Hosted by the region’s Police and Crime Commissioner and Chief Constable and a squad of top sporting partners, teams from 16 schools will take part in a ‘festival of football’ to celebrate the conclusion of the year-long education, skills, and training programme.

Designed to help pupils aged 13 and 14 reach their full potential both on and off the pitch, a total of 180 weekly coaching sessions and practical workshops have been delivered by Everton in the Community and Liverpool FC Foundation to 750 girls from 30 schools across the region during the academic year.

Results show the course has helped improve the girls’ feelings of confidence, resilience, and leadership by 90%.

One of the participants in the program, 13-year-old Afola Olaitan, spoke about her journey: “I struggled with communicating people, I had no-one to talk to. People saying mean stuff to me, discouraging my efforts, made me really sad. I wasn’t confident…But when She Inspires started, I built up my courage and started my life again….In football training, we learnt team work, association, communication, and all sorts of football skills. In the classroom, we learnt self-care, self-esteem, confidence, encouragement, positive impacts and to be proud of yourself, no matter what.”

The Hillside High School in Bootle pupil has flourished during the programme, growing in confidence and leadership to the point she is now captain of the school football team and has signed up for a refereeing course.

The action-packed festival of football will give the girls the chance to test their skills at fun, motivational sessions led by professional coaches from the city’s two Premier League clubs and hosted by the Liverpool County FA. They will hear from former England player and Liverpool F.C Ambassador Natasha Dowie about her career at the top of the game.

They will also get the opportunity to visit a range of interactive stations and stalls hosted by Merseyside Police and a wide range of partners, including Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service, the Northwest Ambulance Service, the Merseyside Violence Reduction Partnership, and community organisations including the Police and Crime Commissioner’s Victim Care Merseyside services Catch22 and RASA.

Police Chief Constable Serena Kennedy KPM says about the program: “Positive activities like this are vital in inspiring the girls to believe in themselves so that they can be whatever they want to be. It’s great to see so many of them having fun, gaining in confidence and seizing the opportunities that this initiative offers, both on and off the pitch.”

The event looks to inspire the Year 8 and 9 pupils to consider a career in policing or the other blue light services by giving them a unique insight into life working in the Matrix team, as a dog handler or mounted police officer, or as a firefighter or paramedic. They will also be able to test their cyber skills using VR headsets and try their hand at DJing and some alternative sports, such as boxing.

Gemma Smith, LFC Foundation’s Head of Programmes, said: “We’ve been delighted with the progress of the She Inspires programme over the last year and these events are a fantastic opportunity to celebrate its success and everyone coming together to help girls to reach their full potential and provide them with the platform they need.

Today’s event is the finale of the programme which has seen training and activities running since last June, focused in areas where youth services have been cut and where the young women may not have access to many other opportunities. Delivered in partnership with schools, the girls have benefitted from up to seven weeks of free coaching sessions with additional educational activities.

Merseyside’s Police and Crime Commissioner Emily Spurrell concludes: “My thanks go to all the partners who have helped make this programme such a success and opened an exciting new world of opportunity for these young women from across our region.”