Why Kids Kill

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Every week in 2007, a teenager was murdered on Britain's streets. Willingness to use extreme violence is increasing and has already claimed three teenage lives in 2008. But little is known about the reasons why. This edition of Dispatches hears directly from the teenagers living on the frontline of violence and fear in South London and Glasgow.

Providing an insight into the causes of the violence and possible solutions, Dispatches reveals the results of a snapshot survey of 200 teenagers to understand the nature and scale of violence and examines the greater use of deadly weapons, the influence of territorialism and escalating gang membership.

27 out of the 52 teenagers who died last year were murdered in London with Lambeth having one of the highest levels of violent crime in the capital. Dispatches hears from teenagers whose friends have been brutally murdered and who now live in fear for their own lives. They explain how serious violence can be triggered by something as apparently minor as being on the wrong side of the road.

Many teenagers identify themselves with particular areas or post codes and risk attack if they stray into someone else's area - particularly where there are established youth gangs. Teenagers in Lambeth explain that the fear of violence has led to them being increasingly prepared to carry weapons to protect themselves.

One explains: "Your fists ain't always going to work. Times have changed...if you see someone walking with a knife, you're gonna walk with a knife. Just to make sure you don't get stabbed. Or if you do, you can stab them back." Whilst another believes the need for protection and revenge killings will only see the violence escalate: "Knives and guns right now, the stage that it's at right now. It's not really going to stop and it's only going to get worse."

The film examines the increasingly deadly weapons being used by teenagers such as submachine guns - indiscriminate weapons that can fire 1,000 rounds a minute and which claimed three lives last year.

The teenagers Dispatches meet deny that drugs are always at the heart of the violence with many blaming social deprivation and street robberies as a major cause. The chances of being attacked and robbed are so high in Lambeth many youths feel forced to join gangs. As one says: "We don't choose to live this lifestyle but if you're not on this gangster tip you're no-one...you're a victim."

In Glasgow, there are over a hundred gangs in London and pitched battles take place most weekends - sometimes involving children under the age of ten. The weapons used range from sticks to knives, hammers and machetes - serious injuries are common.

The gangs exist within clearly defined territories with the fights taking place on the boundaries. In some areas it can be fatal to enter another gang's area and surrounded on all sides by rival gangs, some teenagers explain to Dispatches how they live in a state of constant siege - unable to even catch a bus safely. Many of the gangs are long-established and now on to their third generation membership. A 17-year-old member of the Skinheads gang explains: "You don't join the gang, you're part of it when you're born. It's part of you."

Dispatches discovers the main cause of fighting is not bloodlust so much as boredom. Teenagers blame their violence on a lack of youth facilities or being able to reach the ones that do exist as they are outside their gang's territory.

It is a familiar story in South London where teenagers are angry abut the lack of facilities for them in their area. And where youth clubs do exist, lack of funding results in a shortage of permanent staff who are crucial in building meaningful relationships and trust with teenagers.

As one youth worker in London explains, it takes time and commitment to change the attitude of many of the teenagers: "They accept violence as part of their culture, whether it's being on the end of violence or dishing it out...For a young person to commit an act of violence that might harm someone or put someone in hospital or even lead to someone's death, it's not major."

In Glasgow, Dispatches visits a charity which aims to divert young children from violence by engaging them in constructive activities and offers job opportunities to keep teenagers on the straight and narrow.

Why Kids Kill shows the need to deliver effective solutions is urgent - with young children and teenagers increasingly being exposed to violence as part of their daily lives.

'Why Kids Kill' conducted a survey with 100 youths in South London and 100 youths in Glasgow. View the results

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