THE Home Office has awarded £100,000 to Greater Manchester Police so it can open a new centre that will give psychological support and mentoring to vulnerable teenagers who regularly go missing from home.
The centre will be the first of its kind and aims to offer a safe retreat for young people 13-17 year olds in the Salford area.
It will give them the counselling and the practical help they need to break the cycle of behaviour that sees them running away and finding themselves in unfamiliar and potentially unsafe environments.
There are currently some teenagers in the Salford area who have gone missing from their homes and care placements at least 100 times.
The money has been made available from the £50 million Police Innovation Fund, which provides funding for forces to invest in new ideas to transform policing.
The centre will be open from 6pm to midnight seven nights a week and will be run by staff with a range of expertise, including police officers, children’s service workers and health professionals.
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