WORCESTER has been awarded nearly £80,000 to cut drug dealing and related crimes.

The city's crime and disorder reduction partnership, known as the Safer Worcestershire Partnership, will receive the cash to distribute to groups which run front line schemes to cut drug use.

The money is a slice of the Home Office's £70m Communities Against Drugs (CAD) fund, which is in the second of its three years of operation.

All the projects awarded cash aim to break the link between Class A drugs and crime by offering treatment and support to drug-takers.

Police work alongside the groups to break up illicit drugs markets, disrupt the activities of known dealers and tackle the stolen goods market.

Zoe Cookson, community safety co-ordinator for the Safer Worcestershire Partnership, said the cash would be spent on a host of schemes, including youth outreach and CCTV vans to deter dealers.

"The cash will be used across the city to help everyone, but we will also be targeting some vulnerable communities which we have identified," she said.

"The money will help enormously - it is something we have always wanted to support, but in an area like Worcestershire there are never enough resources.

"There is never enough money, but every little helps, and this is the first time we have had a significant chunk of cash."

All local partnerships will receive the same share of £50m of the fund as they were given in the financial year that ended in March.

Other allocations included Bromsgrove £81,800; Herefordshire £116,500; £76,900; Malvern Hills £58,600; Wychavon £80,500 and Wyre Forest £84,600.

The Home Office is urging crime-fighting partnerships to make tackling street crime a priority.

They should include; high visibility policing in drug hotspots, supporting neighbourhood and street wardens, schemes for prolific offenders and support for victims' groups.

"Class A drugs and crime are clearly linked," said John Denham, a Home Office Minister.

"Tackling them both is key to ending the cycle of drug dependency and criminal activity that ruins lives.

"Whether it's CCTV, warden schemes, work with drug using offenders, or direct intervention against suppliers, we want police to have the tools they need to take action."