Manchester City Council has announced it will extend free school meals throughout the 2022 Christmas holidays to make sure that no children go hungry this winter.
Council bosses said they were responding “to the lack of action being taken by the central government” in order to address the “desperate situation thousands of people could soon face”.
The move was announced on Wednesday 5 October as part of an £8m package of local support designed to help Manchester residents deal with spiralling bills and soaring food costs caused by runaway inflation.
It is hoped that the move will pull a large number of children out of food poverty this winter, as it is is estimated that the cost-of-living crisis could adversely affect up to 100,000 households in Manchester this winter.
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As well as extending free school meals through the winter break, council bosses are also setting up a support line to connect people with local foodbanks, pantry services, and dedicated meal providers.
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Inspiration is being taken from the Council’s previous work supporting people throughout the Covid pandemic, where emergency hubs were established to provide people with essentials.
A new Cost of Living Advice Line has just gone live this week, through which residents can contact the Council via phone, or online, to get advice on how to access support this winter. between Monday and Friday, 9am–4pm.
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The number for the hub is 0800 023 2692 and will function in a similar way to the Covid emergency response seen during the pandemic, putting residents in touch with local support and advice services.
Elsewhere, the Council’s Welfare Provision Scheme is being expanded to provide emergency hardship support, and a new website has been set up to help make it easy for residents who are in financial difficulty or crisis to apply for grants and support.
Additionally, the Council and its health partners will be getting in touch with residents about Winter wellbeing information, including Flu and Covid-19 vaccination details set within help around food, heating and household bills linked to the Cost-of-Living crisis.
However, bosses recognise that far more needs to be done to avert the “impending disaster.”
Councillor Bev Craig, Leader of Manchester City Council, said: “As we head into the winter months many residents in Manchester are staring down the barrel of true hardship.
“We are proud of the work the Council has already done in recent years to alleviate poverty and create an economy in Manchester which works for everyone, but it is clear that in these dire times greater action is needed.
“The steps taken by the government have not gone nearly far enough and much more has to be done if we are to prevent our residents from slipping below the poverty line.
“A lot has been said about the impact of the cost-of-living crisis but we believe that in the absence of leadership from the centre, we need to take action with the powers we have at our disposal.
“By declaring a Cost of Living emergency the Council is laying out just how seriously we are taking this situation. We are not prepared to stand idle as more and more of our residents are exposed to hardship.”
Review | ‘This is a night to remember, Manchester’ – Jason Derulo’s Co-op Live debut
Amy Williams
Who’s ready for another throwback night? Because this was absolutely a night already full of nostalgia and one to remember.
American singer-songwriter Jason Derulo hit Co-op Live last night as part of his ‘The Last Dance World Tour’, famous for hit songs like ‘Whatcha Say’, ‘Talk Dirty’, and ‘Savage Love’ – we all remember the Covid TikTok dance, don’t we? – as well as many more.
With over 250 million singles sold and tens of billions of streams, you best believe his one night in Manchester was sold out.
Running through the big hits and everything in between, he and his dancers made it a proper party atmosphere on this fine Saturday evening.
He did his throwback songs and more; from the moment he said, “We’re throwing it back to the beginning, back to 2009″, we knew his first debut single, ‘Whatcha Say’, was about to grace our ears, and that it did.
He also brought back absolute classics like ‘Ridin’ Solo’ (I definitely lost my voice during this one) In My Head and It Girl.
The Last Dance run of shows has seen him visit places like Leeds, London, Glasgow and Birmingham, finishing his UK leg right here in Manchester, before he carries on to Europe, but we’re confident our date had the best crowd so far.
And just when you think this couldn’t get any better, he brought his little boy on stage to say hi to everyone, too – shattered everyone’s hearts.
He has that many hit songs, it wasn’t possible to get through them all, so his DJ halfway through did a mash-up of songs he’s also written and featured in, including ‘I Gotta Feeling’ by Black Eyed Peas, ‘Secret Love Song’ with Little Mix and ‘Replay’ by Iyaz.
We knew his voice was amazing – but can we have a moment for this man’s dance moves, keeping everyone on their feet at Co-op Live tonight, and his dancers made everyone want to start dance lessons tonight too, an absolutely incredible performance by all.
Jason Derulo told the audience, “This is a night to remember Manchester’, and that it absolutely was.
The signs that lead to Manchester’s silliest wonder – the Levenshulme Waterfall
Daisy Jackson
Footpaths weave their way towards it, signs point at it, water cascades from it – but it’s not quite Niagara Falls… it’s the Levenshulme Waterfall.
This natural wonder in south Manchester has been described as ‘our very own slice of paradise’ and a ‘summer holiday destination’.
In fact, not too long ago, new wooden signs appeared in Highfield County Park to point people in the right direction to find the landmark.
That’s in addition to the existing Google Maps pin pointing visitors in the right direction, which has amassed more than 100 five-star reviews.
Looking at a lot of the photos of Levenshulme Waterfall without anything for scale, you might believe you’re looking up at a waterfall cascading down from towering cliffs.
But no. The Levenshulme Waterfall is about the height of your knees.
New signsThe Levenshulme Waterfall
And while she is certainly small, the love for her in Levenshulme is mighty – and absolutely everyone is in on the joke.
In fact, the not-very-impressive waterfall even has its own social media society, the Levenshulme Waterfall Society, which is ‘dedicated to preserving one of the UK’s most beautiful natural wonders’.
Some of its tongue-in-cheek posts have included fun facts such as: “Fun fact: the City of Manchester was originally founded over 60,000 years ago to provide housing to all the pilgrims visiting Levenshulme Waterfall. The more you know!”
In another post, they played a game of spot the difference between our little waterfall and the Falls of Rauros, a fictional waterfall from The Lord of the Rings.
And once, they wrote: “Fun fact: along with Angel Falls and Victoria Falls, the Levenshulme Waterfall is one of the waterfalls of all time.”
Now with the official wooden signs directing visitors to the Levenshulme Waterfall, it’s become one of our city’s top attractions… and best in-jokes.
Georgina Pellant -
5th October 2022 
