The Salvation Army has joined forces with a number of churches across Wirral to tackle the fight against knife crime.
Offering chaplaincy support to Wirral Council, The Salvation Army in Birkenhead has teamed up with Churches Together in the Merseyside Region to provide ten chaplains from its church to offer spiritual and emotional support to the local community.
The famous Knife Angel, which is made up of 100,000 confiscated knives and weapons collected from 43 police forces around the UK and stands at 27 feet tall, is in place at the Grand Entrance to Birkenhead Park until Sunday, July 31, with the chaplains offering support from 11:00 am – 3:00 pm every day, seven days a week.
Captain Samantha Hamilton, joint church leader of The Salvation Army in Birkenhead said, “We’re here to support people as they come to the Knife Angel in whatever way they need us to, from emotional and spiritual support to standing alongside those that have been affected by knife crime.
“The partnership being forged between The Salvation Army, Wirral Council and other churches in the area is an important one for us and a great opportunity for our support and presence to help provide a healing to those involved in knife crime which can have such a devastating impact on people, families and whole communities.”
The Salvation Army will also be providing ‘wish for peace’ tags available at the Knife Angel where people can write prayers to hang on the railings nearby.
The Knife Angel has been on a nationwide tour of the UK since 2018 and its latest stop will see it in place for a month-long programme of workshops and activities for local schools.
Main image: (L-R) Gill, Sue, Janet, Sue, Major Jonathan Hamilton, and Captain Samantha Hamilton
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