New VR shows users horrifying reality of what it’s like to be stabbed to death

What does it feel like to be stabbed?

It’s a question that none of us wants to have answered, but all too many people have experienced.

And now a radical scheme has been set up, highlighting children to the horrifying reality of what it’s like to be stabbed to death using VR.

The scheme, launched by Birmingham company Cornerstone VR, is designed to change young people’s attitudes to blades in a bid to turn the tide on the epidemic of knife crime.

In footage, exclusively shared with Metro, the storyline shows how a row on social media can quickly escalate, turning into deadly violence.

The viewer can choose whether they are the victim, the attacker or the friend who will face decades behind bars just because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time.

The footage was brought together with help and expertise of child psychologists, police officers and youth workers.

It was produced in reaction to the soaring levels of knife crime. In the 12 months to March 2024, there were 262 murders caused by blades in England and Wales.

More than 40 of those killed were under the age of 25 – nearly one every week.

It is numbers like these that drove Cornerstone VR to act. Their programme doesn’t just tell young people knife crime is dangerous – it puts them in the shoes of a victim, an attacker, or a bystander, so they can see just how fast a decision can become a tragedy.

One troubling trend that VR hopes to counter is the growing lack of empathy shown by young offenders in recent murder trials. With teenage brains still developing, poor impulse control and limited understanding of consequences are common. Where logic fails, immersive storytelling may succeed.

Once upon a time, seeing a child in the dock for a murder was a once-in-a-generation event. Now it can be as frequently as once every 10 weeks.

Serena Hadi is a former social worker who now works as Cornerstone VR’s head of operations and practice.

She has found that teachers, social workers, nurses and police officers have all benefitted from seeing their work.

She said: ‘When shown to professionals, our VR videos empowered them to be more trauma responsive, empathetic, and aided them in understanding the impact trauma has on children’s lives through to adolescence.’

The firm’s first VR film was called Unborn Child, which won an award for the best use of technology in the NHS. It simulated the perspective of a baby in the womb as she was attacked by her partner.

After viewing the film, nurses reported significantly more cases of domestic abuse — not because the abuse increased, but because they knew how to spot it.

Cornerstone believe this could be their most impactful project yet – one that reaches young people before they make irreversible decisions.

Serena said: ‘Teenagers are disproportionally affected by knife crime more than any other age group. Research shows virtual reality videos and scenarios have a bigger impact on changing people’s behaviours and values than other kinds of information and training.

‘We aim to change the narrative around knife crime and raise awareness of why children and young people may feel compelled to pick up a knife in today’s society.’

‘We want every child in the country to have access to this.’

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

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