A new youth outreach programme has been set up to help divert young people in Halton away from crime and antisocial behaviour.

The scheme will see specialist staff heading to problem ‘hot spot’ areas across Widnes and Runcorn every Thursday, Friday and Saturday night as part of a new agreement between Halton Council and the Vibe Youth Service.

The identified hot spot areas are places where youth workers, community safety staff and police know that young people hang out, but where residents and businesses may have had problems with anti-social behaviour in the past.

Once on site, they will then talk to them about issues ranging from mental health, crime, substance misuse, sexual health and anti-social behaviour. The youth workers will also be able to direct them to other activities which are safe, fun and provide opportunities to develop essential life skills.

The young people will also be supported by Vibe staff to take on leadership roles in Halton’s Youth Cabinet and look to address and tackle important issues in their area.

The Vibe service has previously been operating in Knowsley and continued running through lockdown. The organisation said that by building a presence in areas where young people congregate, its youth workers are able to forge relationships with local residents, business owners and the authorities to improve safety and defuse problems before they happen.

Brian Rodgers, business development manager at Vibe said: “Vibe youth workers are driven by our passion to reverse the disadvantage that many young people face, or whose trajectory is to become ‘just another statistic’.

“Our youth workers are looking forward to positively engaging and supporting young people to make effective, informed decisions.”