A public multi-agency forum next week will address steps to solve Bermuda’s gang violence problem.

The forum — Ending Gang Violence and Exploitation — will be put on by the Interagency Committee for Children and Families, in partnership with the Interagency Community Response task force and Family Centre’s Youth Development Zone.

“Participants will discuss barriers and solutions to barriers in the availability of services for disenfranchised young adults between the ages of 18 and 23,” a press release for the event said.

“There is recognition across Bermuda’s social service agencies and throughout our community that there is a lack of services available to our young men, which is preventing their ability to break out of antisocial lifestyles.”

Access to the available services for disenfranchised young men is currently “extremely limited”, according to the release.

The forum will include the perspectives of affected men, along with a “national perspective” on gang violence on the island, “including trends and data underpinning the escalation of antisocial behaviour over the past ten years”.

Stakeholders will also address current gaps in existing services, including job and social skills, education, employment, housing, health and mental healthcare, and more.

The three-hour event at the Bermuda Industrial Union building begins on Thursday at 9am.

For more information and to reserve your spot contact Dominique Smith at iac@prevention.bm or call 232-1116.