Scottish Violence Reduction Unit

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Scottish Violence Reduction Unit

The Scottish Violence Reduction Unit is a national centre of expertise on violence. We believe violence is preventable - not inevitable.

24/07/2026

Street football is continuing this weekend in Carbrain, taking place tomorrow (Saturday 25th) at 6.30pm-8.30pm ⏰️

Tomorrow's session will take place at St Margaret's Muga football pitch, near Wallbrae Road 📍

These sessions are free to attend and open to any young person who would like to take part ⚽️

23/07/2026

Violent crime isn't inevitable - it is preventable.

In a recent feature on BBC News at Seven, Jimmy Paul, Head of the Scottish Violence Reduction Unit (SVRU), discussed how a public health approach to violence prevention continues to transform communities across Scotland.

The messages from Jimmy's interview reinforced the importance of:

• Prevention first: Tackling violence means addressing its root causes before harm occurs.
• Lived Experience at the heart: Sustainable, long-term change happens when we listen to and empower those closest to the issues to help shape the solutions. Scotland must do more to listen to our young people and develop solutions alongside them.
• Radical collaboration: True community safety relies on cross-sector partnership - from health and education to social work and local community groups.

We will continue working together with our partner organisations to keep communities safe across Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

22/07/2026

We are delighted to announce the launch of 'The Way We See It' interim report 🌟

In collaboration with the SVRU and Police Scotland's Youth Engagement Team, The Way We See It project was developed with the purpose of better understanding how violence impacts children and young people across Scotland.

The project takes an innovative approach, integrating police intelligence, crime data and qualitative insight directly from children and young people to build a fuller understanding of the drivers of violence.

Between June 2025 and April 2026, the project engaged with over 600 children and young people across primary and secondary schools, youth groups and care settings 🎒

A massive thank you to everyone who helped make this report possible, including the children and young people who engaged with the project, as well as the staff who helped support the facilitation of the sessions 🫱🏻‍🫲🏼

Find out more about The Way We See It project by reading our blog 🔗 https://orlo.uk/9nS9D

20/07/2026

In a recent article by The Scotsman, SVRU Head Jimmy Paul responded to the release of data which revealed the number of seized weapons in schools in 2025/26.

Despite the cause for concern, Jimmy wanted to reiterate the progress that has been made by young people to help the reduction of violence in Scotland and what needs to be done to tackle weapon carrying in schools.

"We know that a robust public health response to this issue is required, with a collective effort from all - teachers cannot address this alone, and we also cannot arrest our way out of this issue. Parents and caregivers play a vital role, and we must empower them to have open and informed conversations about safety and the risks of violence. We also need to tackle the wider societal issues that can be risk factors, such as poverty, trauma, and a lack of opportunity."

Read the full Scotsman article in the comments ⤵️

09/07/2026

Street football returns to Carbrain as part of youth engagement ⚽

In collaboration with the SVRU and Police Scotland North Lanarkshire, a street-football style session will be taking place this Saturday in Carbrain (11 July) 🏃

These are free football sessions for young people to attend & is open for anyone to join

📆 Saturday 11 July
⏰ 6.30-8.30pm
📍 St Margarets Muga pitch (near Wallbrae Road)

08/07/2026

What did the SVRU achieve in June? 📆

🎒 A successful school event was organised as part of Future Fridays; a new school initiative created in Lanarkshire to encourage pupils to engage with extra-curricular activities

🍎 'The Way We See It' was launched at primary school level for the first time. Pupils from Valley Primary School in Kirkaldy were visited from the SVRU and took part in an interactive session to explore how children and young people understand and respond to conflict, harm and violence.

🎙️ 'Sandy's Podcast' has launched within the Craigmillar community centre as a local initiative to allow young people to develop skills using microphones, sound desks and recording software

🌳 Meanwhile, work on the Craigmillar Library Garden has started thanks to some local volunteers

🚲 The Scottish BMX School treated pupils from Brunestane Primary School to a BMX workshop, allowing them to learn technical skills and bike safety. The pupils described it as one of the best learning experiences that they had ever had

🗒️ Our Data Analyst Caitlin attended 'The Truth About Youth' event in Edinburgh to look at the findings from the Truth About Youth survey, which focused on young people's perceptions and experiences of violence in their communities.

Some great examples of team work and collaboration from our team and partners. Let's see what else we can achieve in July 🫱🏻‍🫲🏼

06/07/2026

"We started to see that you couldn't have a strategy for dealing with homicide without looking at violence in its entirety and not just at policing."

SVRU Head Jimmy Paul & Deputy Head Will Linden both reflect on the progress of the SVRU in a recent BBC Future feature, which acknowledges the improved changes in violence reduction in Scotland.

The BBC feature helps paint a picture of the landscape of violence reduction and the success in creating a model which was inspired by other countries.

Find the link to the full article in the comments 👇

02/07/2026

Street football returns to Carbrain as part of youth engagement ⚽

In collaboration with the SVRU and Police Scotland North Lanarkshire, a street-football style session will be taking place this Saturday in Carbrain (4 July) 🏃

These are free football sessions for young people to attend & is open for anyone to join

📆 Saturday 4 July
⏰ 6.30-8.30pm
📍 MUGA pitch, Milcroft Road, Carbrain, G67 2QP

29/06/2026

"Scotland still has to do better. One person losing their life is one too many."

In a recent Sunday Post feature, SVRU Head Jimmy Paul provided his thoughts surrounding the concerns of repeated violence at Scotland's beauty spots last summer.

Last year's incidents have caused public concern for the safety of our young people but it is important to note the improvements that have made to the decrease in homicides. Young people have a right to gather with no issues, but when violence erupts then the consequences can be devastating.

Young people are helping to lead the way in violence reduction, but there is still a long way to go.

Find the link to the full Sunday Post article in the comments 👇

26/06/2026

The development of the Craigmillar Library garden is underway! 🌳

As part of our place-based work in the areas of Niddrie and Craigmillar, the SVRU has worked alongside the Craigmillar Community Alliance to make environmental improvements which helped develop the idea of introducing community gardens to the area 🌻

The Craigmillar Library garden is designed to encourage young people to take an interest in garden maintenance in the form of volunteering, all whilst bringing the community together 🤝

Thank you to the volunteers who have now started work on the garden space by litter picking - some great team work being shown! ⭐

Keep an eye on our channels for updates!

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http://www.svru.co.uk/

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