, Somalian and

Black CaribbeanTable 10: Ethnicities of Gangs in UK Cities

In Frankland and the other cities in the UK knives were the mostfrequently used weapons. Violence was prolific nationally and usedto gain status, and to control territory and drugs dealing. Drugsfeature in gangs nationally as a mechanism to control people, gainstatus, and acquire money and gang members are prolific offenders.Females are exploited in gangs nationally, but there seems to beless (if any) gang rape in Frankland than in other cities accordingto the data collected here.

A multitude of interventions are being run in different areas acrossthe UK – many of which are based in interventions from the UnitedStates such as the Boston Gun Project and Cincinnati Incentive toReduce Violence. London features the most interventions, which is tobe expected given the scale of the issue there, yet even areas withthe smallest evidenced gang issues ran interventions, such as theMatrix Gun Crime Team in Merseyside (CSJ, 2009). The EGYV strategy(2011) cites many examples of city specific interventions such as‘Enough is Enough’ in Waltham Forest and the Centre for ConflictTransformation in Birmingham. The EGYV strategy (2011) listsnumerous recommended national approaches to preventing gangs aswell, such as; Family Nurse Partnerships, MARAC’s, Tackling MentalHealth in Schools, Multi Systemic Therapy, Intensive FamilyInterventions, Safe School Partnerships, Independent Sex Advisors,Knife Crime Prevention Schemes, release from custody resettlement,and various routes into employment. The range and complexity ofthese interventions and services suggest that preventing gangs is along term complex issue. The EGYV One Year on Report (2013) alsolists a range of different approaches used in different places suchas the Revolving Door in Birmingham, and the Gang and Youth ViolenceTransition Service in Islington. Indeed Frankland are cited in thereport for their Street Doctors project, so it would seem that theneed for an area specific strategy in Frankland is congruent with

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the planning of interventions in other places. One size does not fitall. Evidencing the efficacy of tailor made needs led interventionswould seem to be the national, and Frankland approach.

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Part 3: Conclusions

10 CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

10.1 Definitions

There are a range of views from young people about the existence of‘gangs’. These included views that gangs: do not exist, are definedby criminal activity, are defined by their attempts at status andpower, are defined by their structures, roles and processes, aredefined by their dress code, and are defined by the way that theycare for you. Young people who believe that there are no gangsbelieve that groups of young people get involved in criminalactivity. Young people can designate themselves as gang members orbe designated as gang members by others. Definition is thereforeuncertain and problematic as is describing types of ‘gang’structures, and the term ‘gang’ can alienate and marginalise youngpeople.Recommendations:

Stop using the term gang, and use other language, for example,groups.

Continue to use the CSJ definition for groups of young people Avoid prescriptive interventions based on narrow definitions Be attentive to whose definitions of group / ‘gang’ involvement

prevail in any setting

10.2 EmergenceThe data collected here has shown that there are ten drivers foryoung people to join groups of young people that are involved incriminal and/or ‘gang’ activities. These ten drivers: respect andstatus, families and belonging, boredom and lack of opportunity,money, peer pressure, drugs, fear and protection, music and othermedia, sectarianism, can be linked to the Home Office’s five driversof EGYV (emotional, reputational, socioeconomic, environmental andcultural). The drivers described by the young people in thisresearch were complex and interrelated. The young people did notmention a number of drivers that were mentioned by practitioners and

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by the literature, notably; educational failure, poor housing,mental health issues and excitement.

Despite some young people saying that ‘gangs’ do not exist, therewas a prevalent view from the young people that there were gangs inmany of the postcode areas, and estates within postcodes across thecity. The young people had a sense that ‘gang’ issues stemmed backover a number of years and that they used to be primarily postcodedriven. There were mixed perceptions as to whether the ‘gangs’ werenow tied to postcodes or not, and whether the ‘gang’ situation wasimproving or worsening.

Recommendations Address the root causes of young people’s desire to join

groups, not the groups which is only a symptom Long term, multi-agency and systemic approaches Find non-monetary forms of respect and status for young people Provide family interventions Provide diversionary activities Ensure routes into employment Build relationships between the police and young people and

enforce the law Gender proof interventions Collect and share information on young people involved in

groups / ‘gangs’ wherever possible

10.3 FunctioningThere were a range of ways in which young people were recruited intogroups including; peer pressure, family pressure, postcode pressure,fear and the offer or allure of status, drugs, belonging and moneyand gifts. Once recruited, young people sometimes then had tocomplete an initiation.Some groups of young people were involved in public acts ofcriminality whilst others remained undercover as they operated drugsbusinesses. There was good evidence of families that operate asgangs, but no evidence was collected to show the prevalence orabsence of organised crime groups. No typologies could be developed.

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Male roles were typically hierarchical and were defined by age,money and reputation for violence. Younger group members were inservice to older members to prove their trustworthiness. Femaleroles differed and females were generally of lower status. There wasevidence of the exploitation of girls in range of ways.

Young people in groups were engaged in a range of criminalactivities including theft, vandalism, fighting, muggings,stabbings, possession of firearms and drug use and trading. Anextensive range of weapons were used by young people includingfists, knives, guns, bats, bottles, petrol bombs and tasers.Violence was driven by the desire for power and status, territory,retribution, defence, racial tensions, and the need for a grouppurpose. Young people had normalised attitudes towards such acts ofviolence.

Drug use was prolific. Cannabis use was normalised and open, butclass A drugs seemed to be used for dealing rather than personaluse. There was clearly a career in selling drugs in groups from theage of 10 upwards. Selling drugs provided the young people withstatus and money.

Recommendations Disrupt recruitment by addressing some of the core reasons why

young people join, such as providing alternative means ofgaining money legitimately, belonging to secure families and/orpositive clubs/groups and feeling safe on the streets.

Positive role modelling is important to show males positiveroutes to express masculinity

Services need to be responsive and fluid to match the group. Paths to success need to be further developed for young males

as an alternative to the hyper masculine success modelled ingroups of young people.

Sexual exploitation services need to be created to supportyoung people of both genders, and there additionally needs tobe gender specific work to support the different experiences ofyoung women and men.

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Services could focus on raising awareness of healthyrelationships and domestic violence. This could be promoteduniversally through educational provision across the city.

Services that provide legitimate routes to status and moneycould divert young people from criminal acts, especially whenaccompanied by law enforcement to penalise those that persist.

Universal services such as schools could deliver work toexplore the ethics of citizenship to encourage healthyattitudes to violence and crime against individuals.

Improve relationships between the police and young people andenforce the law

Plan interventions on the basis of who is involved, where theyare involved, when they are involved and why they are involved(EGYV, 2011).

10.4 Sustaining FactorsYoung people stay in groups for a range of interrelated reasons.Once they are in groups they often have access to money (usuallyfrom drug related business) and they gain a sense of belonging.Belonging to a group provides young people with protection and canhelp them gain a reputation and status, but membership also carriesrisks or reprisals from within the group if you infringe a boundary,or reprisals from other groups because of membership. Boredom and alack of opportunities helps sustain young people in groups as thereare no other legitimate means of earning money, nor any otheropportunities that offer such excitement. Peer pressure to stay ingangs is immense, so much so that some young people see leaving asimpossible. The glamorising role of music and other media also helpsustain young people’s involvement. As these factors are complex, soresponses to them need to be sophisticated. Creating diversionaryactivities alone will not enable young people to leave. We willexplore the factors that do promote desistance in the next chapter.

Recommendations Provide viable alternative routes to money and status and

employment for young people Ensure that there are accessible (in every sense) practitioners

who can relate to young people and understand their situations.

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10.5 TrajectoriesYoung people end up injured or dead, in prison, or desist from theirinvolvement from groups. Desistance is a difficult path for them tonavigate. Young people identified a wide number of mechanisms tohelp them desist, including; diversionary activities, positive rolemodels, education employment and training, wider support services,law enforcement, maturity, safe homes, gang education, planning,community ownership, parenting and increased benefits. Ideally,individual motivation to change, community support and state supportwould be available together ‘just in time’ to support the young people outof criminal activity. Desistance is often viewed simplistically byservice providers, who underestimate the demands of changingidentity, moving area, changing friends and so on.

Recommendations Desisting should be considered as complex a process as witness

protection. Timing is crucial – young people may not want to desist until

they mature enough, or have an experience that is a catalystfor change. At that point support services need to beavailable.

In order to detect when is the ‘right time’, there is a needfor young people to access regular youth services with youthworkers that they trust, who can signpost them on to the rightprovision.

In order to empower young people there could be community ledprovision.

There are already a number of highly successful interventionsin Frankland, and these need to be capitalised on and supportedin the future. See for example the practice case studies inappendix 5.

Recruit role models from people who have desisted themselves,indeed, desisters could be mobilised as part of the workforce.

This research contributes to the body of knowledge about gangs andgroups in the UK. It corroborates much of what is already known, butalso adds to what is known in terms of the need to treat the label

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of ‘gangs’ with care, the variations of gang membership according toethnicity and the need to resist easy typologies to make complexstreet life easily comprehensible to professionals. It may seembleak reading, but we believe that there is great hope in it. Thereis hope that the young people who were so open and so dissatisfiedwith their lives are open to change and are ready for change giventhe right support. Young people do desist against the odds, and morewill do so given the right support at the right time. Frankland hasexcellent provision in place, and although planning to meet complexand fluid needs in a time of austerity will not be easy, there aresigns that Frankland has the challenge in hand.

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Hope, T. (2003) 'The Crime Drop in Britain', Community Safety Journal, 2(4), pp.32.

Johnson, M. (2007) Wasted. Violence, Addiction and Hope. London: LittlebrownPublications.

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Kenber, B. (2013) 'Rumour and Suspicion Grip Community Waiting forRoma Influx', The Times, Novermber 23, 2013. London: The Times.

Khan, L., Brice, H., Saunders, A., Plumtree, A. (2013) A Need to Belong:What Leads Girls to Join Gangs. London: Centre for Mental Health.

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Klein, M. (2008) 'Foreward', F. van Gemert, Peterson and Lien (eds.)Street Gangs, Migration and Ethnicity. Cullompton: Wilan Publishing.

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Appendix 1: Semi-structured Interview ScheduleYour experience of growing up:How much did you enjoy growing up?What’s best / worst about where you live?Where do you hang out?What do you do when you hang out?How important are your friends?How many people were in your home?

School life:Do you / did you enjoy school?How did you get on?

Violence: Do you know anyone that is violent?Do you get involved in violence?Why are yp violent?What sorts of things do they do?Do they / why do they use weapons?What happens to yp who are violent?What helps yp stop being violent?Do / why violent yp use drugs?Are young women involved in violence, and if so, how?Do you know of any families involved in violence?How can yp be helped out of violence?

Gangs:Are there gangs in Frankland?Do you know of any?Do you know anyone from school who was ever in a gang?Have you ever been in a gang?What do you think makes a gang rather than a group of young people?Do you know of any gangs? If so, how many / who / where?Who joins and why and how?Why do young people join gangs?What makes yp stay in a gang?What happens to yp who stay in gangs?What helps yp leave gangs?

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Do / why do gangs use drugs?Fun / recreation / income / business / image / power Do / why do gangs get violent and use weapons? What is the role of violence in gangs?Fun / recreation / income / business / image / power / controlDo / why do rival gangs fight?Not at all / to some extent / a lotWhat role do girls / young women have in gangs?How many young women are in gangs, and what age are they?Do you know of any families involved in gangs?How can yp be helped out of gangs?What is the most important thing for Frankland City Council to thinkabout when planning youth work – what do young people most need?

About you: Age?Under 1616-2021-2526-30Over 30

Gender?Ethnicity?Postcode of the area you live in?How long lived in the area?What you are doing at the moment?

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Appendix 2: Practitioner SurveyFrankland Services QuestionnaireTo send to all services who work with young people across Frankland.

We would really appreciate your time filling in this questionnaire.We are researchers from Brathay Trust, working with the Universityof Cumbria. We are researching people’s knowledge and experience ofyouth and gang violence to better inform the City Council’s plansfor children, young people and their families. The time that youspend answering these questions will be applied and put to good use!

Your answer will not be attributed to you, or your organisation inany way, and the identity of the organisations that participated (ornot) will not be divulged to Frankland City Council. It is ananonymous exercise to gather intelligence.

1. How many young people do you work with?2. What type of services do you offer?

Per week/month/year.You may not know the exact answers to these questions, that isOK, please give us your best guess, and tick below to show uswhether to use your answers as hard or indicative evidence

3. How are you answering these questions:These answers are accurate and based in evidence / These answersare my best guess based on anecdotal evidence

4. How many of the young people you work with have been involved inviolence?This is the definition of a gang.

5. How many of the young people you work with are at risk of ganginvolvement?

6. How many of the young people you work with ‘wannabe’ in a gang?7. How many of the young people you work with have been involved in

a gang?8. Do you think that the young people you work with would identify

themselves as being in a gang?Not at all / to some extent / very much so

9. What is the age range of these young people?U10 / 12-14/15-18/18-25

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10. What ethnicities?List

11. Do these young people have any other disadvantages? Yes / NoIf yes, then what?

12. What are the current drivers of violence? (Tick all that apply)Neglect/abuse/ill health/ poor education/parental violence /drugs/alcohol/school exclusion/conduct disorder/mental healthissues/ victimisation/ misunderstanding/ family involvement /early offender / peer pressure / boredom / fear / povertyOther – please specify.

13. What drives young people into gangs?Neglect/abuse/ill health/ poor education/parental violence /drugs/alcohol/school exclusion/conduct disorder/mental healthissues/ victimisation/ misunderstanding/ family involvement /early offender / peer pressure / boredom / fear / poverty / Other – please specify.

14. What keeps young people in gangs?Belonging / nothing else to do / no incentive to leave / fear ofreprisals / money making / statusOther – please specify.

15. What is the role of drugs in gangs?Fun / recreational use / addiction / business / control / image Other – please specify

16. What is the role of crime in gangs?Options?

17. To what extent is there inter-gang rivalry?Not at all / to some extent / a lot

18. What role does inter-gang rivalry play?Competition / reputation / Other, please specify:

19. To what extent does sexual exploitation occur in gangs?Not at all / to some extent / a lot

20. How do gangs recruit young people?Open answer.

21. To what extent are these gangs organised?

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Not at all / to some extent / very much so22. To what extent are generations of family members involved in

gangs?Not at all / to some extent / a lot

23. What might help young people stop being violent, and leavegangs?Peer group / family / aspirations / something better to do / abetter way to earn money / self respect /growing up

24. What diversionary activities have young people wanted to engagewith – what has been successful?Open answer

25. Service name:26. Postcode of service:27. Would you be happy for us to reach young people who are at risk

of, or involved in violence and or gangs via your service?Yes / NoIf yes – contact number:

Appendix 3: Project Information SheetStreet stories: what's growing up in Frankland really like?

Share your story of growing up here to help make services better.

What's being a young person here like?What's good?What's bad?What do you do?What do you need?

We are researchers from Brathay in Cumbria, we are collecting stories to help Frankland City Council. We'd like to talk to as manypeople as we can in person, by phone, email or Facebook. There is a free cinema ticket for each participant.

The stories will be used to design services in Frankland. Your name

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will not be used and you will not be able to be identified.

Taking part is voluntary and will not affect any supervision or probation. We will not pass on information about you to any other services unless you are at risk.

We hope to hear your stories soon!

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Appendix 4: Geographical names for the postcode areas.S1 Frankland City Centre

S2Arbourthorne, Heeley, Highfield, Manor, Norfolk Park,Wybourn, Park Hill

S3 Broomhall, Burngreave, Neepsend, NetherthorpeS4 Grimesthorpe, Pitsmoor

S5Firth Park, Shirecliffe, Shiregreen, Southey Green, ParsonCross, Longley, Fir Vale, Wadsley Bridge

S6Bradfield, Hillsborough, Malin Bridge, Stannington,Upperthorpe, Walkley, Fox Hill

S7 Abbeydale, Nether Edge, Millhouses, Carter Knowle

S8Batemoor, Beauchief, Greenhill, Jordanthorpe, Lowedges,Meersbrook, Norton, Norton Lees, Woodseats

S9Attercliffe, Brightside, Darnall, Meadowhall, Tinsley,Wincobank

S10Broomhill, Broomhall, Crookes, Crookesmoor, Fulwood,Ranmoor, Crosspool

S11Ecclesall, Endcliffe Park, Ecclesall Road, Greystones,Hunter's Bar, Millhouses, Sharrow Vale, Nether Edge

S12Birley, Gleadless, Gleadless Townend, Hackenthorpe, Intake,Ridgeway

S13 Handsworth, Richmond, WoodhouseS14 Gleadless ValleyS17 Dore, Totley, BradwayS19 Hackenthorpe, Beighton, Mosborough

S20Westfield, Waterthope, Sothall, Donetsk Way, Owlthorpe,Beighton, Crystal Peaks, Halfway, Mosborough

S30 Penistone, Stocksbridge, Chapeltown, Hope Valley

S35Chapeltown, Ecclesfield, Grenoside, High Green,Oughtibridge, Thurgoland, Wharncliffe Side, Wortley

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Appendix 5: Provider Information

A Mind Apart is dedicated to presenting performance and theatricalopportunities that are an integral part of the participants’learning experience.This is done with the belief that everybody should be able toparticipate in and have access to performance regardless of race,religion, gender, ability, or financial status. This teaching isgiven in an environment where performance and theatre is used tochallenge, teach and encourage the participants to become motivatedin all areas of their lives. A Mind Apart work towards teaching,inspiring, encouraging and motivating participants in all social andindividual areas of life giving them positive life-long memories andexperiences of performing arts and theatre.

Alongside delivering high quality performing arts classes andprojects, A Mind Apart specialise in working with 14-20 year oldsnot in employment, education or training. These young people areoften from disadvantaged areas and have a complicated home life,which might include problems within their families or offendingbehaviour. This provision is offered throughout the days and canalso be delivered in schools. It is delivered using creativetechniques using specific exercises and techniques developed by AMind Apart to support them in re-engaging and progressing. Suchtechniques support them in developing their confidence, consideringtheir own body language, learning social skills and learningpractical ways to help them with the problems they are facingoutside of the provision. This often includes creative ways ofdealing with anger management and conflict resolution. A Mind Apartalso specialises in training other professionals such as key workersand teachers working with these young people on how to engage themcreatively.

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©Charity No: 1137582Company No: 7223652

In2Change South Yorkshire Ltd©

1. Charity Overview:

In2Change South Yorkshire Ltd is a company limited by guarantee andregistered charity in England and Wales, a not for profitorganisation, complimenting existing Community Safety Partnershipinitiatives. In2Change has a central location based in Frankland,South Yorkshire that provides specifically directed resettlementsupport for ex-offenders and their families.

2. Aims of the organisationTo relieve need, hardship and distress by providing resettlementsupport to adult/young offenders, ex-offenders and their families,including children, offering education in crime prevention.

Classification: (what our charity provides and does) Education/Training Relief of poverty Accommodation/housing Economic/community development/employment Start up business opportunities

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Provide advocacy/advice/information Provide services and peer support

Who our charity helps: Children/young people Other defined groups (offenders, ex-offenders and their

families)

3. Underpinning Values: Partnership working is key to success To change attitudes amongst Young People Supporting the rehabilitation of offenders Improving potential and prospects Bridge the gap of Social Exclusion

Unity Gym Project is situatedwithin the Broomhall communityand has an excellent track record in providing support and advicefor young people and parents in Broomhall and city wide. We are oneaspect of the "glue" that holds our community together and play avital part in changing lives, improving the health and wellbeing oflocal people by providing low cost activities and gymnasium. We alsodeliver tailor-made preventative diversionary activities for thepeople from local communities specialising in work with BMEcommunities. The Project plays an active forefront role in diffusing issues, mediating and bringing peace among parties to Prevent/intervene young people from becoming involved in gun, knife and/or gang related crime. Unity Gym project has a substantial track record of delivery on the ground and working with young people at risk of being involved in gangs by educating young people about the impact of carrying weapons and its effects on their lives. We offer workshops about the consequences of carrying weapons In return to lead young people to make better choices, positive life decisions and to choose a different ending.

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In a recent (Home Office, EGYV peer review) "Unity Gym Project was highlighted as an example of good practice of community engagement that directly engages the most affected communities, especially the young people and young adults. The project...is widely recognised as directly impacting on lowering and managing community tensions with the gang and serious youth violence agenda".

Unity Gym Project is an asset to the community and has a trackrecord in increasing participation and engagement from the communityhaving helped to turn many young people’s lives around by helpingthem to exit from gang membership, including support for youngpeople who are subject to gang-injunctions. It provides local young people with a sense of common belonging; it also gives people from neighbouring communities from city wide an opportunity to come together in a safe, controlled environment and to build positive peer group relationships with other young people attending the gym. The project has had support from across the city,statutory agencies, parents and young people themselves.

Unity Gym Project provides many services to the community and combats many issues but below are some:

• A place of “Unity” Be part of our local community• Teach and Develop transferable life skills of young

people, • Prevention and intervention of gun, gang and knife crime• Community Based Program / Mentoring / Pathways• Create positive role models • volunteering opportunities,• Be a relaxed, but busy, focused place to meet and know

people of different backgrounds, • Be the ‘glue’ which holds communities with sizeable BME

populations together, Community cohesion• Provide alternatives to anti–social and criminal

activities, including work with families.

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