EVERTON Football Club and Everton in the Community are pro-actively helping to transform the surrounding streets of Goodison Park with the help of local officers and youngsters on matchdays.
The Blues’ have teamed up with local officers from the neighbourhood policing team to run a season-long programme, replicating the community Clean Sweep Scheme, to help tackle the litter-strewn streets around the stadium on matchdays.
For every home game, eight to ten youngsters from local schools will be part of an Operation Sweeper Zone, helping with the Club’s environmental project to keep the streets clean for the hours surrounding a home fixture.
Match-by-match the youngsters will be given; a branded rain jacket to wear, they’ll be invited onto the pitch to take part in a pre-match flag parade and also given match tickets to watch the game as rewards for their efforts.
The Clean Sweep Scheme was originally launched over three years ago after officers secured funding from Liverpool Mutual Homes. Over one thousand individual local children have already taken part, with over one thousand streets having been affected by the schemes efforts.
Police Community Support Officer, John Munro, has said: “The partnership between Everton in the Community and the local neighbourhood policing team has resulted in the opportunity for young people in the area to experience the matchday atmosphere at Goodison Park as well as having a positive impact on the local community by making more people think about the environment we live in.
“The operation has also enhanced the relationship between the neighbourhood policing team, Everton Football Club and the local schools due to the engagement with the young people outside of school hours, which is really encouraging.”
Jacqueline Donoghue, Learning Mentor at Beacon CE Primary School, has praised the matchday scheme: “I would like to thank all those who helped and supported this event for the young children at the Beacon School. The children were so excited to take part in this project and then to have the chance to see a football match as well, what a memorable opportunity for them.”
