Selling Knives to Minors in the UK | The Laws, Penalties and Defences
With an ever-increasing level of knife crime being committed throughout the UK, regularly involving minors, criminal courts now exercise little tolerance when sentencing those convicted of knife-related offences.
Possession of a bladed article is a serious criminal offence in England and Wales. Carrying a knife in a public place without a lawful reason can result in severe consequences, even if there was no intention to use the blade to cause harm.
It follows that the courts and law enforcement officers are keen to prevent minors from coming into possession of knives or other bladed articles, both for their own safety and to prevent further serious knife attacks that are reported all too often in the press. It is estimated that in the region of twenty per cent of knife crime offences are committed by those in the ten to seventeen age group.
The sale of a ‘knife’ to anyone under the age of eighteen years is a serious criminal offence under Section 141A Criminal Justice Act 1988.
Mohammed Ahmed of KANGS outlines the position generally.
The Relevant Law
The Criminal Justice Act 1988 (as amended) (‘the Act’) provides:
S.141A Sale of knives and certain articles with blade or point
Any person who sells to a person under the age of eighteen years an article to which this section applies shall be guilty of an offence.
The section applies to:
- any knife, knife blade or razor blade,
- any axe, and
- any other article which has a blade or which is sharply pointed and which is made or adapted for use for causing injury to the person.
What Constitutes a Knife or Bladed Article?
The range of articles falling within the general category of ‘knife’ is extensive. In R (on the application of the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead) v East Berkshire Justices [2010] EWHC 3020 (Admin), the criminal courts were given a wide discretion of interpretation by stating that the definition of ‘knife’ reflecting its ordinary, everyday meaning, was an object comprising of a sharpened blade and held together by a handle.
In addition to articles which are easily identifiable as knives such as kitchen knives, cutlery knives and cut throat razors, various statutes have dealt specifically with dangerous items which include the following:
Criminal Justice Act (Offensive Weapons) Order 1988
Balisong or Butterfly knife: a blade enclosed by a handle which is designed to split down the middle, without the operation of a spring or other mechanical means, to reveal the blade.
Curved blade sword: a sword with a curved blade of fifty centimetres or over in length.
Cyclone knife also known as Spiral knife: a blade with a handle, a sharp point at one or more cutting edges that each form a helix.
Kyoketsu Shoge: a length of rope, cord, wire or chain fastened at each end to a hard weight or hand grip.
Push Dagger; the handle of which fits within a clenched fist and the blade of which protrudes from between two fingers.
Swordstick: a hollow walking stick or cane containing a blade which may be used as a sword.
Belt buckle knife: a buckle which incorporates or conceals a knife.
Zombie knife: features a long, aggressive blade plus a cutting edge, a serrated edge and images or words suggesting it is used for violence.
Stealth Knife: a knife or spike which has a blade or sharp point, made from material that is not readily detectable by apparatus used for detecting metal, and not designed for domestic use or for use in the processing, preparation or consumption of food or as a toy.
Criminal Justice Act 1988 (Offensive Weapons) (Amendment, Surrender and Compensation) (England and Wales) Order 2025
Ninja sword: a sword with a blade whose length is at least fourteen inches, a primary straight cutting edge, a secondary straight cutting edge, a blunt spine and either a tanto style point or reversed tanto style point.
Penalty for Selling a Knife to a Minor
As the Act, referred to above, states: ‘Any person who sells to a person under the age of eighteen years… shall be guilty of an offence.’ Accordingly, this definition includes any employee who carried out the sale, as well as the employer.
The offence of selling knives to children is prosecuted by the Trading Standards departments of local authorities under Schedule 5 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015 against both the employer and employee for contravening S.141 of the Act.
Penalties Upon Conviction
Offences, in contravention of the Act are tried in the Magistrates’ Court only.
Upon conviction, an individual may receive an unlimited fine, a maximum of six months’ imprisonment or both. Where the offender is a company, the court may impose an unlimited fine.
In April 2023, The Sentencing Council introduced new Guidelines relating to the prosecution of both organisations and individuals who supply knives to minors. Specific guidance has been provided to Magistrates’ Courts designed to ensure a consistent approach to sentencing is taken across the board.
The Guidelines apply to retailers who fail to ensure that adequate safeguards are in place to prevent the sale of knives to those under the age of eighteen, whether instore, online, through mail order or via a third-party retailer.
Individuals now face a range of non-custodial sentences, from discharge to a high- level Community Order or a fine. However, in an exceptional case, imprisonment may still be imposed.
Companies face a range of fines from five hundred pounds to one million pounds, which will be linked to turnover to make penalties proportionate to the size of the organisation.
In both situations, the court will have regard to any previous convictions.
Potential Defence for Sale of Knives to Under 18s
A court may accept a defence to a charge of selling a knife to a minor if certain circumstances are present, such as:
- the existence of a robust age and identification check policy which is rigorously operated,
- clearly displayed age verification signs,
- the presence of internal compliance systems and a Staff Training Policy which can be seen to be implemented,
- ensuring the display and placement of knives are protected by security tags, CCTV monitoring or similar,
- the accused (on the balance of probabilities) took all reasonable safeguards and exerted all due diligence to prevent the occurrence of the offence.
How Can We Assist?
If you have been charged with or facing allegation of selling a knife or bladed article to a minor, it is important to immediately obtain legal guidance. You should you not take part in any form of interview with Trading Standards or the Police, whether voluntary or otherwise before obtaining legal support.
The team at KANGS have over twenty-five years of experience defending individuals facing allegations or charges with criminal offences, which includes protecting their rights during voluntary police interviews.
Our team is ready to provide you with expert legal advice and representation. Simply contact us using the details below to speak to an experienced lawyer.
Tel: 0333 370 4333
Email: info@kangssolicitors.co.uk
We provide initial no obligation discussion at our three offices in London, Birmingham, and Manchester. Alternatively, discussions can be held through video conferencing or telephone.
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