Steel warriors was founded in 2017 by Pia Fontes and Ben Wintour who were working in marketing and on a number of socially led campaigns. They heard that the police take one tonne of knives off the streets every month. Pia and Ben wanted to see what they could turn this into to prevent people from carrying knives in the first place.

They worked with local communities and people who’d carried knives to understand the motives for carrying a knife.

• Protection (people not feeling safe)

• Bravado (people wanting to show off)

• Because people feel it’s needed needed if you join a gang.

The team felt that building a gym from the knives would make people feel more confident in their bodies (protected), offer a healthy way of flexing muscles (bravado) and join a group of people with a healthy influence rather than a gang.

They worked with a number of partners who’ve helped them build four gyms across london in gang neutral zones and offer training sessions at these gyms. The gyms are Langdon Park (Poplar), Ruskin Park, (Brixton), Finsbury Park (North London) and we also have a gym in Brixton Prison.

We offer training down at these gyms with our three expert Steel Warriors trainers.

So far the community have really engaged with our gyms and teams have been set up of inspired young athletes. 

We have had plenty of feedback from young people illustrating their growth in confidence and saying how the gyms have offered a positive diversion from gangs. We plan to build more gyms in London and eventually scale up nationwide.

Thank you once again.

The Steel Warriors Team

More info at www.steelwarriors.co.uk