A NATIONAL campaign against knife crime is being launched in Bournemouth at an event held in memory of stabbing victim Nicholas Ormerod.

The Anti-Knife Awareness Campaign will be unveiled at a party on what would have been Nicholas’ 31st birthday in a park near his Southbourne home.

Nicholas’ mum, Jane, has been campaigning against knife crime since her son was killed by homeless alcoholic Mark Haylock during a row at a Boscombe flat in April last year.

After Haylock’s trial it was revealed that he had a previous conviction for a knife-related offence which had not been disclosed to the jury. He received a sentence of just eight years and could be released from prison as soon as November 2014.

Jane, of Cranleigh Road, started a petition in a bid to ensure that such past offences are always revealed in court and has now joined forces with Danny O’Brien, the man behind national campaign Turn Your Back On Knife Crime and Anti Knife UK.

Mr O’Brien started his campaign in London after reading about daily knife attacks.

He has now agreed to attend the party in the park at Lingdale Road on August 4 and to use it as a springboard for his latest campaign.

Jane has been helping him with Turn Your Back On Knife Crime, a national Facebook campaign where supporters are asked to add a photograph of their backs to the site. More than 1,000 people joined in the first six days.

Jane told the Daily Echo: “Each day that passes the pain becomes a little less raw but Nicholas’ death is something I will never forget. It is still the first thing I think about in the morning and the last thing I think about at night.

“I would like to think that Nicholas is looking down on me and is proud of me.

“I want to get as many people signed up as I can. If we just save one person from knife crime it has got to be better than not trying at all.”