A LONG-AWAITED weapon surrender bin has finally been installed in Dudley to help tackle the growing problem of knife crime.

The Rotary Club of Dudley has worked with the West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner to see the bin installed outside Tesco Extra on the Town Gate retail park in Birmingham Road.

Located just in front of the store, the bin which was unveiled this morning (Thursday April 5) is the first to be sited in the Dudley borough.

Its launch comes after a spate of recent stabbings in the area including a horrific incident at the neighbouring Village Hotel in Castlegate Drive where a 24-year-old man was knifed on the hotel steps on March 4 just weeks after a 20-year-old man was stabbed in the arm as he left the nearby Chiquito restaurant in Castlegate Way on February 10.

The new safe and secure metal container, which is designed for people to dispose of knives, was supplied by the British Ironwork Centre with associated signage funded by Dudley Rotary members who have worked tirelessly with the Police and Crime Commissioner for the last 18 months to bring the project to fruition.

Dudley News:

Peter Marsh, from the Rotary Club of Dudley, said: “The knife bins are a fantastic idea.

“As soon as I heard about them I knew Dudley should have one too.

“We all know there is a problem across the country with knife crime and these bins are a very useful tool to help tackle it.

“If anyone in Dudley has a knife which they shouldn’t, then I’d urge them to use the bin.”

Dudley News:

West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner, David Jamieson, said: "The bins are providing people with a safe way to dispose of knives which they shouldn’t be carrying. Every knife posted into a surrender bin is potentially a life saved.

"These bins work best when the community wants them and in Dudley that’s the message we have received loud and clear”.

The other 13 bins are located across Birmingham and the Black Country and they were last emptied in September.

The PCC is inviting anyone who would like to see a knife bin installed in their area to contact his office via the website www.westmidlands-pcc.gov.uk or by calling 0121 626 6060.