Violent youth crime has hit the headlines again. In London this weekend another teenager was stabbed to death after a seemingly unprovoked attack from a gang of youths.

The death of 16-year-old Ben Kinsella is the 17th death of a young person in London this year. But it's not just London that's experiencing a problem with kids and crime.

• Recent figures revealed that the number of children being convicted or cautioned has gone up by more than a quarter across the country.
• Reported youth crime has increased by 27%.
• Crime among the under-15s has soared by a third compared to just an 11% rise in adult crime.
• Cheshire has seen under-18 crime rise 95% since 2002, and the same statistic in Sussex has risen by 90%.

But what do all these figures mean, especially when a lot of crime goes unreported? Are we only highlighting a small minority of young people, or is this a snapshot of a bigger picture that's actually much worse than we know?

We've spoken to the experts about what the reasons could be and what the possible solutions are.

By Louise O'Connell

• Next: Youth crime - why do kids carry weapons?

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