It will teach participants skills in catering, including a food hygiene certificate taught by a qualified chef, writes Alexandros Ioannides

A free twelve-week course teaching culinary skills for young people will be held at an Edmonton mosque later this month.

Designed for 16-25 year olds and starting from Tuesday, 21st April from 2pm, the ‘Kitchen Knives Safer Lives’ initiative is being led by Rumi Mosque in Fore Street, under the guidance of Imam Adam Kantar.

The course has been created in part as a response to local knife crime, with 32% of all knife crime victims in Enfield being aged under 24 in 2025, an 8% rise from 2024.

Funded by Enfield Council, the course will offer participants culinary skills in catering, including a food hygiene certificate taught by a qualified chef.

It forms part an effort to get young people into employment and support the council’s aims to make Enfield a safer borough.

Adam told the Dispatch: “Our goal is to protect young people by teaching them valuable culinary skills, and in doing so, to help address this major societal issue within our modest, humble means.”

There will also be one-to-one emotional support offered with a counsellor if any of the young people present want to speak to someone.

The goal for the course is to get young people off the streets and into places of education where they can acquire transferable skills.

Adam added: “I know young people are not safe, and we are doing our best to help young people get into positions to be educated.”

The teaching will take place at Rumi Mosque’s community hall, which is designed for multi-purpose events.

Anyone interested in taking part should email [email protected] or call 0204 5680 667.

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