THE father of Damilola Taylor gave an impassioned plea to Brent schoolkids not to carry knives on Friday.

Richard Taylor has been campaigning against knife crime ever since his 10 year-old son was left to bleed to death in a South London estate stairwell after he was stabbed by teenagers.

Speaking at Alperton Community School, in Stanley Avenue, Mr Taylor told the Year 10 pupils: "It will be six years in November when it all ended in tragedy for the life of my son."

The launch event was part of Growing Safer Growing Stronger, a new initiative aimed at protecting young people in the borough.

Though knife crime decreased from 399 reported incidents in 2004-2005 to 332 in 2005-2006, high profile murders have shocked the community.

In May, special constable Nisha Patel-Nasri, was murdered outside her Sudbury home. Just a few months later Wembley shopkeeper, Sivaperakash Supramaniam, died in his wife's arms after he was stabbed yards away from his convenience store.

The new initiative has been formed by Brent's Crime Reduction Partnership and is made up of the council, the police and other local organisations.

As part of the education event, the Comedy School will perform at every secondary school in the borough, showing kids the consequences of carrying a knife.

Brent's borough commander, Chief Superintendent Mark Toland, told kids: "It is not cool to carry a weapon. By carrying a knife you are just as likely to end up injured."

Between April 2004 and March 2006 20 per cent of knife crime victims in Brent were aged between five and 17.