Sandra McMurray’s son, Jonathan, was stabbed to death in an ambush as he walked home from a night out.
He had been out celebrating, hours after signing his first record deal and was murdered in an attack that nobody witnessed in Wood Green, North London.
Twenty years on, his murderers are still at large.
Sandra, 68, still hopes her son’s killer can be found, but in the meantime she is doing what she can to reduce knife crime.
She said: ‘Every day, somebody is being shot or being stabbed. Young people are our future. Give them the opportunity; if not, they just go on the streets.
‘They [youngsters] have nowhere to go, nothing to do. [Crime is] an easy road for them.’
She is also scathing of ministers and wants the government to do more.
She said: ‘They’re just lining their pockets, increasing their salaries. We voted for Labour to change things for us. We voted thinking it would change this for us, [but] they do nothing.’
Sandra is not alone in her belief.
Dr Mark Prince OBE, whose son was stabbed to death in 2006, told Metro that he feels young people have been let down.
He said: ‘I have spoken for years about a public health approach. We are robbing the world of children and unfinished stories.’
He leads the Kiyan Prince Foundation, which he set up in memory of his son to empower young people.
Latest London news
Knife crime in numbers
- In London 29 people have been killed with a knife this year
- A knife crime happens every 30 minutes
- There has been an 80% increase in knife crime in the last 10 years
- Half of murders in the UK are from stabbings
- One in seven young people want a new national approach
- Eight in 10 young people are sceptical about knife sale laws
- 70% think legislation addresses the symptom rather than the cause
Calling for more support, he said: ‘We have let them down dramatically. You can’t just throw the stone at them. What’s happening is that children are having their lives finished by other children.
‘Education is not meeting their needs. Everything is going up in price, but wages haven’t. If you start breaking the family, you are going to have very serious consequences.
‘Our job as parents isn’t just to provide the physical needs for our children, we have to help them understand their emotional and spiritual needs.
‘It takes a village to raise a child, but the villagers aren’t on the same page.’
‘We need to find out what’s hard for young people, negative influences, and show them positive influences. We need a system that’s fit for purpose.
‘What we are finding is that young people who are doing well and have passed exams, you will find them falling down very easily with the simplest challenge.
‘It’s about giving them the mental health support and showing them how to tackle life’s challenges. It’s about teaching the character we need that allows you to become successful.’
Nick Chambers, CEO of charity Education & Employers, sees a youth unemployment crisis unfolding in the UK and recognises that getting the young back into training or work has huge benefits.
He said: ‘We need urgent action today to secure growth and full youth employment tomorrow. This means immediately scaling up our efforts to help young people see what they can be.
‘Our charity’s mission is to ensure that every young person in our country, wherever they live, whatever their parents’ or carers’ circumstances, can meet a diverse range of volunteers to hear first-hand either in person or virtually about jobs and the world of work.’
Knife Crime Awareness Week
Knife Crime Awareness Week is returning from 19th – 25th May.
With a clear message: knife crime is preventable.
This campaign, supported by a growing network of charities, community groups, and professionals, aims to shift the narrative around knife crime by highlighting the individuals and efforts already making a difference.
This campaign highlights that progress is being made – not just through policy, but through the everyday work of parents, teachers, youth workers, and local organisations who are actively working to tackle knife crime.
This year’s focus is on empowerment.
The campaign provides practical tools and resources to help adults understand the drivers of knife crime and how they can support young people. It’s not aimed at adults who can make a difference. Those who can spot the signs, start the conversation, and create safer environments for young people.
Every mentoring session, school workshop, police intervention, and community programme contributes to a growing movement for change. The challenge now is to scale that impact and turn individual efforts into national momentum.
For more information visit the Ben Kinsella Trust website.
How to support the Kiyan Prince Foundation’s work
The Kiyan Prince Foundation uses sports and success coaching to focus on self (discovery, discipline and esteem) and to develop a ‘champion’s’ mindset.
It strives to empower young people to make positive decisions and to become life champions, ready to lead, serve, and fight for the future they deserve.
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.
