MERSEYSIDE schools are to share a £5m subsidy to offer more clubs after class and trips away.

Last night, headteachers welcomed the cash saying it was crucial professional “role models” were enlisted to broaden pupils’ horizons.

The money is being made available from April in the form of a Training and Development Agency for Schools subsidy aimed at “economically disadvantaged children” whose parents may struggle to meet the cost of extra curricular activities.

It will be up to local authorities how they distribute the cash.

Last night it was revealed Liverpool council will get just over £2m; Wirral will receive more than £1.2m; Knowsley council will get nearly £700,000 and Sefton council will receive just short of £1m from the subsidy being rolled out across the North-West.

The cash can be used for a raft of projects to boost self esteem and widen opportunities ranging from innovative after-school clubs and holiday activities to educational outings and residential trips.

Headteachers backing the move include Elizabeth van de Waal, who is at the helm of St Cecilia’s RC Infant and Nursery School, Tuebrook.

The school has a raft of clubs.

These range from “Funky Food” sessions, in which pupils taste and sample a range of different healthy options, to a Spanish club where children learn the language and delve into Spanish culture and reproduce their own versions of paintings by artists such as Picasso.

The school also invited professional dancers into school for a new Thursday hip-hop after school club.