Police chiefs have called for the public’s help in stopping knife crime after a spate of fatal stabbings across the UK.

West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner David Jamieson said the issue has become a “national emergency” after three teenagers were killed in Birmingham earlier this week.

A knife crime charity has said recent deaths in London are “just the tip of the iceberg”, and added that “all sectors of society” have to take responsibility to stop the violence.

There have been been around 20 murders in London so far this year, with six of them happening in nine days.

The grandmother of a 17-year-old stabbed to death in Romford, east London, on Friday night has said “too many young people are having their lives cut short by needless violence”.

Jodie Chesney was killed in an “unprovoked attack” at a children’s play area.

The next day two teenagers were arrested on suspicion of murder after a 17-year-old boy was fatally stabbed to death in Greater Manchester.

Five people were stabbed in the capital on Tuesday 26 February, with four of them being attacked in less than eight hours.

The fifth victim, who was in his 20s, died after being attacked in Ilford.

Patrols have been boosted as a result of the stabbings across London in 2019.

Met Police Commander Dave Musker said: “Every death or injury is a tragedy and will have a lasting impact on those who knew and were close to the victims.

“The public play a key role in helping to both prevent and detect crime in London.”

Three teenagers have died in stabbings in the space of two weeks in Birmingham, where 269 knife crimes have been recorded so far this year.

Hazrat Umar, 17, was killed in Bordesley Green in the city on Monday.

Abdullah Muhammad, 16, died in Small Heath last week.

Seven days earlier Sidali Mohamed, 16, was stabbed outside a college in Highgate, Birmingham.

West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner David Jamieson called on Home Secretary Sajid Javid to give his area a special policing grant to tackle the problem.

He said: “Many of the children who are getting involved in these crimes have been excluded from their school.

“This is a national emergency, and we must do something about that exclusion of children because those children are on almost an immediate path into crime and into violence.”

West Midlands Police Chief Constable David Thompson said the rate of knife crime was increasing across all major cities.

Detective Chief Superintendent Mark Payne from the West Midlands Police homicide team said the force needs help from parents and teachers to turn the tide against knife crime.

He said: “Knife crime and violence is not an issue we can tackle on our own.

“We need help from partners, parents, schools and the wider community to tackle this growing issue.

“We all need to be having heart-to-heart conversations with children in an attempt to steer them away from knives and help prevent more lives from being ruined.”

John Poyton from Redthread, an anti-knife crime charity that works in A&E departments, said: “Sadly, these deaths are just the tip of the iceberg – emergency departments are seeing a steady increase in young people coming in having been caught up in youth violence.

“There is an urgent need to address the trauma some young people experience in their communities which perpetuates further violence.

“It is crucial that all sectors of society take responsibility to tackle violence as a health issue and ensure our communities are healthy, safe and happy for all young people.”

Patrick Green from the Ben Kinsella Trust said “nobody is doing enough” to stop knife crime.

He added: “Often prevention and early intervention are the things we think of last and we don’t invest in properly.

“If lessons are to be learned we really to get behind, not just the enforcement element, but also to make sure that the next group of young people don’t carry the same attitude that a knife will protect them.”

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