Rhys and Kiah have both experienced the dangers of gang culture
leicestermercury
18:41, 16 Mar 2026
Kiah (left) and Rhys (right) run free classes for young people
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Kiah (left) and Rhys (right) run free classes for young people(Image: Rhys Keightley)
A Leicestershire duo are helping deter young people from taking part in the 'silly school wars trend' by hosting free boxing and fitness classes.
Rhys Keightley and Kiah Dixon, from Oadby and Wigston, have been running fitness and boxing classes for the past two months in FitTogether Gym, located in Long Street, Wigston.
Every Monday, the duo run free classes for young people currently in schools in an attempt to help them channel their emotions in a better way than taking part in "gang culture" and "silly trends".
Rhys said: "We’re trying to support the youth of Leicester because nobody else is doing anything about it. People like to comment on today’s youth but they don’t actually help so we are here to take action.
"We want to help young people to make sure they don’t go to jail over a silly trend such as the recent school wars trend. The only red vs blue trend we cared about growing up was Man United vs Chelsea.
"But look at things now… something has gone terribly wrong.
"As a community we’ve allowed our youth centres to disappear, and we’ve let social media raise our kids. Now they’re being told that carrying knives, acting like gangsters, and doing stupid trends is normal."
The 'school wars' trend, which originated in London before spreading to the East Midlands, involves pupils being encouraged to film physical confrontations to score points for their colour. Digital posters seen online pit students from across the region against each other in two opposing teams: red and blue.
The poster encourages pupils from rival schools to engage in organised fights
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The poster encourages pupils from rival schools to engage in organised fights(Image: Facebook)
The two 29 year olds talked about their own life experiences motivating them to help today's youths. Both Rhys and Kiah have been to prison before and seen gang culture ruin people's lives.
Kiah said: "I've been stabbed three times before in relation to gang violence so having lived it myself I want to help youths go down a better path than I did."
When asked what their initial responses were to seeing the 'school wars' trend on social media, the duo said it was their parental instincts which kicked in first.
Rhys said: "We’ve both got kids now. I've got four and Kiah has one, and when we saw the trend it really touched our hearts because we don’t want our kids to grow up in a bad society or having to worry about their safety when they’re going to school."
"The influences in social media and the violence showed in rap music is making the next generation way worse than it used to be before."
Photo shows Rhys Keightley and Kiah Dixon
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Rhys Keightley and Kiah Dixon(Image: Rhys Keightley)
Kiah and Rhys said they will be taking a few of the young people who attend their classes on a trip to Snowdon next month, in order to "separate them from society". No phones will be allowed during their hike to make sure the youths have a chance to "disconnect".
Speaking about the importance of the work they are doing, Rhys said: "A few of the lads here were involved in gang crime and after joining our classes, we had their parents contact us to tell us how much our classes have helped calmed them down and choose a different path.
"Its a priority to help young people redirect their emotions. It will only get worse if we do not act on what is going on in our communities.
"You should be able to walk down the street safely without having to worry about knife crime."
On top of hosting boxing classes Rhys and Kiah recently started their new 'Gorilla Force' campaign to help reduce knife crime and support young people.
This mission is backed by Neetu Squire, Deputy Police and Crime Commissioner for Leicester, who supports the work the duo are doing to reach young people and tackle the root causes of knife crime.
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Rhys said they have started a fundraiser to help them with expenses of travelling, running workshops, mentoring young people, and providing activities. People can donate by searching for 'Gorilla gang let’s help our youth and mental health' on the GoFundMe website.