Thousands of pounds of ill-gotten cash is set to be seized from drug dealers and given to Everton in the Community.
Since the start of last year, Liverpool Crown Court has handed over monies taken from criminals to a charity of the month as part of Operation Payback. For February, this nominated good cause will be Everton FC's charitable arm.
Funds passed on will go towards Everton in the Community's 41 Goodison scheme - which offers support on health, wellbeing, skills and qualifications and offers experiences to children and young people aged between eight and 19 with the aim of "steering them away from the wrong path and negative influences". A project in the South Sefton and L4 area will "deliver an individualised package of targeted support to priority schools that have been identified to address a rise in anti-social behaviour, peer-on-peer abuse and violence".
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A team of tutors, coaches and support staff will work with participants "to steer them away from risk-taking behaviours and into employment or further education whilst minimising the risk of them being criminally exploited or persuasive to engaging in criminal activity". It comes amid "rising concern" over children being exposed to knife crime and organised crime, such as county lines drug gangs.
Lara King, Everton in the Community's director of youth and support, said: "We are delighted to have been chosen as recipients for these forfeited funds via Liverpool Crown Court and this funding will allow us to expand our support for young people at risk of exploitation in South Sefton and Liverpool 4 through our 41 Goodison programme.
"There is a rising concern that more and more primary and secondary school children are now being exposed to serious organised crime and knife incidents, and this money will enable us to up-scale our current delivery to provide an individualised packaged of targeted support to priority schools in this area to help address these concerns."
January's charity of the month was the Liverpool Personal Services Society - a Sandhills-based organisation which was formed in the city in 1919 but now works across the country with bases in Cheshire, Manchester, Wales, Birmingham, Norfolk and Lincolnshire. The total amount which was raised for PSS was £6,876.02.
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