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Teens produce radio advert to combat crime

by Ruth Banks

A group of Medway teens have
beaten off competition from all over the county to create a radio
advert aimed at tackling violent crime.

The students, from Fort Pitt Grammar School in Chatham, composed a rap that will be played out on kmfm throughout the summer.

It was part of a programme organised
by Kent Police to educate young people about the dangers of
carrying knives and guns.

But it also tackles negative
stereotypes about teenagers.

The winning contestants - Jennifer
Staines, 14, from Gillingham, Taylor Navarro, 13, from Strood, and
Kirsty Prentice, also 14 and from Strood – said they wanted to
challenge the idea that young people are responsible for a large
number of violent offences.

The advert includes the lyrics: "Stop,
stop it ain't us. Crime by youth is only 12 per cent. All we
want to do is live in Kent.

"Just because we all wear hoods don't
mean that we stole your goods."

Louis Hurst, a kmfm presenter, said
their catchy, sing-along advert jumped out from the rest of the
entries.

"It included a lot of important
messages and the rap is quite synonymous with youth culture, so we
thought it ticked a lot of boxes," he said.

Chief Constable Ian Learmonth from Kent Police was also very impressed by the way the students had engaged with the issues.

Audio: Hear the winning entry

He said: "There is a perception that
young people are the perpetrators, but in fact they're quite often
the victims of this type of crime. So these are really important
messages to get over.

"Thankfully we live in a county that's
very safe. Violence and knife crime are not everyday events, but
they do happen."

"I can stand up there and say don't
carry a knife, but it’s listening to this advert and the music that
will get the message across, because it's their own peers or
friends telling them what to do."