A professional boxer who dedicated his life to stopping youth violence following the murder of his son has launched a new project.

The Kiyan Prince Foundation will hold run an empowerment project aimed at educating young people in London about the devastating consequences of knife and gang crime.

The charity was founded by professional boxer Mark Prince after his 15-year-old son Kiyan was stabbed to death trying to protect a friend outside his school, the London Academy in Edgware, in May 2006.

The 'I Have A Dream’ programme will be run by Mark Prince and combine intensive boxing training sessions with weekly one-hour workshops on subjects such as gang life, knife crime, and drug and substance abuse.

The project is aimed at developing young people aged 16 and 25, who are at a high-risk of becoming involved in knife crime, by empowering them to make better decisions in their lives and become positive role models within their communities.

Mark Prince said: “The pain and utter devastation of losing a child to knife crime is something no parent should have to endure.

“Yet, nearly eight years after Kiyan’s tragic passing, there are still young people being murdered on our streets.

“If we want to stop this epidemic, we need to start educating young people about the consequences of knife crime. We need to engage them, help them make more informed choices and show there’s a life outside of gang culture.”

The foundation will train young people on the programme to become peer mentors, creating a safe 'family' environment where young people can confide in each other and share their problems.

Young people will be referred to the scheme through the foundation’s partnership with schools, social services and youth offending teams, in addition to the foundation running regular community outreach activities.

The ‘I Have A Dream’ programme has been launched thanks to financial backing and business support from Sport for Development charity, Sported.

Chris Grant, chief executive of Sported, said: “Community sport groups, like the Kiyan Prince Foundation, play a vital role in engaging disadvantaged young people whose needs are too often ignored by mainstream society.

“If we are serious about tackling knife crime, gang culture and other pressing social issues, we need to focus on programmes that address the growing inequalities in our society and begin treating the causes, not the symptoms.”