Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham (QEHB) is backing a West Midlands Police campaign encouraging people to report those who they know carry weapons.

Emergency Department consultants Dr Barry Boland and Mr Vibhore Gupta took part in a video to help promote the "Knives End Lives" message.

The campaign stresses that people who don't report those who carry weapons risk being jailed for exactly the same offence as the knife carrier.

This is the first time the force has developed an anti-knife crime campaign with a joint enterprise focus.

Dr Boland pointed out that victims can be killed by a single knife wound to the arm or leg: “Last year we saw 18 people under 24 who had serious stab injuries and I am personally aware of three young men of 16 years of age who have died in the past six months.

“Two of those were stabbed once in the leg.

“People may think we can manage leg injuries very easily but there are actually some vessels there which you can seriously injure.

“People need to know that lashing out at somebody's arm, leg, chest or belly with a knife will commonly kill them or paralyse them.”

The campaign was launched just weeks after three teens were jailed for stabbing a student in an unprovoked attack. Two others were given youth rehabilitation orders. A third is yet to be sentenced.

Knives End Lives posters will be appearing on buses and trains and a high profile ad will run on local radio.

To reinforce the message, officers will be installing walkthrough knife arches at bus, tram and railway stations as well as at schools, colleges and universities as part of pop-up action days.

Traffic police will be using handheld metal detectors to search any drivers they stop as part of targeted intelligence-led patrols.