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A first look inside Manchester’s luxury Excelsior Works apartments

The Manc The Manc - 27th April 2020

Excelsior Works has always been a place of new chapters. 

Once the largest printing and bookbinding factory of its kind, the eight-storey canal-side building now houses some of the finest apartments in the city – offering an idyllic backdrop for professionals, couples or families embarking on the next phase of their life story.

Renovation of the luxury 108-apartment living space was made possible thanks to the development dream-team of Mulbury City, Manchester architect Tim Groom, and design work from YOUTH Studio.

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Drawing influence from the building’s link to printing and the neighbouring canal, YOUTH opted for ink-stained oak throughout; favouring dark mesh ceilings to mimic an industrial setting and bespoke LED lighting to represent the fluidity of the nearby canals.

YOUTH have executed standout workspace and residential projects across the world – and are currently working on Manchester’s incredible KAMPUS complex containing 570 apartments.

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YOUTH co-director Liam McGroarty said: “It was a privilege to be able to take Excelsior Works from concept to completion.

“It had to become something more than a development clinging on to its past, and thanks to the belief of the developers, we created something totally different from what people expected in a residential scheme. We focused upon creating a brand and lifestyle complementary to the location’s surroundings and future residents.”

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Find out more about YOUTH online: https://youth.studio/

Full details about Excelsior Works can be found here: https://www.excelsior-works.co.uk/

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Abuser jailed for life for sexual offences and encouraging a child to self-harm in ‘landmark’ GMP case

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant Karl Davies mugshot

A man who encouraged a vulnerable young girl to self-harm while sexually abusing her over a period of several months has been jailed for life.

Karl Davies, a 42-year-old from the Wirral in Merseyside, posed as several different men using fake social media profiles and adopted various different personalities, all in a bid to groom and manipulate his young victim.

Greater Manchester Police (GMP) offences began back in June 2023, when a Snapchat account using the name ‘Ben’ messaged the victim – a girl who was aged just 13 at the time.

The communication soon led to image sharing, before ‘Ben’ encouraged the girl to share images with another account under the name ‘Chris’. Over the following weeks, several accounts contacted the girl, disappearing and re-appearing at various points, with phone calls and further image sharing taking place.

However the accounts were, in fact, all managed by Karl Davies.

Davies used the accounts to alternate between blackmailing the victim to send indecent images, or acting supportive of her issues, and this continued for several months, with the girl sending multiple videos at the request of the different accounts – including being asked to send videos of her hurting herself, using items at the encouragement of the accounts.

Eventually, by June 2024, one of the accounts under the name ‘Sean’ told the girl that she had to meet his friend ‘Mark’ to engage in sexual acts.

That very same month, Davies – under the guise of ‘Mark’ – travelled from his home address in the Wirral to Stockport, where he picked up the girl, then aged 14, in her school uniform, and abused her in his car.

This occurred several times throughout June and July, and also during this time, some of the accounts encouraged the girl to hurt herself – with Davies providing her with a razor during one of their meet-ups for the purpose of self-harm.

In January 2025, the girl bravely came forward, and during an interview with police, went through all the details of the incidents.

A police investigation was immediately launched, before Davies was subsequently arrested on 11 February this year and remanded in custody. 

His sentencing came earlier this week (20 October 2025) at Manchester Crown Court, after he previously pleaded guilty to seventeen offences at his hearing on 22 May – including 10 counts of sexual activity with a child, four of grooming, and two of arranging or facilitating the commission of a child sex offence.

Davies additionally pleaded guilty to the offence of encouraging or assisting serious self-harm, and it’s this conviction that makes it such a ‘landmark’ case for GMP.

That offence – which falls under the Online Safety Act 2023 – is one of the first prosecuted in the country, and the first case prosecuted which involved a child.

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“As a seasoned prosecutor of grooming cases I have never before seen such sophisticated methods used to target a young person,” commented Stacey Gosling, who is a Senior Crown Prosecutor for CPS North West.

“I can only hope that as Davies begins his prison sentence, the victim can begin to move forward knowing her vile abuser has been brought to justice.”

Davies has been jailed for 20 years, with an additional five years on licence. 

Featured Image – GMP

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Manchester’s libraries to become ‘warm spaces’ with free hot drinks and WiFi this winter

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant

Manchester’s libraries are set to become ‘warm welcome spaces’ offering free hot drinks and internet access to those in need again this winter.

After millions of local residents visited the ‘stigma-free safe spaces’ to escape and take refuge from the cold each year since they were first introduced in 2022, Manchester City Council has decided to reintroduce its popular ‘Warm Welcome Spaces’ scheme again this year during the chillier months.

All 22 of Manchester‘s public libraries are, once again, taking part in the scheme this time around.

Designed to ‘provide support to people who need it’ over some of the most challenging months of the year when temperatures drop, the Council’s scheme is offering a range of different services – and they’re all for free of charge.

Free hot drinks, WiFi and internet access, data SIM cards, and newspapers are just some of the things people can make the most of inside these ‘warm spaces’, as well as get access to information, advice, and extra signposting to other support services they made need in the city.

Outside Manchester Central Library
Person holding a hot drink
Manchester’s libraries will become ‘warm spaces’ with free hot drinks and WiFi again this winter / Credit: Haydon Waldeck | koolshooters (Pexels)

There will be age-friendly spaces to connect with others, story times once a week at 11am for children under five, and even weekly digital drop-ins too.

Manchester Central Library, Miles Platting Community Library, Hulme High Street Library, Beswick Library, Longsight Library, and Abraham Moss Library are just some of the libraries taking part this winter.

All 22 libraries will be free to enter, and the Council says people can stay in them ‘for as long as you like’.

“For many years, the Council has been a proud supporter of the Warm Welcome Spaces initiative,” explained Councillor Thomas Robinson, who is the Executive Member for Healthy Manchester and Adult Social Care at Manchester City Council.

“In Manchester we have been all too aware of the impact of the cost-of-living crisis and the hardships people have suffered as a result. 

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“It’s not an exaggeration to say this work has the potential to be lifesaving. The simple act of offering a person a safe place where they can interact with other Mancunians, to not feel alone or get the help they need, can have a lasting and meaningful impact.”

Find your local free ‘Warm Welcome Space’ in Manchester here.

Featured Image – RawPixel

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