Havering’s first-ever Ninja Knife bin has seen the surrender of 271 knives and bladed items taken off the borough’s streets, in its first six months.
The permanent knife bin was installed in Central Park Leisure Centre car park, Harold Hill, in June 2025.
It allows people to anonymously and safely dispose of knives and other weapons.
Havering Council has supported the initiative through its community safety and enforcement teams and as part of its flagship campaign, Where We Live.
The knife bin is funded by the Home Office and provided by Word4Weapons and is located next to the clothes bin in the park car park.
When using the bin remember:
- to wrap your weapon in newspaper, bubble wrap, or cloth, then place it in a sturdy bag or box that's completely sealed
- don't label the package and just go directly to the surrender location without making stops
- carrying weapons openly is illegal, but going directly to surrender gives you a "good reason" for possession if stopped by police.
These initiatives follow the government putting into place a nationwide ban on ninja swords, which came into effect from 1 August 2025.
It means that it is now illegal to possess, manufacture, import or sell these deadly weapons.
Anyone caught in possession of a ninja sword could face six months in prison.
This will later increase to two years under new measures in the Crime and Policing Bill.
Councillor Barry Mugglestone, Havering’s Cabinet Member for Community Safety, said:
“It is great that the knife surrender bin is proving be a good tool which has already got hundreds of knives and other dangerous weapons off our streets.
“We encourage anyone in possession of any weapons to do the right thing and surrender them as that means more lives saved, but also, not to carry them in the first place.
“Our commitment continues in doing what we can to help make our borough as safe as possible for all our residents and visitors.”