More than £1.5million of extra funding has been secured in the fight against street violence and knife crime in Essex.

The money, from the Home Office, will go towards increasing the police activities and operations targeting serious violent crime across the county.

The announcement, from Nick Hurd MP, minister of state for policing and fire service, comes following last month’s meeting between the home secretary and police chiefs from across the UK.

Assistant chief constable Paul Wells, at Essex Police, said: “I’m delighted to say we have been successful in our bid and £1.5million in extra funding will be invested in our fight against violent crime and knife crime.

“We will use the additional money throughout the next year to further support our activity, which will be focused in identified violent crime hotspots, the targeting of habitual knife carriers and acting on community intelligence.

“We will also intensify our efforts to disrupt and dismantle criminal street gangs causing violence in our communities.”

Essex Police has taken part in the national crackdown on knives, Operation Sceptre.

Since 2015, 47,715 knives and weapons have been put into Only Cowards Carry bins outside police stations across the county - with more than 4,280 being put into the bins in Essex between January and March this year.