A national voluntary basketball organisation will return to St Albans to host a ‘diverse’ tournament in February.

Organiser Michael Wallace will return with his team at TIP-OFF@3, which includes West Herts Warriors player Shane Sandiford, after hosting a successful event last September.

Met PC Wallace was keen to stress the outreach work of this tournament, which attracted almost 100 people to Westminster Lodge last year.

Mr Wallace said: “It is about creating a positive, affordable tournament and build a relationship with the community.

“We want to raise money for charity, but also bring the community together.”

TIP-OFF@3, the sister organisation to KICK-OFF@3, which hosts similar charity football events, chose to hold their first basketball event in St Albans.

The organisers were keen to approach communities that are traditionally hard to reach and under-represented in British sport.

Mr Wallace, 47, said: “There are areas of St Albans that need positive engagement so it is important that you have something that people can identify with.

“In St Albans, for example, you don’t have many events for the black community.”

He said that they also reach out to a lot of girls and children with special needs, and, thanks to the ‘welcoming’ atmosphere, it is often successful.

The event, priced affordably at £10 for adults and £5 for under 18s, has already been received with great interest.

Proceeds will go to charity Kids in Crisis - and after raising £340 for the OLLIE Foundation and Cancer Research last time, the police officer expects even more this time around.

As well as providing basketball, the event will give local bands and musicians the chance to perform and feature refreshments thanks to sponsorship from Morrisons.

Mr Wallace said: “Part of our ethos is giving opportunities to local artists and, in turn, create a fun and vibrant atmosphere.”

The tournament will be held on 23 February at Westminster Lodge. To register, email connect@kickoffat3.co.uk.