Police and partners unite to deliver powerful county lines event

Schools, partners and the police joined forces last week to host a county lines event, aimed at helping young people understand the dangers of drugs and criminal exploitation.

The event was organised by Merseyside Police’s Safer Schools Co-ordinator, Faye Smith, and took place at the People’s Hub on Friday 2 February. It was made possible thanks to the support of Everton in the Community and the force’s Safer Schools Team.

50 young people aged 11-13 from schools in Knowsley, Liverpool, Sefton, and Wirral took part in an afternoon of impactful conversations and activities, all aimed at explaining the county lines ‘business model’ and the dangers of exploitation in an interactive way, outside the classroom.

The event was the conclusion to a week-long initiative by the Safer Schools Team, who delivered educational workshops and activities focused on raising awareness of county lines to school age children.

The students took part in a range of workshops, talks and Q&As delivered by the force’s County Lines Taskforce, Cyber Dependent Crime Unit, Fairness in Policing team and Safer Schools Officers. Football sessions were delivered by Everton FC, Liverpool FC Foundation and Tranmere Rovers and boxing sessions by non-for-profit Catch22.

County lines is a form of criminal exploitation where organised crime groups persuade, coerce or force children and young people to store drugs and money and/or transport them to other areas across the country.

Children and young people may be criminally exploited in multiple ways. Other forms of criminal exploitation include child sexual exploitation, trafficking, gang and knife crime.

The force’s Safer Schools Officers work with local schools to keep young people safe. They interact and engage with the young people of Merseyside and provide safeguarding and pastoral support, as well as personal, social and health education.

Faye Smith, Safer Schools Co-ordinator at Merseyside Police said: “Events likes these are vital to empowering and educating young people about County Lines and how to make positive choices in life.

“The young people tackled some tough conversations and were engaged throughout the different workshops and presentations. The feedback we have had from them, and the teachers has been brilliant.

"This hands-on event provided a creative way to educate and engage with children about the signs to look out for and where to turn to for help and advice.”

Project Medusa is Merseyside Police’s dedicated response to county lines drug dealing and the criminal exploitation of young people and vulnerable adults. Officers and staff take part in different types of operational activity including early intervention and safeguarding initiatives.

Jimmy Belmar, Senior Investigating Officer (SIO) for Project Medusa added: “Young and vulnerable children are sadly targeted by county lines gangs to be recruited to travel across the country to deliver drugs and money. It is therefore so important that we place prevention at the forefront to protect them from the harm caused by organised criminality.”

If you are a young person who is worried about being involved in county lines, or knows someone who is, you can speak to an adult and let them know how you feel.

You can contact www.fearless.org who allow you to pass on information about crime anonymously, or Childline on 0800 1111. They are a private and confidential service where you can talk to counsellors about anything that is worrying you.

The NSPCC has a dedicated topic on protecting children from county lines, you can read more here: Protecting children from county lines | NSPCC Learning.