A North Kensington poet is attempting to stamp out the scourge of knife crime by taking his verse to the street.

Matthew Cooper, 40 , of Ladbroke Grove, has vowed to treat groups of hoodies in the Wornington and Dalgarno estates to his prose in a hope of inspiring them to unleash their inner Shakespeare or Wordsworth. 

He hopes his words - or poet's battle cry - can steer vulnerable youths away from a life of violence and into a world of creativity.

Mr Cooper, who has lived in the Royal Borough for a decade, explained: "I'm a man on a mission. I hope to disarm people by making them realise their potential and give them an alternative to crime, through poetry.

"I'm going to go up to the groups and say 'listen to this'. If I get one person who turns to poetry and stops hanging around or mugging people then job done."

The former journalist, who was once frisked by thieves during the Notting Hill Carnival, says he doesn't fear being beaten up by non-poetry loving youths and is even thinking about taking his work to the All Stars boxing club in Harrow Road, North Paddington.

"This is such a different thing that I think people will be flabbergasted," he said. "It's about stealing people's imagination and arresting their attention."

Builders, by Matthew Cooper
Bang. Bang. Bang.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
Tea. Tea. Tea.
Fag. Fag. Fag.
Bang. Thump. Bang. Thump.
Tea. Tea. Tea.
Fag. Fag. Fag.
Lunch.
Drill.
BILL
(That doesn't include VAT.)