WHEN Andrew Glasgow was caught with a knife in Oxford city centre, he knew his life had hit rock bottom.

The 22-year-old was immediately hauled back to prison having only been released on licence for an offence weeks before.

Carrying a knife had always been a way of life for Mr Glasgow, who admits he was taking them to school aged just 13.

But now he has turned his life around and has a stark message for young people in the city – walking about with blades will ruin your life.

He spoke out last night as part of Thames Valley Police’s five-day Operation Blade campaign, supported by the Oxford Mail, which aims to cut the levels of serious knife crime in the city.

Mr Glasgow, of Horspath Road, Cowley, said: “I knew I had to change. I just sat there and thought about where my life was going and what I was doing.

“I do not know why I started carrying a knife. It soon became habit. I was taking one to school when I was 13 and I was not the only one. I never showed mine off, but others did. I had got myself in a bit of trouble and felt I needed it for protection.”

Mr Glasgow was caught by police with a lock knife in Oxford on June 12 last year, something he later admitted at magistrates court.

Given 75 hours’ unpaid work and told to pay £150 costs, he was also ordered to serve another 28 days in prison.

But Mr Glasgow said the biggest turning point for him was after Blayne Ridgway was stabbed to death by 16-year-old Eze Eke in May. He knew both of them.

He said: “Blayne’s death really drove the message home.

“I knew both of them from around Oxford and thought they were fine. I could not believe it when it happened.

“You always presume knife murders are things that happen in places like London to people you do not know. Blayne’s murder brought everything very close to home. It made me realise I had to change how I lived my life.”

Mr Glasgow, who is about to start training as a chef, has recently completed a Prince’s Trust course, which taught him to be a youth worker.

He said: “Lots of people tried to get the message across to me when I was younger, but I never listened.

“I want to get the message out to young people that they will ruin their lives if they carry blades.”