Youth darts club supported by knife crime charity

A new youth darts club has been launched in Bodmin after benefiting from support of a trust set up after a Cornish rugby player was murdered in the town.

Michael Riddiough-Allen, 32, was stabbed to death outside the Eclipse nightclub on 30 April 2023.

His family set up Mikes Trust (Michael's Initiative for Knifecrime Education in Society) to offer opportunities to young people in an effort to tackle knife crime.

Becky Dustan, Mr Riddiough-Allen's sister, said the aim was to give young people more choices.

She said the trust was also hoping to launch a new education plan in schools to raise awareness of what knife crime is.

"Young people may end up following a path where they feel that they have to carry a knife for whatever reason," she said.

"[We want to] give them ways to understand why that isn't the only choice they have."

Mikes Trust provided food for the club's launch and will pay for coaching and darts equipment if required.

The Youth Darts Academy was set up by Lisa and John Kemp, who said they had dreamt for a long time about finding a centre where children could learn how to play darts.

Ms Kemp said: "Having the support of Mikes Trust means it opens up opportunities for us.

"If darts isn't really their thing, we can signpost them to other youth groups that can maybe help them better, so they can have fun and not be doing something that they maybe shouldn't be."