Have you seen the plans for Croydon by 2022? It will have London's highest bar and restaurant, one of Europe's biggest shopping centres, 2000 more new homes, new state of the art shopping space. Plans afoot to make Croydon a new UK tech city.

Policing trying to raise awareness of knife crime hardly a true reflection of Croydon and its potential. Crime stats also show reported crime down significantly in last few years.

At present, probably true, there is a strong correlation to families of migration.

That hasn't always been the case though. The problem of gangs, gang violence and knife crime has been a problem in the UK at least throughout the 20th century.

"One Nation Under God, has turned into One Nation Under the Influence of One Drug"
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Like New York City 40 years ago

"a 2003 study of 32 London boroughs found that when relevant social and economic factors were taken into account race and ethnicity had no significance on youth crime. Because crime is more prevalent in poor areas and black people are disproportionately poor they are disproportionately affected – both as perpetrators and victims.

“When we took everything else into account, ethnicity dropped out of the model altogether,” said Marian FitzGerald, a visiting professor of criminology at the University of Kent."

You don't think improving the housing, public realm, employment opportunities and urban fabric of an area makes a difference?

I suggest you don't look at any actual evidence if you don't want to be proved wrong. If ones wants to continue fitting bits of newspaper articles into a pre-conceived ill-informed prejudice then looking at evidence and analysis on such matters would be uncomfortable.

Apologist nonsense.

None of this makes any difference to the stabbing victim, and since when did being hard up excuse stabbing someone for no good reason?

It's to easy to excuse mindless savagery.