Half a million pounds invested into grassroots community organisations to support young people

As the school holidays get underway, a bumper half-a-million-pound cash injection is being invested in diversionary activities for nearly 12,000 young people, focused on helping to ensure violence keeps falling in our region.

The huge investment has been announced by the region’s Police and Crime Commissioner, Emily Spurrell, and the Merseyside Violence Reduction Partnership (MVRP) through their new Youth Empowerment Scheme (YES) designed to help prevent spikes in violence and antisocial behaviour over the summer holidays, autumn half term and other key times by engaging and supporting young people.

The money has been awarded to 30 brilliant grassroots community organisations across Merseyside to provide free, safe, positive activities for thousands of young people, helping them to gain new skills, increase their confidence and resilience and fill their time with memorable experiences over the school holidays.

From youth workers going out to in hotspot areas to mental health courses and leadership training, the grants will be used to reach and support at risk young people, build their trust, and help to steer them away from behaviour which could be harmful or dangerous.

Serious violence has already fallen by 23% across Merseyside in the past three years and in the past year alone there has been a decrease of 47.9% in hotspot areas.

This funding is focused on driving those figures down even further by providing funding to organisations which are working with vulnerable young people and in the areas hardest hit by cuts.

The YES brings together two successful funding pots – the Police and Crime Commissioner’s Youth Diversion Fund and the MVRP’s Arts | Culture | Sports Fund – to create one new super youth fund designed to provide bigger grants to reach more young people through even more ambitious and engaging projects.

To mark today’s announcement, the Police and Crime Commissioner, Emily Spurrell, and members of the MVRP are visiting one of the successful projects, Waterloo Hotshots CIC who will be using their funding to offer activities for up to 600 young people aged between five and 12.

The Sefton-based charity have been awarded nearly £15,000 to work with young people in one of the region’s most deprived areas, offering free tennis coaching and a range of outdoor sports including dodgeball, rounders, dance, and obstacle courses as part of their holiday club which will run every weekday during the summer.

They will also be offering forest school activities, such as den building and bug collection within a woodland area on the club’s grounds, as well as arts and crafts sessions and boxing sessions in the evening. They will also use the funding to run three ‘Monster Smash’ events during the autumn half term.

Merseyside’s Police and Crime Commissioner, Emily Spurrell, said:

“From graffiti and art classes to music sessions and DJing, capoeira, boxing and football, our successful YES projects are set to offer a treasure trove of activities and opportunities for young people across our region all focused on keeping them safe and preventing them from getting drawn into harmful behaviour.

“We know that young people overwhelmingly want to spend their time doing something positive. 

“But sadly, after years of budget cuts those opportunities aren’t always available to them. We know the school summer holidays, when there are long light nights with little for young people to do, can often be the time when they are vulnerable to getting enticed into activities which be antisocial, criminal, or even dangerous.

“Serious violence is already falling in our region. Through our Youth Empowerment Scheme, we’re determined to prevent even more youngsters getting drawn into crime and instead give them the chance to try exciting new experiences, gain qualifications and broaden their horizons.

“By doing so, we are creating brighter futures for them, while helping to create nicer, better places to live, and reducing the burden on the police during peaks times of the year.”

Find more information about the Youth Empowerment Scheme here.

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