Father of murdered Haverhill teenager Harley Barfield sees bid to bring Knife Angel to town move a step closer

A town council has voted in favour of helping to bring a sculpture against knife crime to Suffolk in the wake of a teenager’s murder last year.

In a meeting on Tuesday, a majority of Haverhill Town councillors supported a motion to underwrite a £4,000 returnable deposit to enable the Knife Angel to come to the town.

The sculpture, made from more than 100,000 surrendered and confiscated knives, is set to visit Haverhill in September, helping to create a lasting legacy to 16-year-old Harley Barfield.

His father, Darryl Barfield, then aims to fund-raise to cover the £4,000.

Proposing the motion, Cllr Aaron Luccarini said: “I think this is a really positive thing for Haverhill; a very important subject especially considering what happened. I would like to see this sculpture come to Haverhill, especially in the town centre.”

The money would help ensure that Haverhill would be added to the schedule for the Knife Angel’s tour around the UK, which Harley’s father Darryl has been pushing for.

He has already been presented with a ‘pre-hosting acceptance award’ for the sculpture’s, signed by owner Clive Knowles.

“Now the hard work begins,” Darryl said. “I feel overwhelmed. It will help create a legacy for him. I’m going to speak to the town council about what to do next.

“I’d like to do a music event – I’ve got a few artists on board already.”

Darryl said he also had some schools on board, and when the Knife Angel does visit, he would like to have mental health and domestic abuse awareness events.

Harley was less than one month past his 16th birthday when he was stabbed on January 9 last year in the car park next to Strasbourg Square. He died in Royal Papworth Hospital in Cambridge two days later as a result of a stab wound to his heart.

A 17-year-old boy, who cannot be named due to his age, was convicted of Harley’s murder, and was sentenced to 17 years in prison at Ipswich Crown Court on December 18.

The town council will now work with Darryl to support his fund-raising efforts, with clerk Colin Poole saying it will support him to ‘make his vision a reality’.

Suffolk Police and Crime Commissioner Tim Passmore would also be involved in helping to bring the sculpture to Haverhill, providing an endorsement for the town council.

He said: “I fully support the town council’s plan to bring the knife angel to Haverhill – it sends out a clear message, particularly to young people, about the dangers of knife crime.

“If required to do so, I would be happy to provide an endorsement on behalf of the town council to help bring this sculpture to the town.”