A group of young people from Liverpool are celebrating after winning a prestigious award to recognise their work in helping to put together a project to help a group of 14-25 year-olds improve their chances in life and not turn to crime.

The award was issued in London on the 11th March by the High Sheriff’s Association in England and Wales and [dozens] of projects from National Crimebeat, the Association’s youth crime prevention charity, were in the running for the honours.

The High Sheriff of Merseyside, Mrs Abila Pointing MBE DL and Merseyside Police invited applications from across Merseyside during November 2014. A wide range of projects were nominated, all with the common theme of supporting young people and making communities stronger. Subsequently, a local panel chaired by the High Sheriff selected a number of projects for submission to the national competition.

All of the nominees were recognised at a celebration event at Merseyside Police Headquarters in March 2015. The ‘Emotions’ Project from Liverpool went forward to the final for the 2015 National Crimebeat awards (category B) and was announced as the overall winner at a ceremony in London on 11th March.

‘Emotions’ was set up to work with 50 vulnerable young people between the ages of 14 and 25 years. The project uses performance as a platform to engage and inspire young people and improve their chances in life. Following an open day in January 2014, 63 young people committed to the project. They worked with volunteers from MD Productions to develop their own performance areas including script writing, music, drama and dance. They delivered a number of performances in the community which culminated in a show before a packed Liverpool Empire theatre. The Emotions performance reflected real life situations that mattered to the youngsters, focussing on change, inspiring hope, ambition and dreams.

During the programme the young people also accessed therapeutic support to assist them with any personal issues they were facing.

Speaking about the win, creative director of MD Productions, Miguel Doforo, said: “We were overwhelmed at the High Sheriff Awards in Liverpool, so to then go on and win the National Crimebeat award is such a boost for everyone involved in The Emotions Project. We have proved to young people that hanging out on the streets, petty crime and anti-social behaviour won’t help them in the long run, instead giving them a creative outlet to express themselves and realise their ambitions.

The Emotions Project has created a really strong group of young people who are dedicated, motivated and working hard to realise their dreams and create better futures for themselves. They are inspirational and causing a ripple effect of change in their own communities and circles of friends. I am so pleased.”

 

High Sheriff of Merseyside, Mrs Abila Pointing MBE DL stated:

“I am proud that “Emotions” have won the National Crimebeat award for 2015. They are worthy winners and are typical of so many young people contributing positively to their communities.”

Inspector Colin Lewis, Merseyside Police, said: “Every year we have a strong field of nominations on Merseyside. This is reflective of the creativity, commitment and compassion of our young people. Merseyside Police is always proud to support them and it’s quite right that they have been recognised nationally. We are particularly grateful to the High Sheriff for all of her work finding and recognising those hidden gems in the community who have such a positive effect on neighbourhoods.”

The High Sheriff of Merseyside, Mrs Abila Pointing MBE DL, the Lord Mayor of Liverpool, Cllr Erica Kemp CBE and the Vice-Chancellor and Rector of Liverpool Hope University, Professor Gerald Pillay FRSA DL, were among the special guests.

More than 50 people from the local community, including Contact the Elderly’s older guests, volunteers and supporters, were joined by Mary Robinson, Executive Officer North & Midlands, Gwen Lightfoot, Development Officer in Merseyside and Greater Manchester, and Claire Harris, Trustee, for an afternoon tea and celebrations generously hosted by the hotel.

Since inception in 1965, Contact the Elderly has provided a vital and regular friendship link to more than 100,000 lonely older people. The charity relieves the acute loneliness of isolated people aged 75 and above who live alone, by organising monthly Sunday afternoon tea parties for small groups within local communities. Each older guest is collected from their home by a volunteer driver and taken to a volunteer host’s home, where they meet for tea, chat and companionship.

Guests, including former members of staff, were invited to a special ceremony to mark the official opening of the impressive new build which is now fully operational since the beginning of the new school term in January. Mrs Pointing unveiled a plaque and talked about the value of a good education. She then met representatives of the school council who took her, and other guests, on a tour of the new facilities.

The co-location of the fire and police control room functions provides an opportunity to deliver a more efficient and effective service to the public. Both emergency services share site infrastructure and facilities with the potential for sharing of technology solutions in the longer term.​

The High Sheriff and her cadets were among the VIPs who greeted the Princess Royal.

The High Sheriff presented her Cadets and the Mayor of Sefton to Her Royal Highness.

The presentations were made in the iconic Port of Liverpool Building on Liverpool’s Waterfront.  Since on this occasion all the families were recently bereaved, it is not appropriate to include photographs of the individual presentations here.

Full details of the National Health Service organ donor scheme can be found at:

http://www.organdonation.nhs.uk/how_to_become_a_donor/index.asp

The official party gathered together before the presentations.

Inspector Colin Lewis said,

“We are proud of our young cadets and this effort is typical of them. They were very keen to support the fund and have pulled out all the stops to raise a large amount of money. We know that the fund will distribute it to those most in need and feel very proud to have had the opportunity to support a wonderful charity”

The group received funding to run a 16-week project which allowed young people to use the internet in a safe and warm environment. The funding helped the group to purchase two new computers which enabled more young people to access the service. The project addressed the issue of internet safety and provided an opportunity for young people to discuss social networking and how to stay safe when accessing the internet.

As a result 25 young people were able to develop their social skills by working in teams and groups. They learnt how to use different computer systems and social networking. In conjunction with Merseyside Inclusion Network, young people are now able to add to the website profile their interests, work, activities and projects that they have taken part in.

The participants of the projects gained skills in discipline, confidence, self-esteem and extreme sports. They learned about the pitfalls of crime and anti-social behaviour, how to deal with being victims of crime and bullying. The participants also developed their health, both physically and mentally and had the opportunity to socialise with new people.