Ganging up on gangs: why the gang intervention industry needs an intervention

Following a recent significant rise in ‘gang‐related’ teenage homicide in London, this paper critically examines the Greater London gang phenomenon and the city's burgeoning gang intervention industry. Based on extensive ethnographic fieldwork and qualitative interviews with gang members and representatives of the gang intervention industry, the paper presents some of the perils and pitfalls of the current approach to gangs. It argues instead for a sustained yet sober appreciation of the gang phenomenon which includes a shift away from more punitive measures towards a comprehensive and co‐ordinated approach that is both meaningful and measurable.