A council has claimed there has been a 38 per cent fall in violent knife crime following a joint operation with police.

Waltham Forest Council and the Metropolitan Police‘s Operation Langdale ran from October 1 to December 31, 2018 and set out to reduce criminal behaviour and anti-social behaviour in the target areas of High Street and St James Street, Walthamstow.

The crackdown followed a disturbing rise in violent crime involving offensive weapons between 2016 and 2018.

More recently there have been three fatal stabbings within three months in the area.

The deaths of both 14-year-old Jaden Moodie and a 30-year-old mum in the borough occurred in January and were followed on March 6 by the death of a 26-year-old man in Leyton.

The authority said initial evidence, backed by Metropolitan Police statistics, suggests that Operation Langdale helped to achieve a reduction in serious violence.

The Met’s figures state that in the four months from October 2018 to January 2019, there was a reduction of 60 per cent in GBH and wounding compared to previous years.

After a peak in 2018, figures show a reduction in knife crime offences across the borough.

In the past six months (September 2018 to February 2019) there were 33 fewer knife crimes with injury compared to the same period in the previous year – a fall of 38 per cent.

In early October 2018, the police carried out covert operations targeting gang activity and reported 70 arrests made since the start of the operation; 15 knife seizures and a recorded 10 per cent decrease in knife crime.

There are currently 17 people awaiting sentencing as a result of this operation.

Waltham Forest’s anti-social behaviour team conducted joint patrols and assisted with addressing anti-social behaviour in the St James Street area.

Officers served community protection warnings and community protection notices on those causing a nuisance. A total of 71 warnings and six notices were issued during the operation.

Neighbourhood officers also dealt with environmental issues such as fly tipping, litter, improvement to lighting and overgrown vegetation.

The council said referrals were made for drug and alcohol support and charity St Mungo’s homelessness outreach team to engage with individuals who were considered vulnerable.

Cllr Ahsan Khan, cabinet member for community safety, said: “Operation Langdale has shown how working together across different agencies is keeping people safe, removing dangerous people and weapons from our streets. We are now looking to roll out this partnership in other areas in the borough.”

North East Borough Commander Richard H Tucker said: “The success of Operation Langdale shows the value of a high-visibility police presence in an area affected by high levels of crime. Our partnership with the council sends the message that there is no tolerance for anti-social behaviour and criminal activity in the area.”

The operation on St James Street will continue in future as the antisocial behaviour team will carry out joint patrols with the police to gather intelligence and deal with issues arising.

The council has invited residents to report any anti-social behaviour via email to asbteam@walthamforest.gov.uk.