Firms urged to install bleed kits amid knife crime fears

Black Onyx Academy has called for UK workplaces, schools and public venues to install bleed control kits alongside defibrillators, warning that many organisations are not prepared for knife-related incidents.

The intervention comes as official figures for England and Wales recorded 48,774 offences involving knives or sharp instruments in the year to March 2026. Analysis cited by the organisation also points to a 49% rise in knife-enabled offences over the past decade.

Black Onyx Academy, which delivers the accredited S.A.L.T. training course, wants to shift attention to how employers and public-facing organisations respond when violence occurs on their premises. It argues that debate around knife crime has focused largely on policing and young people, while workplace readiness has received less scrutiny.

The group is urging employers to review safety procedures, assess whether staff can identify risks and de-escalate confrontations, and consider keeping emergency bleed control kits on site. It argues that sectors including retail, transport, hospitality and office-based businesses are increasingly exposed to serious incidents affecting staff and customers.

The campaign also raises questions for schools and other education settings, where Black Onyx Academy says training in conflict management and catastrophic bleed response should be considered alongside more familiar emergency planning measures such as fire safety and first aid.

Readiness gap

Stefan Northfield, strategic lead at Black Onyx Academy, said the problem was not confined to crime statistics but extended to practical preparedness among employers and institutions.

"The numbers may be moving in different directions depending on how you read them, but one thing hasn't changed: prevention is still urgent and most employers, schools and public-facing organisations have no idea what to do if violence escalates on their premises," Northfield said.

"Prevention isn't just about stopping someone from carrying a knife. It's about recognising risk earlier, knowing how to de-escalate a situation, understanding how to respond when an incident occurs, and having the practical skills and equipment in place to save a life if the worst happens. We cannot assume that serious violence will always happen somewhere else. Organisations have a responsibility to prepare their people, protect their communities and give them the confidence to act when every second counts."

The academy frames the issue as one of employer duty of care. While fire evacuation procedures and defibrillators are now common in many workplaces, plans for violent incidents remain rare despite the visibility of attacks in commercial and public settings.

Northfield contrasted established health and safety practices with what he described as a lack of preparation for violence.

"Most employers have a fire evacuation plan and a defibrillator on the wall, but almost none have a plan for what happens if violence escalates on their premises," he said.

"Retailers, transport operators, hospitality venues and offices are increasingly the backdrop for serious incidents, yet staff are rarely trained to recognise risk, de-escalate a situation or stop catastrophic bleeding in the minutes before paramedics arrive. Those minutes decide whether someone lives or dies. Preparedness is now part of an employer's duty of care, and it's far cheaper than the cost of getting it wrong."

Business focus

The academy is positioning itself in a space where there is little national focus on how businesses should prepare for knife-related violence. It argues that employers should ask whether their premises are equipped to respond if an incident escalates, whether catastrophic bleed kits should be available in every workplace, and how many staff have training in conflict de-escalation or emergency response.

That business emphasis is central to the organisation's wider work. Founded on former military experience in conflict de-escalation, risk assessment and emergency response, Black Onyx Academy has adapted those methods into training programmes for businesses, schools, transport operators and community organisations.

Alongside its training activity, the academy has launched what it describes as the UK's first veteran-led Mobile Knife Amnesty Van. The vehicle tours communities to collect surrendered weapons and engage the public in discussion about knife crime and prevention.

Wider role

Northfield linked the organisation's public education work with its support for schools and businesses.

"I've seen firsthand the way in which knives can destroy lives and I'm proud to be working for an organisation which works in the local community and also on a national scale, offering public education as well as training to schools and businesses across the UK," he said.

"My role draws on experience I've earned in all areas of my career history and I'm proud to be making a difference to individual lives as well as to the way in which businesses and the community approach knife crime prevention."