Representatives behind the Bin a Blade campaign have said that Suffolk’s streets are “getting even safer” with more than 14,000 knives handed over since 2011.

In total, 14,043 have been disposed of in the static bins in Ipswich, Lowestoft, Bury St Edmunds, Mildenhall and Sudbury since the campaign launched four years ago.

An initial year-long amnesty saw 6,125 knives anonymously left in six amnesty bins - four static and two mobile - around the county in 2011.

In 2012, a further 2,205 blades were deposited, 2,606 in 2013 and 1,727 knives in 2014.

So far this year, 1,380 have so far been binned.

In Ipswich, the permanent bin has been relocated to outside Princes Street fire station, while bins remain outside police stations in Lowestoft, Bury St Edmunds and Mildenhall.

A temporary bin also sits outside Sudbury police station.

All knives deposited are taken to Sackers Recycling, Great Blakenham, where they are safely disposed of.

Temporary chief constable at Suffolk Police, Gareth Wilson, said: “We will continue to work with partners across Suffolk to encourage knife disposal using our designated bins; our campaign ensures that bladed items can be deposited anonymously, any day of the week and at any time.

“Our amnesty is continuing to make people think about the consequences of carrying a knife and realise that even one knife out on the streets of Suffolk is one too many.

“It is important that residents and visitors in Ipswich feel safe and people are given the opportunity to dispose of unwanted knives in a way to ensure they are not used in criminality or anti-social behaviour.”

Suffolk Police and Crime Commissioner Tim Passmore added: “We need to do all we can through education, peer pressure, policing and sentencing to make it absolutely clear that it’s never acceptable for a person to carry a knife or weapon.

“I fully support the use of these bins and would encourage anyone who has a knife or any other weapon to dispose of them responsibly and immediately.

“Ultimately it is about making Suffolk as safe as possible.”

The Bin a Blade campaign had featured in a hard-hitting film, launched on Suffolk Constabulary’s YouTube channel, to highlight the dangers of carrying weapons, and also featured in an exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum of Childhood, London.

For more information about the campaign and to see its progress to this point visit: http://www.suffolk.police.uk/safetyadvice/personalsafety/knifecrime/binablade.aspx.