A weapon a day is being seized at asylum centre Lunar House, Government figures show.

Security staff confiscate eight dangerous items a week from visitors entering the building, which is Britain’s first point of call for asylum seekers.

A police source said last night: "We get called to Lunar House for people who have had weapons found on them. The majority of the time they just don’t know they are not allowed to carry the items because they are considered offensive weapons in this country."

A Home Office spokeswoman said that items confiscated could range from knives and hazardous materials to anything that could be used as a weapon.

The revelations emerged during the first week of Operation Safe For All, London’s biggest offensive against serious youth crime, which has already resulted in 46 arrests and the confiscation of seven knives in the borough.

Among the success stories for the £1m joint initiative between Croydon Council and the Met Police was the seizure of crack cocaine and loaded guns in a drugs raid and the arrest of a senior gang member.

In one incident, gang unit sergeant Darin Birmingham watched a drug deal in the town centre and followed the two men back to an address. He obtained an immediate search warrant and officers found more than 100 rocks of crack cocaine worth an estimated £1,800 and two loaded pistols with extra ammunition.

Similarly a man described as one of the top members of the Gypset gang, based in Gypsy Hill, was followed by a member of the Territorial Support Group and arrested for driving while disqualified. He was recalled to prison to finish a sentence for other offences.

Four other gang members were also arrested during the week.

In other areas of Safe for All, the borough will have an extra eight dedicated school officers. They will travel around Croydon’s schools teaching children about the dangers of gang crime in an attempt to dissuade them from carrying knives by the start of the next school term.

And in another unprecedented move, senior officers from both the council and the police will begin patrolling Croydon’s street with beat officers.

Acting borough commander, Adrian Roberts said: "We will draw up a rota where both senior council officers and policeman, including me, will go out on patrols. It is really important to see if we are getting it right or getting it wrong on the streets.

"It is early days but initial results on enforcement are encouraging and I am confident that work going into the planning of longer term intervention and diversion measures will be an investment that pays off for the future well being of Croydon."