Brent barber shops to get conflict resolution training

Davis Williams, of Brent Association for Voluntary Action (BrAVA), has already organised a five-a-side football tournament for the clientele of the borough's male hairdressers as part of Respect Festival.

The event was designed to give young people a constructive outlet and he now wants to take the idea a step further with an annual tournament and regular training sessions all year round.

He said: “A lot of young people have issues around community safety – gangs, knives and guns, that sort of stuff.

“A lot of what concerns them is that youth clubs in Brent are either non-existent or they are not providing the services to reach out to the young people.

“Every young person walks into a barber shop to get a trim. A lot of the time the barbers hear a lot about what happens in the community because they are role models, even if they are not aware of their responsibility.

“We want every barber to give their staff some training about conflict resolution – what to look out for and how to diffuse a situation.”

The Barber Bash football tournament kicked-off at Respect, on Sunday, July 5, and was won by a team called the Eagles, of Simply the Best barbers, in Willesden.

Mr Williams said the teams challenged negative stereotypes and impressed the referee, who had heard that west London had a bad reputation.

The official said he was impressed with the players he saw at the event.

He said: “What we really wanted was for the barbers to have a presence. As the first time we've done it, this was a real success.

“We had a qualified referee from Middlesex Football Association. He said he was astounded by the behaviour of the young people.”

Two men were yesterday convicted by a jury at the Old Bailey of murdering Wayne Freckleton in a revenge shooting at Ike's barber shop in Harlesden.

Richard Osborne, 27, and Femi Forde, 25, harboured a grudge for six years before killing the 25-year-old in a feud police say was sparked by gang rivalry and “respect”.