YOUTHS were encouraged to swap criminal activities for sporting ones this Christmas as part of an innovative project to cut crime in the resort during the run-up to the festivities.

The ground-breaking project organised by Blackpool Council and Lancashire Constabulary saw three crime hot-spots become the focus of professional sport coaching sessions - with police officers swapping their patrols for sports ground beats.

With the help of a social and friendly environment, the police aim to foster closer community relations and provide advice to children in a bid to tackle vandalism, burglary and youth nuisance.

For sports staff the programme was a unique opportunity to take expert, professional coaching out of sports arenas and onto children's doorsteps.

And it involved as many youngsters as possible in free football, basketball, netball, rounders, cricket, hockey and junior athletic sessions. Blackpool's executive member for community services, Coun Craig Matthews, said it was a key aim of the council to get more youngsters actively involved in sport to promote healthier living, but this unique scheme could also help combat crime.

He said: "This is a unique opportunity to take expert, professional coaching out of athletic clubs and sports halls and into the heart of the community.

"The sessions will help youngsters meet friends and learn new skills in their favourite sports as well as provide a relaxed and less daunting environment for children to meet their local bobby face to face."

The scheme was successfully run in the summer, cutting incidents of youth nuisance and disorder by 16 per cent.

It is part of the town's community safety strategy, which was launched in March this year by the Blackpool community safety partnership, an umbrella body for a number of statutory, voluntary and business groups led by the council and police.

The activities took place this week at Revoe recreation ground, Kingscote Park and Collegiate High School's Uforia Sports Complex.

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