Photos by Mike Swift

The Monument against violence and aggression has now left Slough for its next destination in Gloucester. Here are some stats from Thames Valley Police.

Over 8500 conversations took place between members of the public, volunteers, police officers and PCSO’s at the site.

• 56 educational sessions were delivered to over 3000 children, young people and adults, covering topics such as knife crime, domestic abuse, violence against women and girls, exploitation and bullying.
• Over 900 tags with messages of reflection and pledges against violence were tied to the fencing around the Angel.
• Over 200 hours were volunteered by over 50 individuals, organisations and voluntary sector partners.

Thames Valley Police and partner organisations thanked the volunteers writing:

During the 23 days we had cold, wet and frosty weather but volunteers still showed up and supported the important and powerful cause. We have heard stories from volunteers who found the experience very worthwhile and emotive.

Thank you to each and every one of the volunteers who gave up their time and were instrumental in the running of the Angel.

#OneSlough volunteer, Karen wrote about her day:
“I really enjoyed my volunteering day at the Knife Angel. It’s a beautiful piece of artwork and I love the concept. The size and scale of the Angel is more than impressive. I hadn’t heard anything about it until you put the call out to volunteers, so would have missed it completely if I hadn’t been on your mailing list.

“During the day I spoke to lots of visitors and there was real interest in the story behind the Angel. Some were in awe like me and hadn’t known much about it until they saw it on local news or drove past and stopped in to see it.

“I spoke to people who knew some of those who had been a victim of knife crime, some of whom were mentioned in the notes that were tied to the barriers around the Angel. One elderly lady in particular, a local, had been a victim of knife crime a few years before. She was visibly moved. She had been mugged at knife point by three school girls. She was injured in the scuffle and went on to have a number of operations on her hand to repair the damage caused. She had brought her daughter and grandchildren with her to see it. It was the first time the kids had heard the story of the mugging and all were quite emotional.

“All in all this was one of my favourite volunteering jobs, and I’ve done a lot in the past couple of years!”