One of the North-West’s leading tech companies has partnered with Oasis Academy to give children in Oldham their very own iPad as part of a mission to make great education more accessible to everyone.
Sync – a longstanding local business that’s been charging-up Manchester for 30 years and counting – has supplied devices for all pupils and teachers at an Oldham primary school in a drive for equality.
Oldham Academy Clarksfield is part of the Oasis Community Learning family of schools – which has worked with Sync to pass along 450 iPads to local children.
The devices have helped to remove barriers some young people face in accessing learning resources outside of school.
Nigel Fowler, Principal at Oasis Academy Clarksfield, stated: “We are extremely excited to be part of the Oasis Community Learning Horizons project.
“Every child now has access to a top end device enabling them to complete research, enhance their learning, and develop as learners.
“The project is digitally transforming Oasis Clarksfield, moving us to the cutting edge of technology and learning.
“This project marries up the building project currently being undertaken and the result will be a learning environment and resources to enable us to help our children prepare for the 21st century.”
The iPad supply is part of a wider scheme titled Oasis Horizons – which is committed to delivering over 30,000 iPads to primary, secondary, sixth form students, and staff over a 12-month period.
The strategy involves improving the curriculum in Oasis academies and giving staff the chance to develop their skills within the classroom.
Tom Crump, National Education Manager at Sync, explained: “The equitable delivery of education through digital means has never been more important.
“By equipping teachers and students with an iPad, OCL is preparing for the long-term delivery of equitable learning – whether students are in school or at home.
“We are proud to be working with OCL on their ground-breaking Horizons project – the largest provision of iPad in education happening in England to date.”
Sync has been part of the tech scene in Manchester for 30 years / Image: Sync
The work with Oasis Academy Clarksfield is just one example of the ways in which Sync is supporting local education.
The company is focused on helping schools adopt and integrate technology – as well as setting up workshops and seminars for those eager to learn more about utilising tech in all kinds of educational arenas.
Sync offered free spaces to local business owners and entrepreneurs during the nationwide lockdown – including vital skills-based training courses designed for enhancing work and communication.
The Sync Deansgate site – a three-storey tech shop with an Apple desk, training suite, and conference centre – is open now with an information desk for anyone looking to find out more.
Additional information on training and events available at Sync can be found here.
Business
Manchester Airport opens another section of new Terminal 2, with Joe & The Juice and LEGO
Daisy Jackson
Manchester Airport’s transformation of Terminal 2 has hit another milestone this week, with the opening of a new section of the departure lounge.
The airport’s 10-year, £1.3bn Terminal 2 transformation project has been opening in several impressive phases, more than doubling its overall size.
The new section of the redeveloped Manchester Airport Terminal 2 is home to six new shops and foot outlets, including viral favourite Joe & The Juice, and a LEGO store.
Also opening this week are a new Starbucks, Upper Crust, Pandora, and Rituals.
The extension to the terminal first opened in 2021, with work to bring the existing building up to the same standard now almost complete.
Later this year, there’ll be more new openings to look forward to, including Chanel, Grindsmith by WH Smith, a Fever Tree cocktail and champagne bar, and the Great Northern Market – a food court with a selection of street food options.
More than 70% of the airport’s passengers will use the new facilities, and Terminal 1 will close when the project is completed later this year.
Last year the terminal extension claimed a prestigious, UNESCO-backed Prix Versailles award recognising its outstanding design.
Manchester Airport opens another section of new Terminal 2, with Joe & The Juice and LEGO
Chris Woodroofe, Managing Director at Manchester Airport, said: “It’s wonderful to see more of our new-look Terminal 2 opening to the public, further enhancing the world class passenger experience that this terminal offers.
“We have a busy few months ahead of us as we finish this transformative 10-year project.
“We’re proud to connect the people of the North with the world, and these new facilities will allow them to travel in the style befitting a major international hub, while also creating a striking first impression for visitors to our region.
“Manchester and the North are woven through the fabric of this terminal building, from the worker bee and honeycomb motif in the terminal’s design, to the many Northern brands operating shops and restaurants in our departure lounge.
“We’re thrilled to see the last pieces of the project coming together and we’re sure the 70 per cent or so of our passengers who will use the final product will be as pleased with it as we are.”
Richard Jackson, Retail Director at Manchester Airport, said: “We’re pleased to welcome so many exciting brands to our new-look Terminal 2. These brands are household names and leaders within their markets, with a reputation for quality, which makes them a perfect fit for the experience we are creating here.
“I look forward to working with them and with the brands due to open units later this year, as we put the finishing touches to the terminal.”
Beloved Stockport burger joint The Last Stop is closing its doors this month
Danny Jones
Much-loved burger joint and bar The Last Stop has announced it will be closing the doors of its original Stockport restaurant later this month.
The popular burger, gyros and Heaton Chapel hangout spot only just opened back in April 2024, but following the growing pressures throughout the hospitality sector, the team have made the decision to shut down their flagship brick-and-mortar site.
Confirming the news on Tuesday, The Last Stop informed their followers that this weekend will mark the venue’s very last round of service, “firing up the grills for the final time” and hosting one more big blowout on Saturday, 26 July.
They shared a lengthy statement explaining the reasoning behind their decision on Instagram, and fans of their food, drink and atmosphere are understandably gutted.
The post reads: “Despite a fantastic first year for The Last Stop, we’ve decided that the time is right to make a change in the Chapel.
“Over the last year, we’ve been fortunate enough to grow The Last Stop from scratch rapidly: collaborating with The Salmon of Knowledge bars (with a 3rd opening lined up for August), entering into the Egyptian Rooms [Oldham] Produce Hall [Stockport] food halls and having the pleasure of serving you thousands of burgers and gyros in the Heatons!”
“Nonetheless, whilst these ventures prove successful, well-documented cost increases and changes in consumer spending habits, since April in particular, have meant simply that our Heaton Chapel site in its current format is no longer economically viable.”
Bosses Dominic Ingleby and Niall Peters have gone on to assure that existing staff have secured positions at alternative branches, all suppliers have been fully paid up, and that their other locations are thankfully set to remain.
In fact, although one venue will be bidding a bittersweet goodbye, as hinted above, they will be moving into the old Dockyard bar over at MediaCityUK, Salford Quays, which is set to become another Salmon of Knowledge location.
The Last Stop Stockport might be closing but their NQ residence is staying put.As is their neighbouring Produce Hall pop-up stall.Credit: The Manc/The Last Stop (via IG)
We’re relieved to hear that The Last Stop name will be sticking around and it’s going for good, but Stopfordian residents are nevertheless gutted that the Heaton Chapel favourite, which became a regular quiz night, ‘sip and paint’ and late-night stop among locals, will soon be no more.
They sign off by adding: “We’d love to see you all this week for one last smashed cheese in the four walls where it all started, & to toast a pint or 7 on the Saturday!
“Thank you all for being a part of the journey and a pleasure to get to know. We’ll see you soon; maybe sooner than you think… Dom, Dom [Swarbrick] and Niall.”
We’ll leave you guys to try and figure out what that last bit means, but for now, thanks for the memories and the bloody good buns.
The Manc -
8th July 2021 
