PERMANENT knife bins have been installed inside four police stations in a bid to reduce serious violence in the region.

The bins have been rolled out at Stockton, Hartlepool, Middlesbrough and Redcar police stations in partnership with Cleveland Police.

Theresa Cave, who set up the The Chris Cave Foundation following the death of her son in 2003, unveiled one knife bin at Stockton Police Station.

Superintendent Wendy Tinkler, lead on knife crime at Cleveland Police said: "Providing a permanent facility for our communities to hand in knives and sharp objects is just one of a number of ways that we can come together with members of the public to tackle knife crime."

In the last knife surrender held by Cleveland Police, 385 knives and sharp objects were handed in.

Supt Tinkler said: "This tells us that there are people in our local communities who want to help us to tackle the issue of knife crime and raise awareness of the dangers of carrying knives in order to prevent and reduce the risk of knife crime and serious violence.”

The rollout of the knife bins came just weeks after the 27ft Knife Angel, made from more than 100,000 discarded knives and confiscated weapons, was unveiled in Middlesbrough.