ALMOST 250 knives were handed over to police in just four weeks as part of a knife amnesty in Clacton.

Knife-crime charity Only Cowards Carry launched the knife-bin campaign along with Essex Police, in Jackson Road, in January.

The latest haul brings the total number of weapons taken off the streets across Essex to about 1,800 since the campaign started.

Only Cowards Carry was set up by Caroline Shearer, of Aster Close, Clacton, after her son Jay Whiston was stabbed to death outside a house party in Colchester in 2012.

Sarah Cordrey, who works at the charity, said: “It is shocking that somany have been collected in such a short time – in the same period just 60 were collected in the bin in Chelmsford.

“But it does mean the message is getting out there – and even if its just a kitchen knife, people are disposing of it responsibly.

“We also had a number of spyder knives, a dagger, a garden saw, blade, a meat cleaver and a home-made shank.”