An ex-gang member turned his life around after a friend died in his arms and now runs anti-knife crime campaigns. Carl Scott, from Hastings, decided it was time to get on the straight and narrow after 22 years of drug and burglary-related crimes. The 42-year-old had led a "dysfunctional lifestyle" during which he was stabbed in the leg, he watched his friend get stabbed to death and spent years in prison.
Carl left prison for the last time in 2013 and knew he wanted to make a change after meeting his partner, Karla, 32. He began volunteering at a drug and alcohol addiction service and was offered a role as a co-ordinator four months later. He also began helping police who were looking for ex-gang members to lead talks to encourage others to take a different path.
Carl now runs workshops in schools, installs bleed control cabinets around Sussex and does one-to-one mentoring (Image: Tony Kershaw / SWNS) Carl then went on to work at a youth project for two years in which he says he helped 77 people move away from knife crime and county lines. He and Karla decided to set up Project Youth in April 2023 and now run workshops in schools, install bleed control cabinets around Sussex and do one-to-one mentoring. "When I'm around these families that have lost loved ones to knife crime it makes me think about why I used to carry a knife," he said.
"Why did I do that?” The couple have installed 17 bleed control cabinets across Sussex and two at London Bridge which have been used to sav.