Youth clubs and services in London will receive £30 million in new funding to help tackle youth crime if Sadiq Khan is re-elected in May, the Labour mayor has pledged.
Mr Khan said the money would help support the 300 youth projects currently operating across London, allowing them to continue providing services and expand their facilities.
The investment, which will be distributed over four years, will support a further 250,000 “positive opportunities” for young Londoners, including mentoring and after-school clubs, he said.
The London mayor said youth services – which offer children and young adults an outlet to play sport, go on trips and meet each other – play an important role in reducing youth crime.
“Youth clubs are really important because it gives young people a safe place to come,” he said. “They make friends, they flourish, they thrive.
“It means they’re not idle, they’re less likely to join a criminal gang, and in the last eight years we’ve provided positive opportunities for 500,000 young people.”
He outlined his pledge during a visit to the Knights Youth Centre in south London on Thursday, where he spoke to members about what access to the facilities meant to them.
The Streatham-based club has been helping people aged between eight and 25 on its present site since 1959, offering its members the opportunity to play sports, create music and socialise.
Mr Khan, who is seeking a third term in office, said Conservative rival Susan Hall thought youth services were a “waste of time”.
“My Conservative opponent does not believe in being tough on the complex causes of crime,” he added.
Youth violence is linked to poverty and mental illness, according to research carried out by the Greater London Assembly in 2019.
Since Mr Khan took office in 2016, City Hall has invested more than £100 million in London’s youth sector, most of it through the Young Londoner’s Fund and the Mayor’s New Deal for Young People programme.
Training young people not in education, employment or training will also be prioritised, he added.
Mr Khan spoke to members of the Knights Youth Centre, listening to music some had made, playing pool with them, and holding a roundtable discussion.